Waste Management

waste industries allows for a monthly pick up of up to 4 bulk items.  last friday of each month and you must call to schedule it

we had one last month-hopefully they will continue this option

joan_crystal said:

The problem with tag service if you have little trash is that it may take several weeks to have a full bag. In the meanwhile, organic waste may be piling up in your house. Not everything can go on a compost heap should you have one.

If something starts smelling — chicken bones, say* — you can always tag a less than full bag for pickup. Given the difference between $47.49 and $85 or $95 per quarter, you can do that a bunch of times and still come out ahead.

* We’ve gotten in the habit of wrapping chicken bones separately in a leftover bread bag or newspaper delivery bag to extend how long they can sit inside in the garbage.

DaveSchmidt said:

If something starts smelling — chicken bones, say* — you can always tag a less than full bag for pickup. Given the difference between $47.49 and $85 or $95 per quarter, you can do that a bunch of times and still come out ahead.

* We’ve gotten in the habit of wrapping chicken bones separately in a leftover bread bag or newspaper delivery bag to extend how long they can sit inside in the garbage.

Some pick ups my garbage would fit in a sandwich bag.  Same is true for other environmentally conscious residents in single person house holds.  Even half a prepaid trash bag could take several weeks to fill.  In addition to cost, there is the disposal of plastic that is being thrown out unnecessarily.  Once or twice a week pick up may be more expensive but you can put out a much smaller bag each pick up, thereby saving the environment by using less packaging.

DaveSchmidt said:

The WI website says once a week is $85 per quarter.

https://www.waste-industries.com/residential.html

If you don’t have much garbage, the tag program is hard to beat. (And you still get the convenience of putting your garbage out on either of the two pickup days in any given week.) I don’t see where the website mentions it, but it does exist.

Interesting. I was quoted 1 can 2x a week at $85 a quarter. How much do you pay for the 20 tags you get? And going with that program is around $45-50 a quarter?

joan_crystal said:

The problem with tag service if you have little trash is that it may take several weeks to have a full bag.  In the meanwhile, organic waste may be piling up in your house.  Not everything can go on a compost heap should you have one.  

I don't have THAT little trash! Typically it's one or two bags a week, so we typically only need one can pickup once a week (currently paying for 2 cans once a week and it's now $140 a quarter with WM). 

Last year we did Java for off-site composting, this year we got a Lomi-style machine from Vitamix that dehydrates and grinds your organics into a powder, so we use that almost daily. 

ridski said:

Interesting. I was quoted 1 can 2x a week at $85 a quarter. How much do you pay for the 20 tags you get? And going with that program is around $45-50 a quarter?

Yes, correct about the quarterly cost. I wish I could remember the cost of each tag, but I never give them a second thought until it’s time to reorder. And when I do, I may order 15 or 20, depending on whichever number pops into my head, plus 5 or 10 30-gallon bags, so even when I checked my credit card records I wasn’t sure how many and what combination of tags the charges reflected.

My best estimate is that we go through $15 worth of tags in a quarter. Maybe $20 if we eat a lot of chicken.

ridski said:

How much do you pay for the 20 tags you get?

Curiosity got the better of me so I just called Waste Industries. Tags are $1 for 13 gallons and $2 for 30 gallons, sold in sets of 5. (Postage may be extra, natch.) So even at 2 kitchen bags every single week the total comes to $79.49, leaving a $5.50 allowance for postage before you no longer save.

ETA: Eureka! The postage on our latest orders was $0.73.

joan_crystal said:

Once or twice a week pick up may be more expensive but you can put out a much smaller bag each pick up, thereby saving the environment by using less packaging.

The bag is a bag, whether or not it has a tag on it. Unless you’re putting out more than 2 a week, the tag program saves.

ETA: To clarify, Joan, it’s not a “prepaid trash bag.” It’s a sticky tag, with a UPC code, that you attach to your own trash bags.

DaveSchmidt said:

ridski said:

How much do you pay for the 20 tags you get?

Curiosity got the better of me so I just called Waste Industries. Tags are $1 for 13 gallons and $2 for 30 gallons, sold in sets of 5. (Postage may be extra, natch.) So even at 2 kitchen bags every single week the total comes to $79.49, leaving a $5.50 allowance for postage before you no longer save.

ETA: Eureka! The postage on our latest orders was $0.73.

