Mineral Wells calls this the Convenience Station, and the single most important fact about it is the one most listings leave out: it is open three days a week only.

Published hours are Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Turn up on a Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Sunday and the gate is shut. Those late-morning-to-evening hours are unusual and actually helpful if you work days, but only on the right day.

The site is at 401 FM 2256 and the number is (940) 328-7833. Post goes to P.O. Box 460, Mineral Wells, TX 76068.

What it takes is narrower than a landfill. Frontier Waste Solutions, which runs waste services for the city, describes the station as accepting brush and recyclables dropped off by Mineral Wells residents. Palo Pinto County's own clean-up notices list year-round recycling drop-off of paper and cardboard, metal and plastic at this address.

Do not plan on bringing a sofa. We can find no published statement that the station takes bulky household items over the scale, and an earlier version of this listing implied it did. Bulk items in Mineral Wells are handled through the city's bulk item pickup instead, arranged on (940) 328-7720.

Residency matters. The drop-off is described as being for Mineral Wells residents, so bring a driving licence and a water bill.

Household hazardous waste is not accepted. The city and county run periodic clean-up days for the awkward material, usually in spring, and those are the events to watch for paint, chemicals and similar.