Disclaimer

General information only

The guides, size charts, weight figures and regulatory summaries on this site are written to be genuinely useful and are researched carefully. They are still general information. They are not legal advice, engineering advice, environmental compliance advice or insurance advice, and they are not a substitute for confirming requirements with the relevant authority.

Weights, sizes and capacities

Container dimensions differ between manufacturers, and the weight of a given material varies considerably with moisture, age and composition. Every figure published here is an approximate working number intended to help you choose a size, not a specification. The dimensions and allowance that apply to your rental are the ones confirmed on your quote.

Regulations and permits

Massachusetts has a genuinely simpler permitting structure than some of the states our sister sites serve. There is no unincorporated territory anywhere in Massachusetts, and Berkshire County's own county government was one of eight the state abolished starting in the 1990s — there is no county permits office to fall back on anywhere in our service area. Every real permit question routes to a city or town's own government instead. Pittsfield is a city with its own mayor-council government; placing a container in a public street or right-of-way within Pittsfield requires an Occupy Right-of-Way permit through the city's own Public Works & Engineering Division, 70 Allen Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201, (413) 449-5600, applied for online through the city's permit portal. A container kept entirely on private property — a driveway or a lot — typically does not require this permit anywhere in the service area, but street or right-of-way placement generally does. The ten surrounding towns we cover — Lanesborough, Dalton, Washington, Lenox, Richmond, Hancock, Hinsdale, Cheshire, Adams and Stockbridge — are each a full, independent Massachusetts town with its own elected Select Board and its own Department of Public Works, not a branch office of Pittsfield or of any county. We have not catalogued a specific permit fee or process for each of the ten; for a job that needs street placement outside Pittsfield, confirm directly with that town's own Select Board office or DPW before you book, rather than assume Pittsfield's process carries over.

Massachusetts waste disposal bans

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) bans a specific list of materials from disposal in regular trash or a landfill statewide, regardless of which city or town the job is in: asphalt pavement, brick and concrete; cathode ray tubes (CRTs); clean gypsum wallboard; ferrous and non-ferrous metals; glass, metal and plastic containers; lead-acid batteries; leaves and yard waste; mattresses and textiles (both added to the statewide ban list in November 2022); recyclable paper and cardboard; treated and untreated wood; white goods (large appliances); and whole tires (shredded tires are permitted). Several of these need their own separate container or drop-off rather than going into a general debris load — ask us before you book if you are not sure which category your material falls into.

Hazardous materials

Handling of hazardous waste, and abatement of materials such as asbestos, is regulated under Massachusetts environmental and occupational safety law, and above defined thresholds must be carried out by licensed contractors with proper testing, notification and disposal — a rule that matters given how much of the Berkshires' housing stock predates modern building materials. Nothing on this site should be read as suggesting that such material may be placed in a container or handled without the required testing, licensing and notification.

Third-party links

We link to municipal, state and federal resources because they are authoritative and useful. We do not control their content and are not responsible for it.

Photography

Photographs on this site depict Pateman & Sons Dumpster Rentals Pittsfield's containers, equipment and team. This site does not display customer reviews, star ratings or testimonials.

Contact us about this policy

Questions can go to info@pittsfielddumpsterrental.com, by phone on (413) 553-1676, or by post to Pateman & Sons Dumpster Rentals Pittsfield, 260 Columbus Ave, Pittsfield, MA 01201.