Residential Refuse Collection

How We Keep Bartow Clean & Beautiful

The Solid Waste Department (SWD) provides waste collection services to over 5,600 households. Your solid waste account is automatically opened when your electric or water service is activated. A solid waste collection charge of $23.72 will appear on your monthly utility bill. This collection charge is not a tax; it is a fee for waste collection services provided by the City of Bartow. SWD collects garbage, recyclables, yard waste, junk, furniture, tires, appliances, electrical items, and dead domestic animals from the City right-of-ways and much more. SWD provides roll-off containers for construction and demolition debris removal. For more details, please see the Recycling webpage and the Roll-Off Service webpage.

The City uses automated trucks to collect all waste once per week. Garbage, yard waste, junk, appliances, and recyclables are collected on the same day, once per week. Please see the Residential Refuse Collection Day Directory (PDF) for your neighborhood's collection day.

Roll-Out Carts

After opening your utility account, two City-provided roll-out carts are delivered to your residence: one for garbage collection and one for recycling. Each cart bears a serial number that will be assigned to your property address and shall remain at the assigned property regardless of whether you sell or move.

  • Additional carts are available for $6.33 per cart, per month.
  • Customers terminating or transferring a utility account and not returning assigned carts will be charged an additional $70 on the final utility bill.
  • You must remove your cart from the curb by dark on the day following collection or be fined $5 per occurrence.

Request a Roll-Out Cart

Email SWD to request one cart for garbage and one cart for recycling.

Repair or Replace a Roll-Out Cart

No problem! All city-provided roll-out carts are covered by SWD's lifetime maintenance and replacement program. 

  • Email SWD for repair or replacement. 
  • Leave your damaged cart at the curb and for no additional charge, SWD will repair or replace the city-provided roll-out cart.
  • A police report will be required to replace a stolen or vandalized roll-out cart at no charge.
  • A roll-out cart replaced due to the customer's negligence will require a $6 per month charge for twelve months to be added to the customer's utility billing account.