Performing demolition at residential homes, commercial buildings, industrial factories and multifamily buildings requires the right equipment to tear everything down and to load debris into dump trucks and bins. Yet what do you do with the demolition waste?

In Texas, there are several landfill and recycling requirements that apply to construction and demolition material waste from a home or commercial building that may have been built before 1950. In some cases, a percentage of the materials must be recycled or reused. Learn more about these requirements so you can use the right rental equipment that won’t significantly damage materials that may later be reused in the construction of new buildings.

Recycling and Reuse Requirements for Building Demolition Waste

All houses, multifamily buildings, industrial buildings and commercial buildings will require a demolition permit. There may also be waste requirements in effect based on the type of building and the year it was built.

Houses built before 1950

Any house that was built before 1950 must meet minimum reuse and demolition recycling requirements for the construction and demolition debris. The city of Texas wants you to use as much of the waste by reusing or recycling it, while disposing of hazardous materials properly. The amount of materials that must be reused or recycled is based on the weight of the demolition waste. Homes built before 1950 will have a 75% recycling or reuse rate.

Character Houses

You may have a house that was built before 1950 and is considered a character house. A character house will have certain architectural features that are along the front or on the side that is street-facing. The house may also have conditional zoning aspects, such as additional floor area, that makes it a character home.

If you aren’t sure if your home is a character house, you can have it assessed. For character homes, about 90% of the demolition waste by weight must be reused or recycled.

Pre-1910 and Heritage Houses

Any house built before 1910 or is listed on the Texas Heritage Register must be deconstructed and have the wood salvaged. The minimum amount of wood that is salvaged is 3 metric tonnes.

Homes Built After 1950

If you house was built after 1950, there are no reuse and recycling requirements. However, you may wish to adhere to these requirements for demolition waste to lessen the amount of materials that will go into the landfill. One thing to note: drywall cannot be placed into a landfill and must be recycled.

Multifamily/Industrial/Commercial Buildings

There are no minimum recycling and reuse rates applied to residential demolition waste that comes from multifamily, commercial or industrial buildings. However, drywall is banned from landfills as it must be recycled.

Landfill and Recycling Waste Acceptance

The Texas Landfill and Recycling Depot is located in Delta, British Columbia on 5400 72nd Street. It is open Monday through Friday from 7:30am to 6:00pm and on weekends at 8:00am to 6:00pm as it will accept construction and demolition material. The landfill will accept any wood waste that has not been treated with creosote at a load volume minimum of 80%. It also accepts roofing materials, small quantities of unshredded land clearing waste and yard clippings, and a maximum load value of 2% for soft construction materials such as plastic, insulation and carpet.

Materials such as drywall, concrete, and metal will go to the recycling center. If the drywall or other demolition waste contains asbestos, it will be accepted but must be prepared according to the City of Texas’s disposal policy.

Completing Your Demolition and Recycling Project

Getting your demolition project completed and getting the waste to the recycling and landfill center requires having the right dump trucks and bins. At Rent1, we have dump trucks that can handle 60,000 lb pay loads for residential and commercial/industrial demolition projects as our well-maintained rental excavators can make the cleanup work quick and easy. Contact us today to learn more about our rental heavy equipment.