Your Garage Cleared In One Visit, At The Price We Quoted
Old tools, seasonal gear, decades of I-might-need-this, we handle it.
Garages fill up because no other room in the house can absorb what garages absorb. Bikes with flat tires, the snow blower you replaced but never scrapped, half-empty paint from three houses ago, a spare fridge nobody plugged in. Junk Nurse clears the whole scope in one visit, sorts on the truck for donation and recycling, and knows the specific Illinois rules for what should never touch a landfill, tires, lead-acid batteries, motor oil, and where each one actually belongs instead.
What We Remove
Real Jobs. Real Results.
These are actual photos from Junk Nurse jobs in Aurora and the Fox Valley.
How It Works
Simple. Transparent. No surprises.
Walkthrough and flat quote
We walk the garage with you, identify what goes and what stays, and hand you a flat number before anything moves. Anything you want to keep gets marked so nothing accidentally leaves.
Careful load-out
Bolted-in shelving disassembled on-site, heavy items loaded with two-person carries, doorframes and drywall protected on tight exits. Nothing marked to keep gets touched.
Sort on the truck
Donation pile, scrap metal pile, e-waste pile, disposal pile. On a typical garage, 20 to 30 percent of what leaves ends up somewhere other than a landfill.
Confirm and settle
Walk the empty garage with you to confirm the scope matches the quote, then flat payment. No add-ons after the fact.
What actually accumulates in a Fox Valley garage
Garages fill up because no other room in the house can absorb what garages absorb. Bikes with flat tires. Snow blowers you replaced but never scrapped. Half-empty paint from three houses ago. A spare fridge nobody plugged in. Most of it sits for a decade before you finally schedule the cleanout.
The four categories every garage cleanout hits
Old workbenches, hand tools, powered tools that quit working, drill bits mixed with screws, pegboards, metal shelving, cabinets bolted to studs. Metal shelving usually needs disassembly on-site because it was assembled inside the garage and will not turn out the door in one piece.
Kids' bikes long outgrown, adult bikes with flat tires, kayaks that stopped getting used, camping gear, snow shovels, patio furniture stored for winter, holiday decor spilling out of tubs, grills without the propane tank. Anything with usable life goes to donation.
Old wheels and hubcaps, small engine parts, spare bumpers, floor jacks that stopped jacking, roof racks from the vehicle you sold, and the pile of oil-stained cardboard. Tires, batteries, and used motor oil are a separate category because Illinois law says so, see below.
Extra siding from when the house was resided, leftover tile from the bathroom remodel, four cans of the wrong paint color, drywall scraps, extra pavers, a spare toilet flange. This category is the biggest surprise on almost every walkthrough. We haul all of it in one visit.
What a garage cleanout actually costs
Most junk removal sites in the Fox Valley make you call for a quote before they will tell you anything about price. Here is what we actually charge, by garage size.
Quarter to half truckload, 1 to 3 hours. Includes typical accumulation, tools, seasonal items, one or two large appliances.
Half to three-quarter truckload, 2 to 4 hours. Full clear of both bays including workshop area, shelving, contractor leftovers.
Full truckload, 3 to 5 hours. Full clear including workshop, hobby areas, extra storage, spare appliances.
Multiple truckloads, full day. Barns, pole buildings, detached shops with decades of accumulation.
Tires carry a per-tire disposal fee at the facility, which we pass through at cost with no markup. Refrigerators and freezers need EPA-compliant refrigerant handling and add a small fee. Everything else is included in the flat quote.
The Illinois rules nobody tells you about garage junk
Three things sitting in your garage right now are banned from Illinois landfills. If you rent a dumpster and throw them in, the hauler will not accept the load. Here is where each of them actually goes.
When homeowners call us for a garage cleanout
Most garage cleanout calls fall into one of four situations. Knowing which one you are in helps us bring the right crew size, the right equipment, and the right timeline.
The most common call. The garage stopped fitting the car two winters ago and you finally scheduled the fix. We clear the whole space in one visit.
Gladiator, Slatwall, overhead racks, epoxy floor coating. All of it needs the walls and floor cleared first. We do the demolition of the old shelving too if it is bolted in.
Realtor wants an empty garage for photos and inspection. We work fast to the timeline and coordinate with your agent on move-out date.
Parents' garage, decades of accumulated tools and hobby gear. For out-of-state families we send photos of anything valuable-looking and hold a keep pile.
Common Questions
What does a garage cleanout cost in the Fox Valley?
One-car garages run $200 to $500, two-car garages run $400 to $900, three-car garages run $700 to $1,500, and detached shops or outbuildings run $1,000 to $2,500 or more. We quote flat before we start, no hourly meter running.
How long does a garage cleanout take?
Most residential garages take 2 to 5 hours depending on size. Detached shops and outbuildings can run a full day. We give you a realistic estimate at the walkthrough.
What about tires, batteries, and motor oil?
These three are banned from Illinois landfills. Motor oil and lead-acid batteries can go to any auto parts store for free recycling. Used tires go to tire retailers, usually for a per-tire fee. We can also haul a small quantity of tires with the cleanout, pass-through disposal fee, no markup.
Can you handle a two-car or three-car garage in one visit?
Yes. We bring enough truck capacity and crew to clear even a full three-car garage in a single visit. For detached shops and pole buildings, we may bring a second truck or run a second load the same day.
Do I need to sort or organize before you arrive?
No. You do not need to sort, bag, or pre-organize anything. We load it as-is and sort on the truck. The only prep we ask is marking anything you want to keep.
What happens to tools and equipment in usable condition?
Anything reusable gets routed to donation, Salvation Army, Goodwill, Hesed House, or other Fox Valley partners. Working power tools and hand tools are especially in demand at these organizations.
Can you remove old refrigerators, freezers, and appliances stored in the garage?
Yes. Chest freezers, spare fridges, dehumidifiers, and other appliances all fair game. Refrigerant units need EPA-compliant handling, which adds a small fee but is included in the flat quote.
What about paint cans, empty and full?
Empty and fully dried paint cans are fine to haul. Liquid paint has to go through household hazardous waste. During the walkthrough we tell you which of yours is which.
Do we need to be home during the cleanout?
For the walkthrough and the first 10 minutes, yes, so we agree on what stays and what goes. After that, most clients leave and come back to a cleared garage. We text photos of anything we are unsure about.
We Serve Kane & DuPage County
Junk Nurse provides your garage cleared in one visit, at the price we quoted throughout the Fox Valley and surrounding area.
Need Your Garage Cleared In One Visit, At The Price We Quoted?
Free quote. Firm price before we start. Mon–Sat, 7am–7pm.
(630) 294-1340 Real people helping real people.