A new mattress shows up in a box the size of a suitcase. The old one doesn't leave that way.
Getting rid of a mattress is one of those jobs that sounds simple until you're standing in a second-floor bedroom trying to figure out how a queen pillow-top got up the stairs in the first place. It's heavy, it's floppy, and it doesn't fit in a trash cart.
If you live in Savannah, you have a few real options. Here's how each one works, and who each one makes sense for.
Option 1: City of Savannah bulk item pickup
If you're a City of Savannah sanitation customer, mattresses and box springs count as bulk items, meaning anything too big to fit in your trash cart with the lid closed. According to the city's bulk item guidelines, you don't need to schedule the pickup. You place the item neatly at the curb with your cart, or wherever your trash is normally collected, before 7:00 a.m. on your regular trash day.
A few rules matter here. Keep the mattress away from mailboxes, fences, and utility poles. Never put it in the street, a right-of-way, or a median, which the city treats as illegal dumping. And the city notes that bulk items taking crews more than five minutes to handle are charged a fee under its revenue ordinance, so a big pile might not be free.
This is the right option if you can get the mattress to the curb yourself and you're in city limits. Rules change, so check the city's bulk item page or call 311 before you set anything out.
Option 2: Drop it off yourself
City residents with proof of residency can take bulk items to the City Landfill at 1327 Dean Forest Road or the Bacon Park Convenience Center at 2609 Skidaway Road. If you live in unincorporated Chatham County, the county runs its own drop-off sites. Call Chatham County Public Works first to confirm what they accept and when.
Self drop-off works if you have a truck or a trailer and a second person. A mattress in the bed of a pickup needs to be tied down well. On the Truman Parkway, an unsecured mattress becomes everyone's problem.
Option 3: Donate or resell it
Donating sounds like the right answer, and sometimes it is. But most thrift stores and donation centers won't take used mattresses at all, for hygiene reasons. If yours is nearly new, clean, and free of stains and pests, try a local buy-nothing group or a neighborhood listing. Be honest about its age and condition.
If it's sagging, stained, or more than a few years old, donation usually isn't realistic. That's fine. It just means one of the other options is the right one.
Option 4: Have it hauled away
This is the option for anyone who doesn't want to move it. A mattress removal service comes into the house, carries the mattress and box spring out from wherever they are, and takes them away. No dragging it down the stairs. No waiting for trash day. No wondering if it'll still be on the curb next week.
It's also the practical choice when the mattress is part of a bigger job: a guest room you're clearing, a rental between tenants, or a parent's house you're helping empty. If you're unsure what else can go with it, we covered that in what junk removal can and can't take.
A few Savannah-specific things to know
Humidity is hard on mattresses. In a Savannah summer, a mattress stored in a garage or a closed-up room can pick up a musty smell or mildew within weeks. If you're replacing one, don't let the old one sit in the garage for a season waiting for a plan. That's how a disposal job turns into a cleaning job.
Bed bugs change the rules. If you suspect bed bugs, wrap the mattress fully in plastic before it leaves the room, and tell whoever is removing it. It protects the rest of your house and the next person who handles it.
Downtown access takes planning. In the Historic District and the Victorian District, narrow stairways and street parking make a king mattress a two-person job, minimum. Whatever option you pick, plan the route before you start lifting.
Getting a mattress out of the house safely
If you're moving it yourself, a little planning saves your back and your walls.
Use two people, always. Even a twin mattress is awkward alone, and a king can weigh well over 100 pounds once you count the box spring. One person leads and watches the path. The other lifts and steers.
Clear the route first. Pick up rugs, prop doors open, and move anything off the stairs. Measure tight turns before you start, not halfway down the staircase.
Wrap it. A mattress bag or a few contractor bags taped together keeps dust and anything living in the mattress off your floors and walls. It also gives you something to grip.
Go stairs-first, heaviest end down. On the way down, the person below carries the weight while the person above guides. Take it one step at a time.
If any of that sounds like more than you want to take on, that's the point where hiring someone to haul it makes sense.
The bottom line
If you can get it to the curb and you're in city limits, the city's bulk pickup is a solid option. If you have a truck, drop-off works. If you'd rather not lift anything at all, have it hauled away. Our Savannah junk removal service handles mattresses of every size, and we can clean the room after if you want a fresh start for the new one.
Kipps
Founder, Live Oak Home Cleaning