Lakewood, WA Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Set-out deadline
- 6:00 a.m. on collection day, LMC 13.06.080
- Retrieval
- Must remove cart same day as service
- Address visibility
- House number must be visible at curb
- Container condition
- Clean, watertight, 2 handles, tight lid
- Repair deadline after tagging
- 5 days, LMC 13.06.180(C)
Summary
Lakewood, Pierce County, Washington requires residents on automated routes to set carts at the curb or alley edge by 6:00 a.m. on collection day and pull them back in the same day, under LMC 13.06.080. Containers also have to stay clean, sealed and in good repair under LMC 13.06.180, or the contractor will tag and refuse to empty them.
In those areas of the City where automated services are available, the customers and residents shall be provided garbage carts by the licensed contractor, which carts shall remain the property of the contractor. ... It shall be the responsibility of the customers or residents to place the carts at the curb or edge of the street or alley in front of or adjacent to the property being serviced not later than 6:00 a.m. on the day of collection, and shall thereafter remove the carts from the curb or edge of street or alley on the same day of the collection. ... ... A. Customers shall keep their refuse containers clean to prevent an odor nuisance, and in good repair. Containers cracked or rusted and therefore not water tight, without two handles, or without a tight-fitting lid, are not acceptable. ... ... C. Customers with containers not kept in good repair and so identified by tagging with the contractor shall correct the violation within five days of the tagging. Failure to comply with the tagged notice to repair or replace an unacceptable refuse container shall be unlawful.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 852, passed June 15, 2026).
Full Breakdown
on collection day, and then remove the carts from that spot the same day service happens. The section also requires that the property's house number or address stay visible while the cart is out, so the crew can match containers to accounts. 070(D) imposes the identical timing and visibility rule for curb and alley customers using cans or containers rather than automated carts. 180 governs how it has to be kept: customers must keep refuse containers clean enough to prevent an odor nuisance and in good repair, and a container that is cracked, rusted, no longer watertight, missing one of its two handles, or missing a tight-fitting lid is not acceptable.
If the contractor finds a container out of compliance, it places a violation tag identifying the problem, and a tagged container is not emptied again until the customer fixes it. 180(C).
Violations & Fines
Failing to correct a tagged container within five days is unlawful under LMC 13.06.180(C), and a tagged container stays uncollected until it's fixed. More broadly, any violation of Chapter 13.06 LMC's collection requirements, including the placement and maintenance rules, is a misdemeanor under LMC 13.06.220, enforced by the City Manager through the Public Works Department.
Frequently Asked Questions
What time do I need to put my trash cart out in Lakewood?
Can Lakewood refuse to empty a damaged trash cart?
Does my house number need to be visible for trash pickup in Lakewood?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lakewood
Compare Lakewood to another location·View the Washington trash & recycling overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.
Bin Placement Rules in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle bin placement rules.