St. Johns County, FL Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- LDC § 2.02.04.B.19.e.(4)
- Container minimum
- 1 per 4 transient occupants
- Curbside start
- No earlier than sunset, night before
- Curbside end
- No later than sunrise after pickup
- Applies to
- Registered Short Term Vacation Rentals
- Enforcement
- 7-day cure period, § 2.02.04.B.19.g
Summary
Every St. Johns County Short Term Vacation Rental has to keep trash covered and stock at least one storage container for every four guests. Land Development Code Section 2.02.04.B.19.e.(4) also fixes the curbside window: containers go out no earlier than sunset the night before pickup and must be pulled back in by sunrise the next morning.
(4) Solid Waste (a) All trash and debris shall be kept in covered trash containers. (b) Each Short-term Vacation Rental unit shall be equipped with a minimum of one (1) trash storage container per four (4) transient occupants or fraction thereof. ... (d) The containers shall be placed at the curbside for pickup no earlier than sunset the day before pickup and shall be removed from curbside no later than sunrise the following day.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: the cited page had not changed since it was quoted.
Full Breakdown
(4), the Solid Waste subsection of the county's Short Term Vacation Rental standards, sets container and timing rules that apply on top of whatever service the resident's waste hauler already provides. (2) needs at least three containers on site. The curbside window is specific: containers can go out to the curb no earlier than sunset on the day before the scheduled pickup, and they have to come back off the curb no later than sunrise the following day. That narrows the county's general nuisance concern about carts sitting at the curb for days, particularly on streets where a vacation rental turns over guests weekly and nobody local is watching the property between pickups.
19; the county's general residential solid-waste collection program for permanent, non-rental households is set out in the separate Code of Ordinances, not in this Land Development Code. A property owner's rental agreement and onsite postings are the mechanism the county relies on to make guests aware of these container and timing rules, since transient occupants, not the owner, are usually the ones putting containers out.
Violations & Fines
Leaving uncovered trash, running short of the one-container-per-four-guests minimum, or putting containers at the curb before sunset the night before pickup, or leaving them out past sunrise the following day, is a violation of Section 2.02.04.B.19, enforced under subsection g. The county gives seven days to correct the problem, pursues the tenant or guest responsible first, and can move to a civil penalty set by Board of County Commissioners resolution if the same rental racks up three violations within a hundred-eighty-day window.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many trash containers does a St. Johns County vacation rental need?
When can trash cans go out at a short-term rental?
Do these container rules apply to a regular homeowner, not a rental?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Johns County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare St. Johns County to another location·View the Florida trash & recycling overview
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