English
Eesti 
Русский 
The waste station does not weigh your junk – it measures it in cubic metres. And until you know how many cubic metres you have, you do not know what the removal will cost either. Here are three ways to work it out yourself in five minutes.
The short answer. One cubic metre is a box measuring 1 × 1 × 1 metre. A three-seater sofa is about 2.5–3 m³, a full cellar storage unit 5–8 m³, and the contents of one room 8–12 m³. At the waste station a cubic metre of bulky waste costs a Tallinn resident 10.30 €, and 31 € when we take it there.
What a cubic metre actually is
A cubic metre is not a weight or a count – it is space. Picture a box with each side one metre long. That much space is one cubic metre.
A washing machine takes up about a third of that box. A three-seater sofa takes three such boxes. Fourteen fit in a van.
Important: space counts, not weight. Two cubic metres of duvets cost exactly as much at the station as two cubic metres of oak furniture, even though the weight differs tenfold.
Way 1: measure the pile
If the junk is already in one place, this is the most accurate. Measure the length, width and height of the pile in metres and multiply them together.
Taken there yourself, the same pile would cost a Tallinn resident 3.6 × 10.30 €, i.e. 37 € – but then you have to load it and drive it there yourself.
Way 2: go by the room
If the junk is scattered around, there is no point hunting for a tape measure. These figures come from practice and are rarely off by more than a couple of cubic metres.
| Space | Typical volume | What fits there |
|---|---|---|
| Balcony or storage room | 2–4 m³ | boxes, old appliances, bikes |
| Cellar storage unit | 5–8 m³ | jars, leftover furniture, building offcuts |
| One furnished room | 8–12 m³ | wardrobe, bed, table, small items |
| A kitchen without appliances | 4–7 m³ | units, worktop, sink |
| A two-room flat | 10–15 m³ | the entire contents |
| A three-room flat | 12–20 m³ | the entire contents |
| Garage | 10–20 m³ | tyres, metal, timber, tools |
| Attic | 10–25 m³ | decades of accumulation |
Way 3: count the items
The surest way when there are few items and you know exactly what is going. Add the volumes up and multiply by the rate.
| Item | Volume | Taken yourself | Via us |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corner sofa | 4–6 m³ | 41–62 € | 124–186 € |
| Three-seater sofa | 2.5–3 m³ | 26–31 € | 78–93 € |
| Two-seater sofa | 2 m³ | 21 € | 62 € |
| Wardrobe, whole | 1.5–2 m³ | 15–21 € | 47–62 € |
| Wardrobe, taken apart | 0.6–0.8 m³ | 6–8 € | 19–25 € |
| Mattress 160 × 200 | 1.5 m³ | 15 € | 47 € |
| Bed with frame | 1.5 m³ | 15 € | 47 € |
| Armchair | 1 m³ | 10 € | 31 € |
| Dining table | 0.8 m³ | 8 € | 25 € |
| Chest of drawers | 0.6 m³ | 6 € | 19 € |
| Chair | 0.4 m³ | 4 € | 12 € |
| Rolled-up carpet | 0.3 m³ | 3 € | 9 € |
| Large rubbish bag | 0.1 m³ | 1 € | 3 € |
| Fridge, washing machine, TV | – | 0 € | 0 € |
| Metal, waste paper, cardboard | – | 0 € | 0 € |
The fees follow the bulky waste rate: 10.30 €/m³ for a Tallinn resident and the company rate of 31 €/m³, which applies when we take it. Appliances, electronics, metal and cardboard cost 0 € in both cases – we sort those out of the load.
The costliest mistake: furniture left assembled
A whole wardrobe is 1.5–2 m³. The same wardrobe taken apart is 0.6–0.8 m³. You pay half as much for the same thing simply because the panels are stacked instead of forming a box full of air.
Sides, base and doors in a stack, screws in a bag. One cabinet takes a quarter of an hour and saves a cubic metre.
Fill drawers and boxes with small items. An empty box costs exactly as much as a full one.
Take the legs off the table and the sofa – the item becomes flat and packs into the van twice as tightly.
Metal, appliances and cardboard into a separate pile. Those cost 0 €; in a mixed load they would be charged.
If you cannot manage it yourself, we will do it – dismantling is part of the hourly rate and often pays for itself through the lower station fee alone.
How much fits in a vehicle
| Vehicle | Volume | What goes in |
|---|---|---|
| Car boot | 0.4–0.6 m³ | a couple of bags, one chair |
| Trailer | 2–3 m³ | a sofa or a couple of cabinets |
| Van | 14 m³ | the contents of one room |
| Box van with tail lift | 21 m³ | the junk from a three-room flat |
This also answers the question of doing it yourself or booking it. 12 m³ means twenty trips by car, five with a trailer and one with a van.
An example from start to finish
Clearing a cellar storage unit, 2nd floor with a lift.
Had the cabinet been left assembled, the volume would have been about 5.5 m³ and the station fee 171 € – forty euros more for the sake of a quarter of an hour.
Do not calculate – send a photo
A couple of pictures and we will tell you the volume and the price ourselves. It costs 0 € and takes a couple of hours.
Frequently asked questions
How much is one cubic metre?
A box measuring 1 × 1 × 1 metre. One armchair or three large rubbish bags fit in it, for example.
How do you calculate cubic metres?
Multiply the length, width and height in metres: 2 × 1.5 × 1.2 = 3.6 m³. If things are scattered, use the room-based estimate – a cellar unit is usually 5–8 m³.
Does weight matter too?
The waste station fee is based on volume, not weight. Weight only matters for our work: items over 80 kg count as heavy lifting.
Why is a cubic metre more expensive via you?
The station has two rates. A Tallinn resident pays 10.30 €/m³ for bulky waste, a company 31 €/m³. Since we are the one handing it over, the company rate applies. We show it as a separate line on the invoice, with no mark-up.
Do you re-measure the load?
Yes, the charge is based on the actual volume, not on the initial quote. If the volume turns out smaller than we expected, you pay less.
Do I have to add it all up myself?
No. Send a couple of photos and we will tell you the volume and the price. This guide is for those who want to understand what it is about first.