How much does a storage unit cleanout cost in Virginia?

There is no single price for a storage unit cleanout in Virginia. Companies quote on how much of their truck the contents fill, how heavy they are, how much sorting they do, which items carry disposal surcharges and how easy the unit is to reach. Behind every quote is what the local landfill or transfer station charges, and those public fees are the one part of the price that is published and dated. Two costs sit on the storage side too: the rent you keep paying until the unit is empty, and what Virginia law lets a facility do if the account falls behind.

What drives the price

Volume. Most crews price by the share of the truck the load takes up, with a minimum charge for small jobs. A small unit of boxes may be a fraction of a truck. A large unit packed to the ceiling with furniture can take more than one load.

Weight. Landfills charge haulers by the ton, so density matters as much as size. EPA's volume-to-weight table puts uncompacted mixed municipal solid waste (residential, institutional and commercial) at 250 to 300 pounds per cubic yard,^[8] loose paperback books at 428 pounds per cubic yard,^[8] and a single refrigerator at 250 pounds.^[8] Years of stored books, files, tools and old appliances make a modest unit expensive.

Sorting time. A crew that only loads is cheaper than one that opens every box with you to decide what stays. If you sort before they arrive, say so in the request.

Surcharge items. Refrigerators, freezers, dehumidifiers, tires and mattresses cost disposal sites more to handle, and the charge is passed on per item.

Access at the facility. A drive-up unit with the truck parked at the door is the easy case. An upper-floor unit, a long hallway from the loading area, a slow elevator or tight gate hours all add crew time.

What they will not take. Paint, fuel, propane, pesticides and other chemicals are usually excluded. Pulling them out yourself avoids a surcharge or a refused load.

The storage side of the bill

Under Virginia law, the care, custody and control of what is stored in a unit stays with the tenant unless the rental agreement says otherwise.^[4] In practice, emptying the unit is your job, and the rent keeps running until you do. Check your agreement for the move-out notice period and whether a partial month is billed, then book the crew so the unit is empty before the next billing date.

If the account is behind, settle it before you plan anything else. The facility has a lien on everything stored in the unit for rent, labor or other charges,^[1] and while you are in default it may deny you access to the unit.^[2] If a default is not cured within 10 days, the facility can move toward selling the contents at public auction,^[2] after a further notice that gives you not less than 20 days to pay.^[2] You can pay what is owed and redeem the contents at any time before the auction.^[2]

Do not leave things behind to save on hauling. Under a Virginia law enacted in 2026, the facility may treat items left behind after a rental agreement ends as abandoned and dispose of them within 24 hours after a 10-day period from its written notice.^[3] Read your agreement for any cleaning or removal fee it charges on top.

What public disposal sites charge

These are the fees the public pays at county and regional facilities. They are not cleanout prices, but they are the disposal cost inside any quote, and what a dump run of your own would cost.

Fairfax County. Fairfax County's residential drop-off fees for July 2026 to June 2027 charge $98 a ton for unbagged trash, with a $39 minimum,^[5] or $21 for one to five standard 32-gallon bags and $28 for six to ten.^[5] By the item it is $17 each for a dresser or desk, sofa, chair or recliner, dining table, carpet or pad, or mattress and box spring,^[5] $11 for a small single item such as a vacuum cleaner,^[5] $15 for each refrigerator, freezer, dehumidifier, air conditioner or other appliance that needs its refrigerant or a capacitor removed,^[5] and $14 each for one to ten passenger tires.^[5]

Montgomery County and the New River Valley. When we checked on October 27, 2026, the Montgomery Regional Solid Waste Authority listed mattresses, furniture and other bulky material at $76 per ton,^[7] a $19 Freon removal fee for each appliance not certified as Freon-free,^[7] and a $19 surcharge per propane tank.^[7]

Ways to bring the price down

Donate what still works. Habitat ReStores accept new and gently used furniture, appliances and building materials, and many offer free pickup of large items.^[9] Call your nearest store first, because each one decides what it takes.

Take the hazardous pile yourself. Fairfax County's household hazardous waste program takes gasoline, paint, paint thinner and rechargeable batteries free from county residents.^[6] Other localities run their own sites or collection days.

Sort at the unit before the crew comes. A unit where the keepers are already out and the haul-away is stacked near the door is faster to load and easier to price.

Split the job. If most of the contents are moving to a new home, a moving crew or a rental truck may handle that part, with a junk removal crew quoting only on what is left.

What to ask for in a written quote

• One all-in price, or a clear per-volume rate, covering labor, travel and disposal.
• The minimum charge, and how they will measure the load on the day.
• Every per-item fee: appliances, tires, mattresses, televisions and anything else.
• The list of what they will not take.
• Whether the price changes if the unit holds more than your photos show, and by how much.
• Whether they have worked at your facility before and know its gate hours and rules.

For more on comparing companies, see what to ask a junk removal company before booking and how much junk removal costs in Virginia. If the unit belonged to a parent or relative, what an estate cleanout costs covers the wider job.

Stop and call a pro if

• You find rodent droppings or nests in boxes or furniture. Virginia's health department says to wear rubber, latex, vinyl or nitrile gloves,^[10] wet the area with a disinfectant or a solution of 1 1/2 cups of bleach to a gallon of water,^[10] and never sweep or vacuum dry droppings, because that puts dust in the air.^[10] A heavy infestation is a job for a cleanup crew.
• The unit holds things too heavy to move safely, such as a safe, a piano, a chest freezer or a full tool chest.
• You find leaking containers, unlabeled chemicals or fuel cans.
• Boxes and furniture are wet or covered in mold growth.

Getting quotes on Loclis

Browse more junk removal and moving answers, see storage unit cleanout services, or find junk removal and moving businesses around Blacksburg. For prices you can compare, describe the unit once on Loclis with photos, and businesses quote on the same load.