Thanks for all the info, I'll definitely discuss with Mr. Ski, but even with your 2 bags a week calculations, I'd be saving $240+ a year, plus I can still get a free bulk pickup if I need it.

ridski said:

Thanks for all the info, I'll definitely discuss with Mr. Ski, but even with your 2 bags a week calculations, I'd be saving $240+ a year, plus I can still get a free bulk pickup if I need it.

Yeah, I didn't realize Waste Management was $140 per quarter.

One quirk about WI: While they bill my credit card easily enough when I call for tags, quarterly payments by card appear to require using a FluidPay portal on WI's website, which says there's a processing fee. When our bill arrives, on a single sheet of paper, I write out a check and insert it into my own envelope, which I address by pen, stick with a stamp and carry to a USPS mailbox. Just like Dad does.

ETA: And I wonder if WM's move to charge for bulk pickup means WI won't be far behind.

DaveSchmidt said:

Yeah, I didn't realize Waste Management was $140 per quarter.

One quirk about WI: While they bill my credit card easily enough when I call for tags, quarterly payments by card appear to require using a FluidPay portal on WI's website, which says there's a processing fee. When our bill arrives, on a single sheet of paper, I write out a check and insert it into my own envelope, which I address by pen, stick with a stamp and carry to a USPS mailbox. Just like Dad does.

ETA: And I wonder if WM's move to charge for bulk pickup means WI won't be far behind.

I'm guessing they will once enough people have switched to their services. 

WI is picking up a lot of customers from WM in Maplewood.

DaveSchmidt said:

Yeah, I didn't realize Waste Management was $140 per quarter.

One quirk about WI: While they bill my credit card easily enough when I call for tags, quarterly payments by card appear to require using a FluidPay portal on WI's website, which says there's a processing fee. When our bill arrives, on a single sheet of paper, I write out a check and insert it into my own envelope, which I address by pen, stick with a stamp and carry to a USPS mailbox. Just like Dad does.

ETA: And I wonder if WM's move to charge for bulk pickup means WI won't be far behind.

Interesting about the billing. I don't have any more checks and I refuse to pay for checks from a bank I spent 15 years working for, so I guess I'll have to suck it up on the processing fee.

I think all Maplewood residents would like to know the rules and regulations concerning Waste Management and Waste Industries. Hopefully,the Township Committee can let  us Know. Things seem to change and the residents are not notified.

Then write to them. They don't come here anymore.

Most of the Committee members do read MOL especially if they are not newcomers. That is beside the point. Everyone wants to know what’s new. There is a lot of info out there   But it is incorrect. Calling up Waste Management does  not help. You get different answers. There was a time when residents living in different sections of  town were charged different amounts(not the same garbage company).Would like to know what’s what.

I have written and called the Township Committee, and no one has seen fit to return my communications about this.  Facebook seems to be their vehicle of choice for communicating with residents, but I don't think they are commenting on this issue on Facebook, either. 

Back in March 2022 Dean Dafis wrote this on Soma Lounge:

"Waste is private. Recycling is town contract. They all suck, collude, and take advantage. We’re noting issues to take back to them, but your direct advocacy to them is where the rubber meets the road in this instance. Blow up their phones and emails. Demand better service."

A response to this included this question:

"You have a town contract with them that provides leverage to force them to be ethical and your response is they all suck?"

To which Dean Dafis responded: 

"we DO NOT contract with waste pickup only recycling"

Later he wrote:

"I don’t disagree with any of your points, but the lack of leverage isn’t because of lack of trying but rather because of the lack of competition. These two companies are the ones that service this region and they collude on pricing and practices. As I said, I will note these issues to them and threaten to contact Consumer Affairs if rate changes weren’t noticed or communicated as required, all I’m saying is that you as the customer should do the same."

ETA: There are more comments from Mayor Dafis if you have a Facebook account and area  SOMA Lounge member. Here's the thread: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SOMabusinessfriends/permalink/2576595332473221/

Thank you, Ridski.  This sheds light on why my emails and phone call have not been answered.  

It irks me that the Township Committee will only communicate through Facebook, a company that helped elect Trump in this country, helped push through Brexit, knowingly has a deleterious impact on the self image of countless young people, etc.

I guess I should write Consumer Affairs.  

I remember when wm had a little office on Springfield avenue, I used to go there and pay my bill. There was always someone there that you could talk to. This whole social media madness is becoming very anti social 

Elle_Cee said:

It irks me that the Township Committee will only communicate through Facebook ...

And apparently only through a private Facebook group at that. Phooey.

