Appliance Removal
Old Appliance Out, Without the Back Strain or the Guesswork
A dead refrigerator is 250 pounds of awkward. A broken washer will not fit in your car, your trash service will not touch it, and the scrap guy from the classifieds never showed. Legendary Ways hauls refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, stoves, dishwashers, and water heaters out of kitchens, basements, and garages, then routes them to certified recyclers so the metal gets recovered and the refrigerants are handled legally.
We bring the muscle, the dollies, and the appliance dollies with stair climbers. You bring nothing but the go ahead.
Book an Appliance PickupEvery Appliance We Remove
Appliances are their own category of junk for a reason. They are heavy, they are bolted or plumbed to the house half the time, and several of them legally require special handling before disposal. Here is what our crews pick up and the specific quirks each one brings.
Refrigerators and Freezers
The heavyweights, in every sense. Fridges and freezers contain refrigerants that federal law says must be recovered by a certified technician before the unit is scrapped, which is why you cannot just leave one at the curb. We handle doors off transport for safety, and chest freezers from basements are a specialty. Empty it out, and we do the rest.
Washers and Dryers
Laundry machines are dense, top heavy, and usually live in the two worst places to carry things from: basements and second floors. We cap water lines at the valve, unplug or unhook the vent, and use stair climbing dollies to walk them out. Stacked units are fine, and we take pedestals and hoses along with them.
Stoves, Ovens, and Ranges
Electric ranges just need unplugging, and we take those anytime. Gas stoves must have the gas line shut off and capped before removal. If your line is already capped we haul immediately, and if not we will ask you to have a plumber or your utility close it first, because safety around gas is not negotiable.
Dishwashers
Built in dishwashers need the water supply, drain hose, and power disconnected, and the mounting brackets unscrewed from the countertop. If yours is already pulled out, great. If it is still installed, tell us when you book so we schedule a crew comfortable with the uninstall, which we offer on most jobs for a small add on.
Water Heaters
Tank water heaters must be drained and disconnected from water, power, or gas before they ride. A drained 50 gallon tank is still an ungainly 130 pounds, which is exactly the kind of problem we exist for. We also take tankless units, expansion tanks, and old water softeners.
AC Units and Dehumidifiers
Window units, portable ACs, and dehumidifiers all contain refrigerants, so like fridges they are banned from ordinary trash. We collect them for certified recovery and recycling. Central AC condensers count too, once a licensed HVAC tech has disconnected them from the line set.
Why Appliance Disposal Has Rules
Older refrigerators, freezers, and air conditioners contain refrigerants that are potent greenhouse gases, and units made before 1995 may contain ozone depleting CFCs. Under Section 608 of the Clean Air Act, venting these gases is illegal, and refrigerant must be recovered by certified technicians before an appliance is scrapped. A fridge also holds oils, compressors, and in very old units even mercury switches and PCB capacitors.
That is why “just take it to the dump” does not work: most transfer stations refuse refrigerant appliances outright or charge a special fee with proof of recovery. The good news is that roughly 75 percent of a typical appliance by weight is recoverable steel, aluminum, and copper. When we haul your unit, refrigerants are recovered first, then the appliance goes to a metal recycler, so the raw material actually gets reused. Curious what else has special rules? Our guide to what junk removal companies take covers every restricted category.
The Pickup, Start to Finish
- Before we arriveEmpty the appliance, defrost the freezer if you can, and make sure gas lines are capped by a professional. Clear a rough path if it is easy to do, but do not move anything heavy, that is our job.
- On arrivalThe crew confirms the price in writing based on the units and the carry. One appliance from a garage takes minutes. A basement freezer plus a laundry set upstairs takes a bit longer, and the quote reflects exactly that, agreed before we start.
- The carry outWe use appliance dollies, stair climbers, and door protectors. Doors get taped or removed for the trip, floors get runners where needed, and tight corners get a second set of hands rather than a shove.
