The landfill on Taft Hill closed to the public. Where Fort Collins junk goes now.

Field notes · Checked against City of Fort Collins and Larimer County pages on September 27, 2026 · About a 9-minute read

What changed, and when

Larimer County’s solid waste page says that effective August 3, 2026 the county landfill is closed and all waste disposal services have moved to the Central Diversion & Transfer Station at 2388 West Trilby Road. The county’s regional wasteshed progress page, updated June 15, 2026, gives a slightly earlier date for the public side: as of August 1, 2026, the landfill no longer takes public disposal. The same page explains why: the landfill on Taft Hill Road is nearing final capacity and is expected to be full by the end of 2026.

For anyone in Fort Collins, the practical result is one sentence long. The county says City of Fort Collins and City of Loveland residents use the Central Diversion & Transfer Station. A pickup of junk that would once have gone up Taft Hill now goes to Trilby.

The Central Diversion & Transfer Station

The county’s disposal page says the transfer station opened on August 3, 2026, with its entrance at 2388 W. Trilby Rd., Fort Collins, CO 80526. It is open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the gates close promptly at 4:30.

Among the items the county lists as accepted are mattresses, couches, hot water heaters, furniture, refrigerators, tires and rims, carpet and TVs. The county’s A to Z list adds hot tubs, and marks mattresses as recycled there for a fee. Some material is not accepted at this site: the 2026 fee schedule excludes non-friable asbestos, mixed concrete and asphalt, dirt and sludge from the Central station.

One rule applies to everything. The county requires every load, whatever its size or weight, to be completely enclosed by a cover and secured to the vehicle, and it charges double for an uncovered load. A tarp with straps or a cargo net is part of the trip, not an extra.

What it costs at the gate

The county’s disposal page says residential cars, SUVs, vans, pickups and cargo trucks pay a flat fee rather than a price by weight. Its fee schedule, updated June 29, 2026, lists a flat $20 for a car, SUV or passenger van and a flat $37 for a pickup truck or cargo van without vertical side planks and loaded no higher than the cab. Loose waste in a trailer or box truck is $13.25 per cubic yard plus a small state surcharge, with a two-yard minimum.

Certain items carry their own price on top of that. A mattress or box spring is $40, an appliance with Freon is $36 and one without is $20, and a car or light-truck tire is $7.50 plus $6 for the rim, with state law allowing nine tires per trip. Remodel debris is priced by volume: drywall at $13.25, shingles at $36 and clean concrete or asphalt at $20 per cubic yard.

What still happens at Taft Hill Road

The old site is not shut entirely. The county says the current landfill entrance stays open for commercial recycling haulers, household hazardous waste, electronics recycling, the education center and the solid waste business office. Two of those matter to anyone clearing out a house.

The household hazardous waste program takes paint, chemicals, flammables, household cleaners, aerosols, fluorescent bulbs and batteries free from Larimer County residents, and it is closed to the public every Wednesday. Products still in good condition are offered back to the public at no cost through Drop N’ Swap. The county’s electronics recycling charges by the pound, and the same page reminds readers that under state statute, electronic devices cannot be discarded in Colorado landfills.

One loose end is worth knowing about. The City’s A to Z entry for mattresses still lists a county mattress recycling drop at 5887 S. Taft Hill Road, while the county’s own list now points mattresses to the Central station. Until the two agree, call the county before driving a mattress anywhere.

The North Landfill, for the north end of the county

The county also opened the North Landfill at 15669 North County Road 9 in Wellington on August 3, 2026, for commercial haulers and for residents who live in and near Wellington, about a 10-mile radius, including Livermore, Red Feather Lakes, Carr and Waverly. Those residents are asked to bring proof of residency: a driver’s license, a utility bill or other document showing their ZIP code. For most Fort Collins addresses, the county’s direction is still the Trilby station.

