Hampshire runs from the New Forest across to Portsmouth and up to Basingstoke, and the work changes completely along the way. 51 clearances have landed in Hampshire postcodes. The busiest have been RG22 in Basingstoke, SO51 at Romsey, SO42 out in the Forest, PO2 in Portsmouth and SP10 at Andover.
Three counties in one
The New Forest end — Lymington, Ringwood, New Milton, Brockenhurst — is roomy family houses and large bungalows on generous plots, most of them lived in by the same people for a very long time. The sheds, garages and lofts hold forty years of memories and of things kept just in case. These are rarely quick jobs, because there is usually a lot to be sorted through before it leaves the property, and we would rather say so than find out on the day.
Portsmouth, Southsea and Havant are more densely built, terraced and short of parking. A Victorian terrace in Southsea with a controlled parking zone and no driveway takes more planning before the clearance can start.
Basingstoke, Andover, Farnborough and Fleet are newer, easier to work in, and run more to house-sale deadlines than to estates.
Where it goes
Anything that cannot be reused is loaded first and taken to a licensed commercial transfer station. What can be used again is left until last: suitable furniture, working white goods, kitchenware, books, tools, bedding and clothing go to charity shops and reuse projects, and metal goes for scrap. Sofas and armchairs that are not fit for donation go down the POPs route, because of the persistent organic pollutants in the upholstery and padding; mattresses are counted individually; fridges and freezers travel separately for regulated degassing.
Loads from the western side of the county cross the Dorset line to W&S Recycling on Kennington Road, BH17 0GF. Elsewhere we use SUEZ on Military Road in Fareham, PO16 8TU, and at Station Road, Ash Vale, GU12 5QD, Collards on Cardiff Road in Reading, RG1 8PQ, and TJ Waste at Dibles Wharf, SO14 5QY — a few of the options open to us across the county. Nothing goes to a household recycling centre: those are for residents' own waste, not for a business clearing a house on a customer's behalf.
Our waste carrier registration is CBDU419679. Transfer notes come back from every load — tell us if you want a copy for your records or for an estate file.
What we cover
The Hampshire pages below run across SO, PO, RG, GU, SP and the BH districts on this side of the boundary. Hayling Island is reached over the bridge and is covered on the same terms as the mainland.