Really obvious question I don't know the answer to: mattress disposal

[Feelingabitashamed]

Hi everyone,

Bit of a daft question that most other functioning adults will probably know the answer to.

I live in London and have an old mattress to get rid of. No car to drive to the tip.

How do I dispose of it? A lot of people just seem to leave them out and they disappear but is this allowed?? Do the scrap metal guys pick them up? I know the springs are metal but it seems a heck of a job to extract it all.

Looked on the council website and its not that clear!

Thanks

You pay sometime to collect it and take it to the tip. Or the council may also offer that service for a flat fee for 'x' items.

In my city you can call council to ask for a special collection(which you pay for). Or ask a friend to drive me to the dump.

No, don’t leave it out, imagine if everyone did that!!
We have a service from our local council that picks up large items. They must be clean and dry though.
Failing that you will need to hire a ‘ man with a van’
Make sure they have the relevant paperwork to authorise them to use the tip

You local council might have a similar service to mine:
Look at the Environment or Household Waste section, there’s an online form where you book and pay for a collection (around £30 where we are), you leave the mattress outside for collection at the designated time - not the day before because it just looks awful. If you can’t find the form, call the council and ask to speak to their Environment department.

Thanks everyone, that's so useful. I will have another look on the council's website and ring them if need be.

We have a large items collection service. Costs £42 for 6 items.
I asked neighbours if they had anything they wanted to get rid of, to share the cost.
We had 2 sofas, a bunk bed, an armchair and 2 kingsize mattresses between us so I only paid £6 for my mattress disposal.

You could try Freecycle website if it's not too bad? Collection only.

It's a bit battered to be honest Mosaic123 was a crappy one to start with and has not lasted well

This reminds me of the time I had to try to get a king-size mattress into a Peugeot 106 ( no roof rack) on my own. Trying to keep it folded while also trying to shove it in the boot. Not a fun experience.

The council will probably charge about 20 quid. If you know someone doing a tip run they may take it for less for you, but beware of rubbish collectors who advertise online or come to the door as they may well take your money and dump your items round the corner.