Halfway through a kitchen or a bathroom, the garage holds drywall, tile with the mortar still on, old cabinets and lumber full of nails. Where it goes in Charleston County depends on who carries it. A resident with a pickup can use the county's convenience centers inside their rules. A crew cannot: the county landfill refuses construction and demolition waste from private and commercial haulers, so anything a construction debris removal crew hauls for you goes to a private facility.
Hanahan and Goose Creek are in Berkeley County, whose centers serve its own residents with ID and take household construction debris; the rest is Charleston County's rules as of September 2026, for any county address from North Charleston to Johns Island.
What the county takes from a homeowner
Charleston County runs eight staffed convenience centers for residents. Since November 2024: a photo ID with a county address, or a utility or tax bill with a matching ID; residential vehicles and material only, contractors barred; an appointment for any double-axle trailer, box truck or moving van. Most open Monday to Saturday, 7:30 AM to 6:00 PM; the James Island site at 1716 Signal Point Road runs Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Johns Island has none; 1344 Bees Ferry Road in West Ashley and 5305 Highway 165 in Hollywood are on the mainland side. Each has a construction and demolition zone:
- Taken: furniture, mattresses, drywall, carpet, insulation, wood and lumber under 48 inches, non-recyclable plastic.
- Not taken there: shingles, bricks, cement, stucco, hazardous waste, gasoline, tires. Small amounts of cement or brick have their own zone.
- Tile is not named either way; ask the attendant first.
- Old paint goes to the hazardous waste zone, not in with the debris.
The landfill, the private facilities and asbestos
The Bees Ferry Road Landfill shares that West Ashley address and plays by different rules: Monday to Friday, 7 AM to 4 PM, Saturday, 8 AM to 3 PM, $100 a ton for household waste, and no construction and demolition waste from private or commercial haulers. A crew's load goes instead to a private C&D landfill or transfer station permitted by the state, which charges by the ton, and that is why tile and concrete are priced by weight while cabinets and drywall go by the truck. The truck and the container both refuse paint, solvents, wet adhesives, fuel, tires and refrigerant appliances.
Asbestos is the one to take seriously in an older Charleston house. SCDES, the state environmental agency, lists floor tile and its mastic, joint compound, popcorn ceilings, siding, stucco, caulk and roofing as materials that may contain it. Its abatement rules mostly do not apply to a home of four or fewer units, but disposal is not exempt: a homeowner needs a disposal permit from the SCDES Asbestos Section, and the waste goes only to a landfill that accepts asbestos. Test suspect material before demolition and keep it out of the roll-off.
Haul-off or roll-off: what each costs here
A crew prices by how much of the truck the load fills, labor and facility fee inside, and weighs the heavy material. A roll-off is priced by size for about a week, with a tonnage allowance, and you load it. Tile, concrete, brick and shingles go by the ton either way, so say what the pile is made of when you book.
| Option | 2026 range | Fits |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter truck, hauled | $225 to $325 | a bathroom |
| Half truck, hauled | $375 to $500 | a kitchen |
| Full truck, hauled | $625 to $800 | a large remodel |
| 10-yard roll-off, about a week | $325 to $450 | a bathroom over a week |
| 15-yard roll-off, about a week | $400 to $525 | a kitchen over a week |
| 20-yard roll-off, about a week | $450 to $600 | a whole house or a roof |
What is different on the islands
Every load leaving James Island or Johns Island crosses a bridge, and so does the empty container coming to you; that puts island addresses toward the top of the ranges, and bundling with a neighbor brings them down.
On your own driveway, no permit. In a street inside the city of Charleston, a container needs the city's dumpster permit, issued only for a legal parking space, with two weeks to process. A narrow lane may not take the delivery truck, and many island and Mount Pleasant subdivisions limit how long a container can sit in a driveway; check both before booking.
Then the water: a low driveway on James Island or Folly Beach can flood in a king tide week, so check the tide table for the rental days and keep the drywall dry.
When each option wins
- The county center: a pickup, a county ID, a weekday morning and a pile with no shingles or stucco in it.
- A hauled load: demolition done in a day or two, nothing you want to lift, or a street that will not take a container.
- A roll-off: a job that runs a week or more, a contractor throwing as they go, and a driveway and covenants that allow it.
- Neither for asbestos, paint or solvents: those go through SCDES and the county's hazardous waste zone.
Useful links
- Charleston County convenience centers – residency rules, the C&D zone and hours at the eight county sites
- Bees Ferry Road Landfill – hours, the per-ton fee and the rule on construction waste from haulers
- SCDES: Asbestos in Your Home – testing suspect material and the homeowner disposal permit
Questions on this
Can I take remodel debris from James Island to the county convenience center myself?
Yes, with a photo ID showing a Charleston County address, or a utility or tax bill and matching ID. The Signal Point Road site is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10 AM to 6 PM, takes drywall, lumber under four feet, carpet and insulation, and refuses shingles, bricks, cement and stucco. Double-axle trailers need an appointment.
Will the Bees Ferry Road landfill in West Ashley take my drywall and tile?
Two gates share the address. The landfill takes household waste at $100 a ton and no construction and demolition waste from haulers. The convenience center there takes a resident's drywall and lumber, Monday to Saturday, 7:30 AM to 6 PM. Tile is on neither list; ask the attendant, or a crew hauls it by weight.
Does a roll-off in a Johns Island driveway need a permit?
On your own driveway, none, though covenants may limit how long it sits. In a public street inside the city of Charleston it needs the city's dumpster permit, issued only for a legal parking space, with two weeks to process. If the delivery truck cannot swing the box into a Johns Island lane, a hauled half truck at $375 to $500 is the answer.