Trash and Recycling
Date Reminders:
Heavy Tree and Junk Waste alternate on the 4th Friday of the Month
Heavy Tree Waste Months are January, March, May, July, September, and November.
Junk Waste months are February, April, June, August, October and December.
Download the Houston Solid Waste Management App
Houston Solid Waste Management has launched HTX Collects, a mobile app that will allow residents to stay better connected with the City’s waste and recycling collection programs.
Click here to learn more about it HTX Collects
The app is available for iOS or Google and the solid waste schedule can be downloaded directly into your mobile calendar. City of Houston will also provide updates regarding delays or changes in schedules.
Please try to schedule big yard jobs that will generate a lot of waste close to the time of Large Tree Waste pickup. If tree waste sits out for weeks it will kill your grass, increase the abundance of mosquitos and other bugs and create an unsightly mess for your neighbors.
Please do not put heavy junk or tree waste out on the curb prior to the Thursday evening before collection.
Trash pickup for Kempwood North subdivision is handled by the City of Houston Solid Waste Management Department. Fees for this service are built into the city water bill; there is no separate bill for trash.
General Information
Kempwood North is located within the Northwest Service Area
Regular trash pickup: Every week on Friday.
Recycling pickup: Every other Friday
Keep trash bins 3 feet away from each other and other objects, don't park near the bins and don't block the mailboxes.
For members located on Springview Lane and Railton which are both dead end streets and do not have a cul-de-sac for trucks to turn around, all trash and recycle bins must be lined up on one side of the street. For the 9700 block of Springview it is the south side and 9600 Railton is the north side. Trucks must back down and can only use the automated lift system on one side of the truck.
Junk waste and tree waste: 4th Friday of the month, alternating by month. Junk waste is collection is on the 4th Friday of even numbered months and large tree waste is on the 4th Friday of odd numbered months.
Do not put Junk or Tree Waste under power lines, or near anything that might be damaged by the collection claw, such as your mailbox or water meter.
Household Trash
Bag household garbage and put it in the 90-gallon black bin provided by the city. Place the bin at the curb after 6pm on Thursday night. Instructions for proper placement are on the lid. Hide the bin out of sight from street view again before 10pm Friday after collection.
Yard trimmings must not be placed within this container.
As a courtesy, you may hear the trash collectors honk the truck horn if they can't reach your trash. Check for cars and other obstructions if this happens.
If you are in need to an additional trash bin, the "Add-a-Can" service is available for an additional fee.
For more information, visit this page.
Trash can repair at your home is included in your fee. Call 311 for City Services or visit the Houston 311 web site.
Curbside Recycling
Put your mixed recyclable items unbagged in the green bin provided, and place the bin at the curb on recycling days (every other week).
Acceptable items for recycling include:
Plastics - #1-5, and #7 plastics (but not toys, packing materials, flower pots, plastic bags, or plastic furniture)
Aluminum and tin cans and empty aerosol cans
Cardboard (cut down and flattened)
Cartons (milk, soup, drink, crackers), including coated and foil-lined
Newspapers, magazines, catalogs
Telephone books
Envelopes, home and office paper, mail (no dark colors or foil)
Clear, green, and brown glass
Remember to empty, rinse and drain all containers.
Yard Trimmings and Tree Waste
The City of Houston recycles natural waste through these programs:
Yard trimmings (grass clippings, leaves and twigs) are collected weekly on regular trash days. The city requires approved compostable bags for yard trimmings. Place the bags near your trash bin.
Tree branches may be put in bundles up to 4 feet long and 18" in diameter, weighing not more than 50 pounds. If possible, set out on Tree Waste days.
Tree Waste is natural wood such as tree limbs, branches, and stumps. (Furniture, lumber, and other wood products are considered Junk Waste.) Tree Waste is collected every other month on the 4th week (January, March, May, July, September, and November) and is rendered into mulch.
(Tree Waste can be put out on Junk Waste days, but it will be landfilled instead of composted.)
Junk Waste/Heavy Trash
Junk Waste includes furniture, appliances, and other bulky material. It is collected every other month on the 4th week (February, April, June, August, October, December) alternating with Tree Waste. You can put out up to 8 cubic yards of material, but with no more than 4 cubic yards of building materials (other than brick or concrete). Junk Waste may be placed on the curb no earlier than the evening of the previous Friday (one week in advance of scheduled pickup).
Contractors performing maintenance on your property must remove the waste they generate, and not leave it for the city to collect.