Recycling pickup
Recycling Pickup Service in Zurich: We Collect & Deliver to Recycling Centers
We're the pickup team, not the recycling yard. disposal.ch collects furniture, bulky waste, electronics, and clearances in Zurich, then delivers everything to certified recycling centers.
Who we are
We ARE:
- A private, insured pickup and transport service for furniture, bulky waste, electronics, and full property clearances in Zurich.
- The team that sorts your items and routes each one to the correct recycling centers.
- A logistics partner that removes the need for you to transport anything to a public drop-off point yourself.
We are NOT:
- A public recycling yard (Recyclinghof) operated by the city.
- A facility you can visit or drop items off at: we have no public walk-in site.
- A processor that melts, shreds, or resells raw recycled materials ourselves. Certified specialist facilities handle that part, and we choose and pay for that routing on your behalf.
- A formal partner or affiliate of any recycling centre. We simply deliver to whichever certified facility is correct for the material, the same way anyone dropping items off would, just without you having to do the driving.
Recycling Isn't a Separate Service, It's What Happens After Every Pickup
Recycling is not a fourth thing you buy from us, it is the outcome of the services already listed on this site. Every item we collect gets sorted by material and delivered to the correct destination, or a recycling plant. We are the pickup and delivery link in that chain, not the recycling centre itself. If you already know what you need collected, go straight to the relevant page:
What If an Item Can't Be Recycled? We Handle the Disposal Too
Recycling is not always possible. Some materials are genuinely non-recoverable, and Sonderabfall such as asbestos, refrigerants, or certain chemicals must be treated as hazardous waste rather than recycled. When that happens, the same pickup still applies: we sort what can be recycled, offer what is still usable to Brockenhaus donation partners, and route only the non-recoverable remainder to licensed disposal facilities under VVEA/Abfallverordnung rules. One pickup, one fixed price, and every item ends up somewhere responsible: a recycling centre, or a licensed disposal facility.
How the Recycling Pickup Process Works
Because this page routes you toward a pickup rather than a drop-off, here is exactly what happens from the first message to the final sort:
- 1
Send photos or request a quote
Send us a few photos via WhatsApp or the online form showing what needs to go to recycling, donation, or disposal.
- 2
Get a fixed price within the hour
We confirm a fixed price based on volume and access. Nothing changes once we arrive unless the scope itself changes, and we always tell you first.
- 3
Choose a same-day or next-day slot
Pick a collection time that works for you, seven days a week, and book your collection directly.
- 4
We sort and route everything
After pickup, our team sorts each item by material and delivers it to the correct recycling facility.
Where Your Items Actually Go: Our Material-Routing Process
| Material | How we route it |
|---|---|
| Wood | Sorted and delivered to certified wood-recycling facilities for chipping or reuse. |
| Metal | Separated on collection and routed to certified metal recyclers. |
| Textiles and upholstery | Sorted for donation where usable, otherwise routed to textile recycling. |
| Refrigerants and FCKW | Handled via ChemRRV-registered specialists for safe extraction and disposal. |
| Hazardous materials (Sonderabfall) | Routed to licensed contractors under VVEA/Abfallverordnung rules. Never handled on-site by our own team. |
| Usable furniture | Offered first to local Brockenhaus and donation partners before anything is recycled or disposed of. |
What Affects the Price
Because every recycling pickup ends in the same sorting-and-routing process, the price is driven by the same factors across all of our services:
Volume and number of items: the more we collect in one visit, the better the per-item rate.
Floor and lift access: a surcharge applies per storey above ground level where there is no lift, and it is always shown in the quote before work begins.
Disassembly needed: large or built-in items that need to be taken apart before collection.
Hazardous-material handling: Hazardous materials such as refrigerants or chemicals are routed to licensed specialist contractors rather than handled by our own team, which is reflected in the quote.
disposal.ch vs. the Public Recyclinghof in Zurich
Zurich’s municipal Recyclinghof is a public drop-off yard. disposal.ch is a private pickup service. Here is how the two compare directly:
| Criterion | Public Recyclinghof | disposal.ch |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A municipal drop-off yard you visit in person | A private pickup service that comes to you |
| Who transports the items | You, in your own vehicle | We collect from your home, office, or basement |
| Cost | Often free for small household quantities, charged by weight for larger loads | Fixed price, confirmed before we arrive |
| Opening hours | Fixed hours, for example Recyclinghof Looächer: Mon-Fri 7:00-17:00, Sat 7:30-14:00, closed Sunday | 7 days a week, same-day or next-day slots |
| Getting there | Car access required at the main Recyclinghof sites. The neighbourhood Mobile Recyclinghof does not allow car deliveries at all | No transport needed on your side, we handle the entire journey |
| Heavy items, upper floors, no lift | Not handled, you carry items yourself | Fully handled, including buildings with no lift |
| Sorting before drop-off | You pre-sort by material category yourself | We sort everything for you after pickup |
| Best for | One or two small, light items you can carry yourself | Anything bulky, heavy, multi-item, or time-pressured |
Recyclinghof fees, hours, and access rules are set by the City of Zurich and can change. Always confirm current details on the City of Zurich’s own website before relying on them.
Related Clearance Services
Overall clearance and apartment clearance
If a full clearance rather than a single item is what you need, our overall clearance service combines every disposal and clearance category in one visit. If you are focused on a single home, see apartment and house clearance instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is disposal.ch a recycling centre?
No. A Recyclinghof, like Werdhölzli or Looächer, is a public municipal drop-off yard where you deliver items yourself. disposal.ch is a private pickup service: we come to you, collect the items, and then route them to certified recycling centers.
What happens to my items after pickup?
Every item is sorted by material and routed to certified recycling or licensed disposal facilities depending on the material.
Can I drop off items at disposal.ch myself?
No, we have no public walk-in location. disposal.ch is a pickup-only service: we collect from your address and handle the entire journey to the correct recycling center.
How is disposal.ch different from the ERZ Recyclinghof or Mobile Recyclinghof?
The Recyclinghof and Mobile Recyclinghof are municipal drop-off points you travel to yourself, and the Mobile Recyclinghof does not accept car deliveries at all. disposal.ch collects directly from your home or office instead, on a schedule that works for you.
Do I need to sort my items before you collect them?
No. Bring everything together in one place if you can, and our team sorts it by material after pickup. This is different from the Recyclinghof, where pre-sorting by category is required before you arrive.
Explore item-specific disposal services
Overall clearance
Every disposal and clearance category in one property visit.
Apartment / house clearance
Home-focused clear-outs with the same sorting approach.
Furniture disposal
Furniture collected from your door and routed for recycling or donation.
Sofa disposal
Sofa and upholstered seating pickup in Zurich.
Mattress disposal
Mattress collection and responsible routing.
Electronic waste disposal
E-waste sorted toward certified recycling channels.
Carpet disposal
Carpet and flooring removal with pickup.
Wood disposal
Timber and wood waste routed to the correct facility.
Kitchen items disposal
Kitchen units and appliances collected from your property.
Bulky waste disposal
Oversized household Sperrgut from your door.
Ready to Get Your Items Picked Up?
Whichever item or space you need cleared, choose the specific service below, or send us a few photos and we will confirm a fixed price within the hour.