Skip hire has always been a cost-effective solution to safely store excess materials and items in a wide variety of scenarios. But the more waste we produce, even enclosed skips become very easy to overfill.
It might not sound like a big problem, but overfilling a skip is actually illegal and can result in significant penalties you can do without. So if you’re planning on taking out skip hire for your site – like the North West skip hire we offer at A&R Skips – here are a few things you might want to know, so you can avoid overfilling your skip.
What is the punishment for overfilling a skip?
Overfilling a skip isn’t just an inconvenience – it’s a serious safety hazard for all those in the nearby environment. This is especially serious if your skip isn’t situated on private land, as it then becomes a risk to the public.
If your skip is too full and items are not safely fitted inside, your chosen company may refuse to take it and will force you to solve the issue and potentially pay an extra charge due to wasted time. The same is true if your skip is located on public land – the local council may deem your skip to be a hazard and impose their own punishment.
How skips are quickly overfilled
Poor size judgement
One of the biggest mistakes you can make is choosing the wrong size skip for your project, resulting in excess items you’re unable to store or move safely.
If you’re unsure what size skip you need for your specific job, speak to A&R Skips. With several skip sizes to choose from, we’ll have the perfect size skip to store your items and can advise you on which skip is ideal before you take the plunge.
Poor space management
If you need to dispose of your items quickly, chucking them in the skip is the obvious answer. But before you do, consider how much space you may need for discarding items later.
Is the item you’re throwing away quite large? Could it be broken down to save space? Cupboards and wardrobes, for instance, take up mass amounts of space. But with a little time and effort, they can usually be broken down pretty easily and be reduced to pieces that take up less than a tenth of the space they did previously.
Inappropriate items
You can save a lot of space in your skip straight away by avoiding throwing away items that aren’t suitable for a skip.
Items like construction aggregates, bulky items like tyres and appliances, or potentially dangerous items like hazardous waste, are commonplace in many skips – but actually need to be discarded in accordance with government recycling rules.
Doing so and avoiding including items that don’t belong in your skip means you’ll have plenty of space for the items that do!
How to avoid overfilling a skip
If you’re not familiar with skip hire, you should consider speaking to an expert first, so you can avoid any mistakes early on.
At A&R Skips, our team has years of experience helping all sorts of people and businesses with the skip hire they need to get the job done. So feel free to give us a call or drop us an email to discuss your requirements and have any questions answered.
But beyond this, there are things you can do to keep your skip-hire usage under control when you need to. A skip will come with “fill markings” as standard – these markings indicate how high the waste in your skip should go. Piling it beyond this line could result in unsafe storage and your skip being deemed a hazard.
Plus, it’s important to avoid having sharp or jagged items sticking out of the sides of your skip – these are easy to accidentally clip and could cause serious injury to you, your coworkers or pedestrians.
The easiest way to fill your skip properly is to take the time to carefully stack items as you go, and dismantle or flatten as many items as you can to ensure space is maximised.
Speak to A&R Skips for all your Northwest skip hire services
If you’re in need of skip hire in Wigan, Leigh, Golborne, or other areas in the Northwest, speak to us at A&R Skips today.
Quality commercial and industrial skip hire is our business. With a team of dedicated waste management professionals ready and waiting to deliver the skips you need – whatever the job – you can count on us every time.
We ensure 100% of waste is recycled or sent to landfill in-line with the legal standard and also offer next-day delivery on our skips – ideal if you’re in desperate need of storage in a hurry.
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