4 Great Reasons To Protect Your Dumpster From Rain And Snow
If your dumpster doesn't have a lid, protecting it from rain and snow can be a bit tedious. You've got to pull out your tarps, wrap them around your bin, and then secure the tarps with rope or bungee cords. Is it really necessary to go through all this effort? As a matter of fact, it is. Check out the below 4 benefits of protecting the contents of your dumpster from precipitation.
Fewer Odors
When you smell a funny odor coming from your dumpster, you're not actually smelling your garbage. What you're really smelling is the waste produced by the millions of microorganisms that are working to break down your trash. You can't get rid of these microbes; they're a crucial part of the ecosystem and literally found everywhere from seven miles deep in the ocean to 40 miles up in the sky. Stinky microbes are going to find your dumpster, and they're going to get to work chowing down your trash.
However, certain conditions affect the rate at which these microbes can break down your trash, and moisture is one of those conditions. When the waste in your dumpster goes through wet and dry cycles, the microbes work a whole lot faster than if they were to consistently remain in a dry environment. If you cover your garbage to keep it dry, then you'll slow the microorganisms enough so that most of the odor-producing decomposition happens at the landfill as opposed to in your yard or driveway.
Less Mess
When your trash collector comes to pick up your garbage, they're going to hoist the dumpster up and empty it into their truck, which is equipped with a compactor. As the compactor works to maximize space by squishing your garbage, all the water that the trash has soaked up is going to leak out onto your yard or driveway. This water will likely be riddled with bacteria, and it'll smell pretty bad, too.
You certainly won't be your garbage collector's favorite person after this, considering the fact that the compactor's controls are located on the outside of the garbage truck; he or she will be forced to dodge the stream of stinky water as they operate the machine.
A Smaller Footprint
And where do you think the rainwater that is compressed out of your garbage goes once it hits the ground? If there is a storm drain anywhere in the area, it will make its way to surrounding rivers, lakes, and streams. Such pollution has been linked to fish kills, frog deformities, and other environmental problems.
A lot of harm can come from polluted dumpster water runoff. Take the time to cover your dumpster before it rains, and keep a small spill containment kit on hand in case you do experience a dumpster runoff spill for some reason. The containment kit need contain nothing more than a few flexible spill berms to stop the spill from spreading and some absorbent socks or pads to soak the spill up.
Cheaper Trash Removal
Some trash removal services charge by the size of the trash container, but with the stipulation that the container must weigh under a certain weight at time of pick-up. Saturated garbage weighs more than dry garbage, and if you continuously exceed your containers weight limit, you'll face surcharges, or you'll be required to upgrade your container to one with a higher weight limit.
How much weight can rainwater add to your garbage? For every gallon of water it soaks up, you can expect its weight to increase by about 8.3 pounds.
It may be a bit tedious to cover up your dumpster to protect it from rain or snow, but it's absolutely necessary. Use a waterproof tarp fastened securely around the outside of your dumpster to prevent precipitation from entering it. If you don't feel you can make this commitment, it's time to shop for a rental dumpster that comes equipped with a lid. For more information, contact a professional service, such as Road Runner Waste Service Inc.