More Waste Management insanity:  customer service was unavailable for approximately three hours this morning.  I had to call corporate customer service in TX to get something done about it.  Don't know whether it was that phone call that got it going, but when local customer service was back up, it took me a half hour to get through, both on the phone and with online chat.  What is going on with this company.

Contrary to the Mayor's assertion in Ridski's post above, NJ Department of Environmental Protection has jurisdiction over waste haulers because they are considered public utilities.  I intend to get in touch with someone in that department to discuss the decline in WM's service.  

Elle_Cee said:

More Waste Management insanity:  customer service was unavailable for approximately three hours this morning.  I had to call corporate customer service in TX to get something done about it.  Don't know whether it was that phone call that got it going, but when local customer service was back up, it took me a half hour to get through, both on the phone and with online chat.  What is going on with this company.

Contrary to the Mayor's assertion in Ridski's post above, NJ Department of Environmental Protection has jurisdiction over waste haulers because they are considered public utilities.  I intend to get in touch with someone in that department to discuss the decline in WM's service.  

Good luck. DEP is difficult to access because they are not set up to deal with the public except for environmental emergencies. If you do get through, ask if they will tell you of any companies, other than the two, that are servicing nearby towns. It is possible, there aren't any.

Then we go to the other question --- investigating a municipal run service. Initial cost would be about $200k per truck. Those trucks would be diesel and would have a long service life.... or.... wait a couple of years and investigate electric trucks. Town would buy the electric chassis and fit a "packer" body onto it.

Labor: wages, medical, Workers Comp, pension, safety uniforms and so forth, would be costs. But these are already included into what we pay to Waste Mgt. I believe it would work if it also became a shared service with S.O.  

Before honking on the idea, be aware that Millburn and Summit both have municipal service. I know that Millburn was approached about "going private" in the 60's. It was considered at the town administrator level and then dropped. Of course, there wouldn't be anyone in Millburn administration who would remember such. But it was considered and the service remains as a municipal one. There must be a reason. 

And Millburn has, twice a year, curbside bulk item pick-up, provided by the road department division of the public wo --- HEY, don't we already have a public works department, with trucks and public works employees?

Uproar response, in 5, 4, 3, ....

I got through to DEP surprisingly easily, was transferred to someone with oversight over the right department who gave me the contact info for the people who investigate waste haulers.  Haven't called them yet, as I'm busy trying to get WM to pick up our garbage.  Transferring garbage hauling to the town would be a great idea if the town could manage it.  However, the town seems to be staggering under the load of its current responsibilities.  

oots said:

waste industries allows for a monthly pick up of up to 4 bulk items.  last friday of each month and you must call to schedule it

we had one last month-hopefully they will continue this option

I was told the pick up is Saturday? Perhaps I should put the stuff out on Thursday night so I don't get missed Friday if the cs agent was misinformed. 

Formerlyjerseyjack said:

Then we go to the other question --- investigating a municipal run service. Initial cost would be about $200k per truck. Those trucks would be diesel and would have a long service life.... or.... wait a couple of years and investigate electric trucks. Town would buy the electric chassis and fit a "packer" body onto it.

Labor: wages, medical, Workers Comp, pension, safety uniforms and so forth, would be costs. But these are already included into what we pay to Waste Mgt. I believe it would work if it also became a shared service with S.O.  

Before honking on the idea, be aware that Millburn and Summit both have municipal service. I know that Millburn was approached about "going private" in the 60's. It was considered at the town administrator level and then dropped. Of course, there wouldn't be anyone in Millburn administration who would remember such. But it was considered and the service remains as a municipal one. There must be a reason. 

And Millburn has, twice a year, curbside bulk item pick-up, provided by the road department division of the public wo --- HEY, don't we already have a public works department, with trucks and public works employees?

Uproar response, in 5, 4, 3, ....

far more economical would be contracting with Newark, which has all of this already.  Regionalized services are more cost effective.  

the18thletter said:

I was told the pick up is Saturday? Perhaps I should put the stuff out on Thursday night so I don't get missed Friday if the cs agent was misinformed. 

yes-it is

we put it out on friday after we make the appt

oots said:

yes-it is

we put it out on friday after we make the appt

OK. So you just put it out on Friday and it's actually picked up on Saturday like WI says? I'm an early bird so I've never put recycling or bulk items out the day before. 

the18thletter said:

OK. So you just put it out on Friday and it's actually picked up on Saturday like WI says? I'm an early bird so I've never put recycling or bulk items out the day before. 

I have had pick up as early as 6 am, both recycling and trash companies get to me really early these days.  That is why I put everything out the day before a scheduled pick up.