Who picks up old appliances in Las Vegas

The short answer

Four routes, in rough order of cost. Retailer haul-away when you are buying a replacement. Your municipal bulk pickup if the item can get to the curb. A scrap metal yard if you own a truck and the appliance has value in it. Or a flat-price pickup where someone else does the carrying.

Our prices, disposal included:

Cooling appliances are the hard ones

Fridges, freezers and air conditioners contain refrigerant, and refrigerant is regulated. It has to be recovered by someone certified to do it before the metal shell can be processed. That is why a fridge is not the same kind of item as a dresser, and why some disposal routes that happily take furniture will turn away a refrigerator.

This matters more in Las Vegas than almost anywhere, because of the garage fridge. Practically every valley home with a three-car garage has a second refrigerator out there for drinks, and they die constantly. A compressor running in a 120-degree garage through July is working far outside what it was designed for. When it finally quits, it is a dead cooling appliance sitting on a hot slab, and it needs the proper route.

Same story for air conditioning. A failed outdoor condenser or heat pump unit is $115. A large window AC unit at 8k BTU or more is $109, a small one is $87, and a portable is $85. In this climate, AC equipment fails during the exact week you least want to deal with it.

Retailer haul-away

If you are buying a replacement, ask about haul-away at the point of sale. Most major appliance retailers offer to take the old unit, sometimes included and sometimes for a fee, and it is generally the cheapest route available.

The catches are consistent. It usually only applies to a like-for-like swap, so a new fridge gets the old fridge taken but not also the dead freezer in the garage. It normally requires the old unit to be disconnected and accessible. And the delivery crew will refuse anything that is not on the paperwork. Confirm the terms before delivery day, not while the truck is in your driveway.

Utility and retailer recycling programs

Energy efficiency programs that collect working-but-inefficient second refrigerators and freezers exist in various markets and the terms change over time. It is worth a look at your electricity provider's current efficiency program page, because if one is running it is normally free collection and sometimes an incentive.

Two conditions are near universal: the unit has to be working when they collect it, and it has to be a size they accept. A dead garage fridge does not qualify. A working one you want gone might.

Your municipal bulk pickup

Most valley residential trash service includes some form of large-item collection. Check your own address on your city's or county's bulk-pickup page, since Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson and unincorporated Clark County each run their own rules.

What to verify before you count on it:

• Whether refrigerant-containing appliances are accepted at all, which many programs handle separately.
• The set-out window, which your HOA in Summerlin, Anthem, Green Valley or one of the Henderson master plans will enforce to the day.
• Whether doors have to be removed from a fridge or freezer, a standard safety requirement.

And remember the part that is not on any web page: you still have to get a 250-pound refrigerator from the back of the garage to the street, alone, across a sloped driveway.

Scrap yards

Appliances are mostly steel and there are scrap operations in the valley that will take them. If you own a pickup and can load it, this is a legitimate option and occasionally pays a little. Call for current terms first, because policies on refrigerant-bearing units vary by yard and the payout for a household appliance is modest.

Realistically this route only makes sense if you already have the truck and the appliance is already outside. Renting a vehicle to scrap one dryer does not pencil.

Flat-price pickup, carried out

Our number covers the carry, the load and the disposal. A standard fridge out of the far bay of a three-car garage in Southern Highlands is $164, the same as one sitting at the curb. A stacked washer/dryer wedged into a laundry closet in a Henderson townhouse is $189.

A few practical notes for appliance jobs here:

• Disconnect first. Water lines, gas and power should be shut off and disconnected before we arrive. We are not plumbers or gas fitters.
• Empty and defrost. A fridge that has been off in a hot garage for two weeks needs to be emptied before the crew opens it.
• Book early in the day in summer. Appliance carries out of a garage are the hottest work there is between June and September.

Combinations add cleanly. Washer and dryer together are 133 + 128 = $261. A fridge plus a chest freezer from the garage is 164 + 146 = $310. The minimum for any visit is $75.

Which to choose

Buying a replacement? Take the retailer haul-away. Working second fridge you want gone? Check for a utility program. Own a truck and the appliance is outside? Scrap it. Otherwise, particularly if it is a dead garage fridge that nobody in the house can move, book the flat price and let it go.

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