Contain the fibers
Fiberglass batts look light and then fill a truck while shedding dust. Wear gloves, long sleeves, and eye protection, and bag the batts before they go into an open bed. Use thick bags and tape them. Do not compress bag after bag into one torn sack that splits on the highway. Kraft paper facing can stay on the batt unless the site tells you to sort paper. Wet insulation is heavier and smellier. Bag it anyway so fibers do not blow into traffic. Wash work clothes separately when you get home.
Vermiculite is a different warning
Loose pebble-like vermiculite insulation, especially in an old attic, is not the same as a modern fiberglass batt. If you think you are looking at vermiculite, or at any insulation you cannot identify, stop pulling it out and get guidance from a licensed abatement contractor before you disturb more of it. Do not shovel mystery attic fill into lawn bags for the brush pile. Pink, yellow, or white fiberglass batts from a known remodel are the material this article is about. Keep those batts out of compost and out of a clean-wood load.
Tell the scale house you have insulation
Many sites accept bagged fiberglass as construction debris or household trash and refuse it as recycling. Call if the materials list is silent. Say fiberglass batts, bagged. Do not describe them as packing or as yard waste. At the bay, set bags down so they do not burst. If a bag splits, pick up the batt. Do not kick it into a storm drain or leave it on the scale. If the site limits how many bulky bags a resident may bring, make a second trip rather than stacking an unsafe load.
Before you go
- Bag fiberglass batts so fibers cannot blow out of the truck.
- Stop and call a licensed abatement contractor if the material might be vermiculite or is unknown.
- Confirm the site accepts bagged insulation and which bay to use.
- Unload bags intact and pick up anything that splits.
Tossing loose batts on a landscape trailer headed for the yard-waste pad.
Questions people ask
Does the paper facing have to come off?
Ask the site. Many accept faced batts as debris. Do not burn the paper facing to separate it.
Can I reuse clean batts?
Dry, intact batts sometimes can be reinstalled. Moldy, pest-soiled, or crushed batts should be bagged and taken to a site that accepts them.
Search Dumpmapper by ZIP code or city, then call the site before you load the truck. Hours and accepted materials change.