Stratford, CT Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)

The set-out rule is one sentence in § 182-5(C): the property owner or the person served must have the refuse receptacles or containers placed as near to the curbline as is practicable before the hour of 7:00 a.m. on days on which collections will be made. The evening-before option is written for residential areas of the Town, which are the only areas the proviso names. Collection from households served does not begin before 7:00 a.m., so a container at the curb by that hour is on time.

What goes to the curb is governed by § 182-5(A): watertight, tightly covered cans, containers or plastic bags, a standard unit of twenty- and thirty-gallon containers, a 75 pound limit when full, and containers in good condition with securely fitting covers. The owner provides a suitable place upon the premises to hold waste between collections. Chapter 182 prints no screening or enclosure standard for containers, so the placement rule is about timing and distance from the curb.

Placement has limits. Section 182-6(A)(1) bars placing solid waste in any street, alley or other public place except in proper containers or otherwise properly prepared for collection. Section 182-6(B) bars depositing waste where the elements can carry it onto a street, sidewalk, alley or other public place. Section 133-2 bars placing trash bags on any exterior portion of property occupied by a business, or in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public place, including adjacent to public receptacles. Section 182-5(E) makes it unlawful for anyone other than the tenants, occupants or authorized agents, employees or licensees of the Town to disturb refuse containers or scatter their contents on lawns, sidewalks or streets. Section 182-5(B) requires owners to maintain containers and promptly replace any that are no longer fit for use.