Clear the guest room first, then the garage and the lanai, and get the junk out with a small dumpster or a furniture pickup a week or two before guests arrive. Starting early in the month gives you time to sort without rushing.
About two weeks before the holidays, it's time to deal with the extra furniture and boxes in the guest room, since someone is going to sleep in it soon. We do Punta Gorda junk removal, Port Charlotte dumpster rentals, and cleanouts across Charlotte and Lee County, and this is the order we'd suggest for getting the house ready for company.
Why does the guest room fill up?
Many houses have one spot where things go when nobody has decided what to do with them. It might be the spare room, a corner of the garage, or the lanai. It was supposed to be temporary, and then a year went by. The broken lamp is still there, and so are the boxes from the last move.
The holidays are a good reason to deal with it, since guests set a firm date. Start with the obvious things: anything broken, anything you forgot you owned, and anything you've walked around for a year. If you haven't missed it in that time, you probably won't.
Where should you start?
Start with the guest room, because someone is going to sleep there. Pull out everything that doesn't belong in the room, and set it in the hallway or the garage to sort. Get the bed usable, get the closet usable, and give your guests a place to set a suitcase.
Sort what came out into three groups: keep, donate, and throw away. Put the keep items where they belong right away, so they don't end up back in the guest room. Load the donate items in the car and drop them off that week.
Guest rooms often hold old furniture, and furniture is awkward to get rid of. If you have a dresser, a futon, a mattress, or a box spring to get rid of, our furniture removal service can pick it up so it isn't leaning against the house when everyone pulls into the driveway. Text us a photo and we'll send back a price range, fine-tuned on site.
What about the garage?
After the guest room, the garage comes next. The holiday decorations are usually stored there, so you'll be going in anyway. While you're pulling out the decorations, clear the broken lawn gear, the bikes the kids outgrew, and the boxes nobody has opened in years.
Some garage items need special handling. Oil-based paint, solvents, fuel, and propane tanks can't go in a dumpster. Lee County residents can use the household chemical waste center at 6441 Topaz Court in Fort Myers. In Charlotte County, call Solid Waste at 941-764-4360 for the current drop-off. Dried latex paint is fine. Tires and batteries are $10 each if you set them aside and tell us, or $25 each if we have to dig them out of the load. Old refrigerators and freezers have refrigerant that has to be handled a certain way, and we take them at no extra fee. The full list is on our what goes in a dumpster page.
Why is holiday timing different in Florida?
In Southwest Florida, guests arrive during the busy season. From roughly December through April this area fills up with visiting family, returning snowbirds, and seasonal renters, so the guest room you've been using for storage has a date on it whether you planned one or not.
That makes the lanai worth clearing too. It's the overflow space in many houses here, and it's often the first place guests spend time. Patio furniture that didn't survive the summer, pool toys, an old grill, and boxes that got moved out there in June can all go. Clearing the lanai changes how the house feels as much as any room inside.
If you also have a rental or a seasonal place to turn over before the season, it can make sense to clear both in the same week.
What size dumpster for a holiday cleanout?
For a cleanout across the guest room, the garage, and the lanai, a roll-off dumpster in the driveway lets you fill it on your own schedule over a few days. Every rental includes delivery, pickup, disposal, driveway protection, and 3 days, and extra days are $25 each.
The 15-yard at $349.99 covers a guest room and a lanai with room left over, and it includes 3,000 pounds. It holds about six pickup-truck loads.
If the guest room is the only room in play, the 7-yard at $324.99 with 2,000 pounds is enough, and it takes up less of the driveway while family is parking there.
Household clutter is mostly light and bulky, so space runs out before weight does. Keep the load level with the top rim so it can be hauled safely.
Should you rent a dumpster or call for a pickup?
Rent a dumpster when you're clearing several rooms over a few days and you have help to carry. Call for junk removal when it's a few large pieces, like a sofa, a mattress set, and an old dresser, or when you'd rather not lift anything. For junk removal we give you a price range from your photos, fine-tuned on site, and it can be paid by any method. Dumpster rentals are paid by credit card.
You don't have to be home for a junk pickup, as long as we can get to the items and you've told us what's going. That helps when you're working during the week before company arrives.
What about after the holidays?
After the guests leave, there's usually another load: shipping boxes, packaging, broken decorations, and the tree. Flattened cardboard and packaging can go in a dumpster or on our truck, and a natural tree counts as yard debris once the lights, stand, and ornaments are off. If you know you'll have a second round of clearing in January, tell us when you book, and we can plan a second dumpster or a pickup for after the holidays.
When should you book?
Give yourself a head start. Book the dumpster or the pickup early in the month, sort a little at a time, and finish before the cooking and the travel take over. Plan the dumpster pickup for a few days before guests arrive, so the driveway is clear for parking.
We work all over Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda, and the rest of Charlotte County and much of Lee County, seven days a week, and the earlier you call, the more delivery days you can choose from. Tell us what you're clearing and we'll suggest the right size or the right haul. Call or text (239) 412-3283 to get the guest room ready.