- After the truck leavesRefrigerant bearing units go to recovery, then everything is weighed in at licensed metal recyclers. If you need documentation of recycling for a property manager or a rebate program, ask and we will provide it.
Appliance Removal Pricing
Appliance jobs are usually quoted per unit rather than by truck fraction, because the weight matters more than the space. Typical 2026 ranges for full service removal look like this, with your firm number confirmed on site before any work starts. For context on how these fit into overall hauling prices, our junk removal cost guide lays out the whole market.
- Single standard appliance $75 to $150
- Washer, dryer, dishwasher, or stove from an accessible ground floor location.
- Refrigerator or freezer $100 to $200
- The refrigerant recovery step and the extra weight push fridges slightly above other appliances.
- Water heater $100 to $175
- Drained tank units, disconnected and ready to carry.
- Each additional appliance $30 to $75
- Bundling is the single best way to save. The truck is already there, so unit two and three cost far less than unit one.
- Difficult access varies
- Multiple flights, crawl spaces, or uninstall work add modest labor time, quoted transparently up front.
Replacing rather than just removing? Retailers often offer haul away when delivering a new unit, sometimes free and sometimes $25 to $60, but they typically require the old unit disconnected, emptied, and waiting, and many will not enter basements or take a second appliance. We fill exactly that gap: we come whenever you want, from wherever it sits, and we will take the old furniture and garage clutter in the same trip.
Repair, Replace, or Remove: A Quick Sanity Check
Removal is the last step, so make sure it is the right one. The repair industry’s rough rule is worth borrowing: if a repair costs more than half the price of a comparable new unit, and the appliance is past the midpoint of its expected life, replacement usually wins. Typical lifespans run 10 to 13 years for refrigerators, washers, and dryers, 9 to 12 for dishwashers, and 8 to 12 for water heaters, so a $400 compressor quote on an eleven year old fridge is really a down payment on the next failure.
Energy is the quieter factor. A refrigerator from the early 2000s can use two to three times the electricity of a modern efficient unit, which is why the old fridge humming in the garage as a beverage backup often costs more per year in power than it would cost to remove. Utilities in many regions used to pay bounties for exactly those second fridges, and some still run rebate or pickup programs for working units, so check your provider’s site before booking anyone. If the appliance is dead, none of this deliberation applies, and the only question left is who carries it out.
What Actually Happens at the Recycler
Since we charge money partly on the promise of responsible disposal, here is what that looks like when your appliance leaves in our truck. First stop is refrigerant recovery for anything that cools: certified technicians pull the refrigerant into sealed recovery cylinders, and the recovered gas is either reclaimed for reuse or destroyed, never vented. Units old enough to have mercury switches or PCB capacitors get those components pulled next, because they must never reach a shredder.
Then the appliance goes to the metal stream. Shredders reduce it to fist sized pieces, magnets pull the steel, eddy current separators kick out aluminum and copper, and the foam and plastic residue is handled per local rules. Steel is infinitely recyclable without losing quality, and appliance steel routinely becomes rebar, car parts, and yes, new appliances. Roughly three quarters of a typical unit by weight re enters the material stream, which beats every alternative ending a dead washer can have. When you see recycling fees on an appliance quote, this pipeline is what the fee is buying, and it is why the fee is smaller than the fine for skipping it.
The Mistakes That Cost People Money on Appliance Disposal
After enough pickups, the same five mistakes keep appearing, so consider this the do not do list. Leaving a fridge at the curb “for the scrappers” works right up until it does not: an unclaimed refrigerator becomes a code violation, and in most states an abandoned fridge with doors attached is a legal liability because of the child entrapment risk that door removal laws exist to prevent. If a unit sits outside for any reason, take the doors off or strap them shut, today.
