Whether you are managing a residential space, a commercial or business space, or a relatively small domestic construction project such as a home renovation, you’ll need to make plans for the waste that will be generated by the activity. Project managers and property owners who are taking on construction projects, for instance, are legally required to ensure that the garbage generated by the construction site is managed and disposed of appropriately.
Usually, handling construction waste means hiring a waste management company to collect and manage the waste, but that is not all. You’ll also need to pay for the use of skips to allow the waste to be stored and collected. If you are strategic with your skip hiring, you may be able to save some money in this area.
Minimise waste by Recycling/Reusing/Redirecting
You can reduce your costs by minimising waste. This means carefully considering the quantities you need before buying supplies and choosing the right skip size. In the UK about 13% of the waste generated by construction sites is material that has been purchased but won’t be used and it eventually ends up discarded as waste. Does this mean that many contractors are perhaps over estimating the amount of materials they need to complete a project?
Instead of adding to waste management costs, this usable waste can be redirected to sites that need material. If you choose to donate this excess material, you have less waste to pay to dispose. You can also choose to resell it and in this case, meaning you’re likely to make money in the process too. If less waste goes into the skip, you’ll have fewer skips to hire. If you recycle, reuse or redirect some of your waste yourself, you’ll also reduce the need for skips.
Skip Sharing
You can also choose to share a skip with your neighbour should it prove convenient. This way you could split costs and save up to half of what you would spend by yourself. This is a workable option if you and your neighbour are both carrying out projects at the same time and your waste won’t require excessively large skips. It may be a bit tricky to determine where to place the skip in this situation though.
Choose the Optimal Time for Skip Hiring
Skip hiring companies usually charge based on skip size and on the length of time for which you use their skips. The shorter the period of time you have the skip for, the lower your costs will be. You will pay for fewer days if the skip gets emptied promptly as it is filled. If you time the hiring perfectly, you’ll be using the skip for the shortest possible period, which of course means lower costs. But if you hire the skip too early, it may not be filled in time for collection or the scheduled collection may not happen soon enough for you to save costs.
Keep it on Your Property
Placing the skip outside your property will likely attract additional costs. If you plan to place the skip on public property such as the road near your property, you will need a permit from your city’s council. This permit will come at a cost. Of course, if your property has no suitable space to house a skip temporarily, you’ll have no choice but to bear this additional expense.
Choose Skip Size Carefully
When it comes to saving money, skip size matters. Larger skips may cost more money than smaller ones so if you are confident that the waste your site will accumulate will be small go ahead and select the cheaper, smaller skip. But if you underestimate the volume of your waste, your cost could go up. If the skip you selected is too small, you run the risk of needing to hire a second skip and extending the hire.
But how do you know which size skip to hire? Well you need to have an idea of the sizes and capacities. Most reputable skip hiring companies will make this information easily acessible (on their website for example). Conventional skip sizes range from the mini 4 Yard Builder skip to the large 40 Yard Roll On Roll Off Skip. This knowledge is even more important if you are a first time skip hirer and with Skip Hire Calculator’s you won’t need to guess which skip you need to hire.
Avoid Overfilling the Skip
Some people who underestimate the size of their waste may be tempted to overload the skip. This would be a costly mistake. Your contractor could refuse to collect the waste, which means you’ll have the skip in your possession for longer and will have the added expense of hiring another skip and transferring some of the waste.
Sort Waste Carefully
Another costly mistake with skip hiring is putting the wrong items in the skip. This is another reason for disposal companies refusing to collect waste. Be sure to sort the waste material as directed by your waste management company. The last thing you want is for your waste (particularly hazardous waste) to be rejected and to find yourself left with the added costs or hassle that come with an extended hire and waste sorting.
Shop Around
If you spend some time mulling over the offers and packages from various skip providers, you should be able to secure the most cost-effective option for your situation. You can check online for the services offered by companies like Enviro Skip Hire to see which companies offer the best packages for your needs.