Timberline, for what can be recycled

The City of Fort Collins runs the Timberline Recycling Center at 1903 S. Timberline Rd. in two parts. The Everyday Recyclables Yard is free and open seven days a week, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. between April and October and from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. between November and March. The Hard-to-Recycle Materials Yard charges a $5 entry fee and is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the warm months and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the cold ones.

The hard-to-recycle side is where a cleanout’s awkward leftovers belong: electronics at listed prices, such as $15 for a flat-screen TV and $10 for a laptop, scrap metal including drained lawn mowers, aggregates like concrete, brick and tile, and untreated wood at $11 per cubic yard. It does not take refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners or anything else with Freon, and it has no pickup service, so visitors unload their own materials. You do not have to live in Fort Collins to use it.

Before any of that: the curb

Some junk never needs a drop-off at all. Households on the City’s contracted trash service with Republic Services get two free bulk items per year, for items under 60 pounds with no dimension over six feet: dining chairs, nightstands, card tables, luggage, old vacuums. Larger or heavier items cost extra. The program covers single-family homes and buildings of seven or fewer units inside city limits; large apartment buildings, condos, homes on dumpsters and HOAs with an exemption sit outside it.

Where the usual items go

Put together, the City and county pages sort a typical cleanout like this. The fees are public charges only, before any labor.

Common Fort Collins items and their usual official destination, from City and county pages retrieved September 27, 2026.

Item	Where it goes	Public fee
Sofa or dresser	Central Diversion & Transfer Station	$37 pickup flat fee
Two dining chairs	Republic bulk pickup	Free, twice a year
Refrigerator	Central station, after licensed Freon removal	$36
Washer or dryer	Timberline Hard-to-Recycle Yard or Central station	Ask Timberline; $20 at the county
Mattress	Central station, recycled	$40
Flat-screen TV	Timberline Hard-to-Recycle Yard	$15 + $5 entry
Paint and chemicals	County household hazardous waste	Free for residents
Car tires	Central station or North Landfill	$7.50 + $6 per rim
Drywall scraps	Central station	$13.25 per cubic yard

What this means when you hire a hauler

A hauler pays the same gate fees you would. What the change alters is the question to ask. When you get a quote, ask which facility the load is going to, whether the price includes the county’s charges for mattresses, appliances and tires, and whether electronics are going to a recycler rather than into the load.

Ask about the license too. The City’s hauler license page requires every hauler operating inside city limits to hold a City license, including junk removal companies and construction roll-off services, and to report its tonnage twice a year. The City sends a current list of licensed haulers on request to recycling@fortcollins.gov.

Finally, compare the right numbers. A $37 flat fee for a pickup load is what the county charges to accept the junk. It says nothing about the two people, the truck, the fuel, the stairs and the hour it takes to load a basement. The pricing guide keeps public fees and private planning ranges in separate tables for that reason.

If you are driving it yourself

1. Sort before you load. Electronics and scrap metal to Timberline, paint and chemicals to the hazardous waste drop-off, the rest to Trilby.
2. Check the day. Timberline’s hard-to-recycle yard is closed Sunday and Monday, the Central station is closed Sunday, and household hazardous waste is closed Wednesday.
3. Cover and strap the load. An uncovered load pays double at the county gate.
4. Bring the paperwork. For a Freon appliance, bring the signed refrigerant recovery statement if someone already removed it.

Official sources

• Larimer County Solid Waste: landfill closure, Central station and North Landfill.
• North Front Range wasteshed progress: dates, capacity and proof of residency.
• County disposal page: hours, accepted items and the cover rule.
• 2026 county fee schedule (PDF, updated June 29, 2026).
• County disposal A to Z list.
• County household hazardous waste and electronics recycling.
• Timberline Recycling Center: yards, hours and fees.
• City curbside trash and recycling: Republic Services and bulk items.
• City hauler license.
• City A to Z: mattresses.
• EPA appliance disposal rules.

All sources checked September 27, 2026. Facility rules and fees change; confirm with the facility before a trip.