Bed frame disposal in Cleveland: metal, wood and upholstered

The short answer

A bed frame can go out in City of Cleveland bulk week, the first full week of each month, as one of your three bulk items. Metal frames are good scrap. Upholstered frames need wrapping like any cloth furniture. If you would rather it was carried out, a standard metal or platform frame is $68, a solid, upholstered or storage frame is $126 for twin to queen and $152 for king.

Know which frame you have

The price and the best route depend on the type.

• Metal rail frame. The basic steel frame under a lot of box springs. Light, folds or bolts apart, good scrap value.
• Platform frame. Wood or metal, no box spring. Often flat-pack.
• Solid wood bed. Headboard, footboard and rails. Heavy, often older, sometimes worth selling.
• Upholstered or storage bed. Fabric-covered, sometimes with drawers or a lift-up base. Bulky and heavy.
• Adjustable base. Motorized, very heavy, with electronics inside.

Taking it apart

Most frames come apart with a hex key or a socket wrench. Do it before you start carrying. The upper floors of Cleveland's doubles and the third floors of Heights houses have stairs that will not let an assembled queen headboard and footboard through at the same time.

Tape the bolts to one rail so the next owner gets them, if it is going to be sold or given away.

Upholstered frames sometimes have staples and hidden screws. If it will not come apart cleanly, leave it. A crew will carry it out as one piece.

Free routes

Bulk week

Up to three bulk items per home, first full week of the month, on your regular day. A disassembled metal frame is easy to set out. An upholstered frame counts as cloth furniture and has to be wrapped in plastic, as do the mattress and box spring if they are going out too. That is three items and the whole month's allowance.

Scrap metal

A steel frame is welcome at scrap yards. It will not pay much, but it gets it out of the basement.

Give it away

Solid wood beds and newer platform frames do get picked up when posted for free, especially near the university campuses at the start of a school year.

Drop-off

City residents can take it to the Ridge Road Transfer Station, 3727 Ridge Rd, Monday to Saturday 9 to 3, or the Carr Center at 5600 Carnegie Ave.

If you live outside the City

Cleveland's bulk week only covers City of Cleveland addresses. The inner-ring suburbs each set their own rules, and upholstered frames are where they differ:

• Lakewood: upholstered furniture, mattresses and box springs must be wrapped and sealed in plastic. Bags are $3 at the city Drop-Off on Berea Road, and an improper set-out draws a minimum $100 fee.
• Parma: Rumpke picks up bulk with weekly trash, but mattresses, box springs and upholstered furniture must be wrapped in sealable plastic.
• Euclid: upholstered pieces go out only if double wrapped in plastic and sealed with duct tape.
• Cleveland Heights: four items per pick-up on a rotating route, with fabric items wrapped.
• Shaker Heights: bulk by request only, up to three items, placed on the driveway.

A bare metal frame is the easy case everywhere. An upholstered king bed with its mattress and box spring takes three wrapping jobs and, in Shaker, the whole three-item allowance.

Flat pickup prices

The order minimum is $100. A metal frame alone at $68 is billed at $100, so it usually makes sense to send the mattress with it.

The whole bed, added up

• Metal frame + queen set: $68 + $143 = $211.
• Upholstered queen frame + queen set: $126 + $143 = $269.
• Upholstered king frame + king mattress + box spring: $152 + $114 + $92 = $358. A king set instead: $152 + $143 = $295.
• Kids' room: bunk bed + two twin mattresses: $123 + $82 + $82 = $287.
• Headboard + metal frame: $57 + $68 = $125.

Three Cleveland bedrooms

University Circle, end of a fellowship

A solid wood loft bed and a twin mattress in an apartment near the hospitals: $148 + $82 = $230. In an elevator building, ask the management office about freight elevator times; a building COI is emailed within 1 hour.

Beachwood condo, downsizing

The guest room's adjustable base, king mattress and an upholstered headboard: $118 + $114 + $57 = $289. The base is heavy and awkward, which is the main reason people don't attempt it themselves.

Upstairs of a Slavic Village double

Two kids' rooms after a family moves out: a trundle bed and a daybed. $100 + $89 = $189, both carried down the narrow back stair.

When to book

Book a pickup if the bed is upstairs and too heavy to manage, if bulk week just passed, or if you are doing a full bedroom and the three-item cap will not cover it. Crews carry from any floor with no stairs fee. Pick items on the instant quote, choose a 2-hour window, and book by 4 PM for same-day.

Frequently asked questions