Roof tear-off: container, weight and what you cannot throw in
A 20 yard container. Shingles are dense, so weight runs out long before volume. Size to the tonnage, not the pile. Expect $325 to $775 for the rental, and check the material list below before you start — this job produces 2 things worth verifying.
- Recommended
- 20 yd³
- Constraint
- Weight-limited
- Weight limit
- 2–4 tons
- Typical cost
- $325–$775
How much debris this job produces
Count roofing squares — 100 square feet each. Three-tab averages about 250 pounds per square, architectural closer to 400. A 25 square roof in architectural shingles is about 5 tons, which is already over the included tonnage on most 20 yard rentals.
Why this size and not the next one
Shingles are dense, so weight runs out long before volume. Size to the tonnage, not the pile. The 20 yard is the most-rented size in the country and it is still 4 feet tall, so you can throw over the side instead of walking the door. That combination is why it is the safe default.
What goes wrong on this job
- A second or third layer of old shingles doubles or triples your tonnage and is only discovered once you start
- Wet decking and old felt add weight nobody estimated
- Ask for a shingle-specific rate — many haulers price a clean shingle load below mixed debris because asphalt has a recycling outlet
Materials from this job that need checking
- Accepted
Asphalt roofing shingles
Accepted, and often at a dedicated shingle rate because they are heavy and many regions have asphalt recycling markets for them. Tell the hauler it is a roof job when you order — shingle loads are usually priced differently from mixed debris.
Hauler policy Construction debris - Conditional
Untreated lumber and wood
Standard C&D material nearly everywhere. Massachusetts bans wood from disposal, so in-state it is separated for processing rather than landfilled.
Massachusetts: Wood is a banned material under the state disposal bans. (310 CMR 19.017)
We have not verified this material against your state’s own regulator. That means unknown, not allowed — check with your state before you load it.
Varies by state Construction debris MA
Sources
- Primary source MassDEP Waste Disposal Bans — Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection · last reviewed 2026-08-17
mass.gov refuses automated requests from this build environment (HTTP 403). The ban list was read from the publisher’s own guide through a search index and cross-checked against the October 2021 amendment document below.