The North depository at 9003 North Main Street is a City of Houston residential drop-off centre, free to use, and one of six spread across the city.
Two limits here are numeric and easy to fall foul of. Tyres are accepted, but only passenger tyres, only five per visit, and no more than ten in a calendar month. Truck tyres are refused outright, as are industrial and tractor-trailer tyres. Used motor oil is taken as well, capped at five quarts. Bring more than that and the surplus comes home with you.
A third limit catches gardeners: tree stumps and limbs measuring more than nine inches across will not be accepted, and leaves must arrive in compostable bags rather than loose or in plastic sacks.
The site opens Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. until 6 p.m., and closes Monday and Sunday. The department asks that you arrive thirty minutes before closing so there is time to unload.
Households have four visits a month. Bulk and tree waste call for a current Texas ID alongside a Houston utility bill or lease carrying the same address; recycling alone needs only the ID.
Also taken: cans, cardboard, glass, newspapers, magazines, cartons, aerosol cans, plastics one through five and seven, mattresses, appliances, and refrigerators tagged to show the refrigerant has gone. Furniture is limited to two large pieces.
Not taken: rubbish, food waste, televisions, rocks, dirt, bricks, pallets, paint, fertiliser, flammables or burned material.