Second mistake: paying a mystery hauler from a classified ad who quotes suspiciously cheap. The economics of legal appliance disposal include refrigerant recovery and gate fees, so a price below that floor is funded by a ditch somewhere, and dumped appliances get traced back to owners more often than people expect. Third: wrestling a unit downstairs solo with a rented dolly, which is how appliance disposal becomes an urgent care visit; the machines are top heavy and they win. Fourth: leaving food in the fridge “since it is going anyway.” A week of transport and staging turns that into a biohazard the crew has to bag in your driveway, so empty it, wedge the door ajar overnight, and everyone’s day improves. Fifth: forgetting the water. Washers and dishwashers hold a surprising reservoir; a towel and a tip forward over the drain pan before pickup day keeps your floors dry when the unit tilts in the hallway.
None of these are catastrophes, and crews fix all five weekly. But every one of them is cheaper to avoid than to solve, and now you have the list.
For Landlords and Property Managers
Rental units chew through appliances, and the dead ones accumulate in basements and garages with remarkable speed. We run standing arrangements with landlords and management companies: bulk pickups of stacked units from storage areas, coordinated swaps on delivery day for unit turnovers, and documentation of recycling for the file. Multi unit pickups price well because the truck makes one trip for many appliances, so the per unit cost drops steeply after the first. If a full unit needs clearing along with its appliances after a tenant departure, we fold it into a single visit with our furniture removal crew rather than billing two jobs.
Common Questions About Appliance Removal
Do I need to disconnect the appliance first?
Electric units, no, we unplug them. Water connected units like washers and dishwashers, we can disconnect at the valve on most jobs. Gas appliances are the exception: a plumber, HVAC tech, or your utility must shut off and cap the line before removal. It is a quick, inexpensive visit and it keeps everyone safe.
Is my old fridge worth anything as scrap?
A little, but less than people hope. Scrap yards pay by weight for the steel, typically a modest sum for a whole fridge, and many will not accept it until refrigerant recovery is documented. Some utilities run rebate programs for old working fridges, which is worth checking before disposal. If it is dead, professional removal is usually worth more in saved hassle than the scrap value ever would be.
Can you take the appliance if it still works?
Yes, and working units get a better ending. Functional appliances in decent cosmetic shape are offered to charity partners and reuse programs before any recycling happens. Tell us it works when you book so the crew routes it accordingly.
Do you remove built in or commercial appliances?
Built in dishwashers, wall ovens, and cooktops, yes, including basic uninstall on most jobs. Commercial kitchen equipment like reach in coolers and fryers, also yes, with a heads up so we bring the right crew. Fryers must be drained of oil first, and we can point you to cooking oil recyclers.
Can I just put my appliance out for metal scrappers?
In some neighborhoods, an appliance at the curb vanishes within hours to independent scrappers, and for simple all metal items like a washer that can genuinely work. The risks are the exceptions. Refrigerant units stripped on a curb often get their coils cut and gas vented, which is a federal violation happening on your property line. Units that do not vanish become code violations addressed to you, and doors left on a curbside fridge are a legal child safety issue in most states. If you go this route anyway, remove fridge doors, keep the unit off the street itself, and give it a 48 hour deadline before arranging real disposal. A scheduled pickup skips the gamble entirely.
Do you offer discounts for multiple appliances or combined jobs?
Effectively yes, through how volume pricing works: the first appliance carries the trip cost, and each additional unit adds only a small increment, so a three appliance pickup costs far less than three separate visits. Combining appliances with furniture or general junk works the same way. The cheapest disposal per item you will ever get is the day a truck is already in your driveway, so walk the property before we arrive and point at everything.
How fast can you pick up an appliance?
Usually within a day or two, and same day when a route truck has capacity. Single appliance pickups are easy to slot in, so mention if the dead fridge is currently defrosting onto your kitchen floor and we will treat it with appropriate urgency.
One last word on timing: the best day to remove a dead appliance is the week it dies, while the path to the door is still clear and before the garage absorbs it into the permanent collection. Every crew has hauled a fridge that “was going to go to the dump next weekend” for eleven years. Book the pickup, reclaim the floor space, and let the recycling stream have its steel back.
