CITY OF ITHACA
Granger Waste Services is proud to be the exclusive waste hauler for the City of Ithaca.
We appreciate the opportunity to provide service for your community.

We are pleased to provide weekly trash collection to residents. Additional services, such as large item disposal and dumpster rental are also available.
CUSTOMER GUIDE
- Trash service includes weekly collection with a cart. If you have additional bags of trash or large items that don’t fit in your cart, see the sections called “Extra Bags” or “Oversized Trash” for instructions.
- Residential trash service is for normal household trash and does not include construction and/or remodeling debris.
- Be sure to follow waste acceptance guidelines carefully.
- Please bag all your trash before putting it in your cart. This helps ensure we can contain the trash when it’s being dumped.
- Double bag loose waste like kitty litter, animal waste, sawdust, ashes, insulation and packing peanuts.
- Please limit weight of the trash in your cart to 200 pounds or less and limit your trash bags to 30 gallons or less and 30 pounds or less.
For more information on why you have a collection day, not a collection time, read our blog post.
Bag tags are used by residents 60 and older for pay-as-you-throw trash collection without a cart. One bag tag must also be placed on each extra bag put out by any resident with cart service.
Bag tags can be purchased from the City of Ithaca or Ric’s Food Center for $2 each. You can also purchase them from our website here.
You may place up to three additional bags of trash outside your cart each week. However, you must place a bag tag on each additional bag you want collected.
Collection of one bulk item (mattresses, stoves, refrigerators, etc.) each week is included with your service. However, you must contact us 48 hours in advance to schedule the pickup by completing the bulk request form or calling 1-888-947-2643.
We pick up bulk items in Ithaca on Fridays. Please contact us by noon on Wednesday for collection that Friday.
- Be sure your cart and bags are not obstructed or buried by snow.
- Keep your cart out of the street to avoid any plow truck casualties.
- Make sure your cart can be closed all the way so snow and rain can’t get in. This will help keep the contents from freezing. Whenever trash is frozen to the container, we may have trouble emptying all of it.
- Remember that uncontrollable weather situations, such as steep grades that are icy or snowy, dirt roads that become very icy, lack of turnaround space due to areas not plowed, very low wind chill factor, reduced visibility due to blizzard conditions or freezing rain or closed or unplowed roads with deep snow, may affect our ability to service your account.
Occasionally, your trash won’t get picked up on your collection day. There may be a good reason for the delay, such as not being out when the truck was at your house or a holiday or weather delay, but it could be a mistake on our part.
In most cases, we won’t be able to return to your house that week, but we’ll be happy to pick up any extras on your next collection day. If you’re not sure why your collection was missed or can’t wait until the next collection, please contact us.
For more information, read our blog post.
- All carts are the property of Granger, but are yours to use for the duration of your service with us. That’s good news for you because it means that if your cart is damaged due to our actions or normal wear and tear, we’ll replace it.
- When you first receive your cart, you may notice that the lid does not close completely. This is a result of the way carts are stored and transported and is only temporary. The lid will return to its normal position after a few days.
Download a copy of the cart placement flyer
For more on cart placement, see our blog post.
Just like anything else that holds trash, carts can get smelly. Please don’t ask us to replace your cart because it smells. Bagging all your trash and cleaning the cart periodically will help with odor issues.
You can find more suggestions in our blog post. And once it is dirty and smelly, it’s simple to clean it. For step-by-step instructions, read our blog post.
Residential customers are billed quarterly in advance for trash service. Bills are sent on the first of the month (or the following Monday if the first falls on a weekend) and are due on the 25th of the month.
Paperless billing is a convenient, environmentally friendly option and is the best way to receive your invoices from Granger.
Autopayment
Spend even less time thinking about your trash service when you use this convenient payment method! With autopay, your card is automatically charged when your bill is due.
Online Bill Pay
Pay your bill conveniently and securely using our Customer Portal.
By Mail
Be sure to make your check out to Granger Waste and write your Granger account number in the memo. Send your check to: P.O. Box 22213, Lansing, MI 48909-22213.
By Phone
Call our office at 1-888-947-2643 to pay your bill over the phone.
If you are unable to pay your bill when it is due, please contact us to let us know. We will do our best to work with you to avoid an interruption in service. However, if your bill remains unpaid, there will be late fees and we will have to discontinue your service.
If the holiday falls on a weekday, services on and after the holiday will run one day behind for the remainder of the week. If the holiday falls on a weekend, there will be no delay to service.
Granger observes the following holidays:
- New Year’s Day
- Memorial Day
- Independence Day
- Labor Day
- Thanksgiving Day
- Christmas Day
When that happens, we will do our best to notify you by phone or email and will be happy to pick up any extras you have on your next scheduled collection day.
In very rare cases of extreme weather conditions, we may cancel service completely for the day and push collections to the following day. When this happens, we will post updates on our website and Facebook page.