What Size Dumpster Do I Need? A Quick Guide for Des Moines Homeowners

By Dumpster Doctor • January 15, 2026

Picking the wrong dumpster size is the most common mistake homeowners make. Too small and you end up needing a second haul, which doubles your cost. Too big and you overpay for space you do not use. This guide matches common Des Moines projects to the right dumpster size so you can order once and get it right.

Think in Pickup Truck Loads

The easiest way to estimate your dumpster size is to think about how many full-size pickup truck loads of debris your project will create. Here is how our three sizes compare:

• 15 yard dumpster: Holds about 4 to 5 pickup truck loads
• 20 yard dumpster: Holds about 6 to 8 pickup truck loads
• 30 yard dumpster: Holds about 10 to 12 pickup truck loads

If you have been piling debris in your garage or yard, try to picture how many truck beds it would fill. That gives you a solid starting point.

Project-by-Project Size Recommendations

Garage Cleanout

A single-car garage cleanout with boxes, old furniture, bikes, and general storage clutter almost always fits in a 15 yard dumpster. If you are clearing a two-car garage that has been accumulating stuff for a decade or more, step up to a 20 yard to be safe.

Bathroom Remodel

A single bathroom remodel produces a manageable amount of debris: old vanity, toilet, tile, drywall, and fixtures. A 15 yard dumpster handles this comfortably. If you are doing two bathrooms at once, a 20 yard gives you breathing room.

Kitchen Remodel

Kitchens generate more waste than most people expect. Cabinets are bulky, countertops are heavy, and there is often flooring and drywall involved. A 20 yard dumpster is the right call for a full kitchen gut. For a smaller update where you are only replacing cabinets and counters, a 15 yard may work.

Full Home Cleanout

Estate cleanouts and whole-house purges where you are emptying most rooms need a 20 to 30 yard dumpster depending on the size of the home. A 1,200 square foot home usually fills a 20 yard. Anything larger than that, go with the 30 yard.

Roofing Project

Shingles are heavy. A single-layer tear-off on a typical Des Moines home (1,500 to 2,500 square feet) produces enough material to fill a 30 yard dumpster. The weight is the real concern here, and our 30 yard comes with 5,000 lbs included, which covers most single-layer roofing jobs.

Contractor Demo Work

Contractors tearing out walls, flooring, or framing on a remodel project should start with a 20 yard dumpster for smaller jobs and a 30 yard for anything involving multiple rooms or structural demo. If you are a contractor doing regular work in the Des Moines metro, text us about repeat-customer scheduling.

When to Size Up vs. Size Down

Size up if your project involves any of the following: mixed materials (furniture plus construction debris), multiple rooms, or bulky items like mattresses and couches that take up a lot of space even though they are not heavy.

Size down if your debris is mostly flat, stackable material like drywall sheets or flooring, which packs efficiently and uses less volume than you might expect.

When in doubt, go one size up. The price difference between a 15 yard and a 20 yard is only $20 for the same rental period, but ordering a second dumpster because the first one filled up costs significantly more.

Still Not Sure? Let Us Help

Check out our full dumpster size guide for detailed dimensions and visual comparisons. Or take the shortcut: text us a photo of what you need to get rid of at (515) 490-8027 and we will tell you exactly which size fits your project. We would rather put you in the right dumpster than upsell you on one that is too big.