A roll-off dumpster is an open-top steel box that a truck rolls off its bed onto your driveway or jobsite, then rolls back on when you are done. You load it yourself, over the side or through the rear door. RMS carries seven sizes, the 10, 12, 15, 20 Yard Short, 20 Yard Long Heavy Duty, 30, and 40 Yard, and the box, delivery, pickup, and seven days are one price.
The short version
- What it is: an open-top steel container with a rear door, dropped off and picked up by one roll-off truck.
- Why it is called roll-off: the truck tilts its bed and the box rolls down a set of rails onto the ground. No crane, no lift.
- How it is measured: in cubic yards. RMS carries seven sizes: 10, 12, 15, 20 Yard Short, 20 Yard Long Heavy Duty, 30, and 40 Yard.
- Who loads it: you do. We drop the box and we haul it. We do not send a crew.
- How long you keep it: seven days are included. Pickup is automatic on day seven unless you call or text.
- What it costs at RMS: $200 for the 10 Yard up to $500 for the 40 Yard. Delivery, pickup, and the included tons are in the price.
- Where it sits: your driveway, your lot, or your jobsite. A spot on the street needs a City of Omaha permit.
How a roll-off dumpster gets to your driveway
A roll-off truck delivers the box on a tilting bed. The driver backs in, raises the bed, and the box slides down the rails onto the spot you marked. Mark the spot and we’ll hit it. Pickup runs the same way in reverse: the truck backs up to the box, hooks it, and winches it back up the rails.
The truck needs a straight line in and room overhead to tilt. If your spot is tight, between a fence and a garage or under low wires, say so when you book and we work it out before the truck leaves the yard.
Timing is the question everyone asks. Call in the morning, and the box is often on the ground before lunch. Next day nearly always. We give you an estimated arrival the morning of delivery rather than a promised window, because a promised window is the kind of thing that gets broken. The full picture of the drop, the clearance you need, and the hook is in how roll-off delivery and pickup work.
How a roll-off is different from the bin behind a store
A front-load dumpster stays put; a roll-off comes and goes. The lidded bin behind a restaurant is a front-load dumpster. It lives there, and a different kind of truck lifts it with forks and empties it on a route. A roll-off is temporary. It arrives for your project, sits while you work, and leaves when you are done. It is also bigger and open on top, so you can toss in a cabinet or a roof’s worth of shingles without fighting a lid. We rent roll-offs, including on a daily, weekly, or monthly pickup schedule for businesses and contractors. We do not rent the lidded bins. The longer comparison is in roll-off dumpster or front-load dumpster.
How roll-off dumpsters are measured
Roll-off dumpsters are measured in cubic yards. A cubic yard is a cube three feet on each side, and a 10 Yard box holds about ten of them. People call every week to ask what sizes we offer, so here is the whole list: 10 Yard, 12 Yard, 15 Yard, 20 Yard Short, 20 Yard Long Heavy Duty, 30 Yard, and 40 Yard. RMS carries every size in that range, so you get the box that fits the job instead of paying for the next size up. The footprint of each is approximate, because not every box of a size is built the same; the cubic yard number is the one that counts. The dumpster size guide matches each size to a project.
Every box has two limits. The rim is the volume limit: nothing rides above it. The included tons are the weight limit: 1 ton on the 10, 12, and 15 Yard, 2 tons on both 20 Yard boxes, 3 tons on the 30 Yard, and 4 tons on the 40 Yard, with $65 per ton over that. Bulky loads like furniture and brush hit the rim first. Dense loads hit the tons first, which is why concrete, dirt, and brick go only in the 20 Yard Long Heavy Duty box, the heavy-debris box, filled to the halfway point. Call before you rent for a heavy load and we put you in the right box.
What a roll-off dumpster costs in Omaha
The price covers the box, delivery, pickup, seven days, and the included tons. We publish our prices, and the price on the website is the price on the invoice.
- 10 Yard: $200, 1 ton included
- 12 Yard: $230, 1 ton included
- 15 Yard: $260, 1 ton included
- 20 Yard Short: $300, 2 tons included
- 20 Yard Long Heavy Duty: $340, 2 tons included
- 30 Yard: $400, 3 tons included
- 40 Yard: $500, 4 tons included
Five things can add to that number, and we tell you about every one of them before you book:
- Extra days: $25 per day after the seven included, or $100 per week.
- Distance: $12 per mile beyond our 25 mile core area, measured from our yard.
- Dry run: $75 if the driver cannot make the drop or the pickup because the spot is blocked.
- Overfill: $55 if the load sits above the rim.
- Overage: $65 per ton above the included weight.
Current prices and dimensions are on dumpster sizes and prices in Omaha.
What goes in a roll-off dumpster
A roll-off dumpster takes most of what comes out of a house or off a jobsite. Homeowners use us for cleanouts and remodels: furniture, carpet, drywall, cabinets, yard waste, storm debris. Contractors keep us on speed dial for roof tear-offs and demo. The US Environmental Protection Agency calls that second group construction and demolition debris: what comes off a building when it is built, remodeled, or torn down. Load it under the rim, heavy items low and spread out.
A short list never goes in the box: motor oil, fuel, and automotive fluids, batteries, tires, propane tanks and pressurized cylinders, asbestos, and medical waste. A few things need a quick check first: shingles, railroad ties, and concrete, dirt, and brick, which go in the heavy-debris box. Paint, stains, and solvents are fine once they are bagged or sealed. The full yes, ask, and never list is on what can go in a dumpster. Not sure about an item? Text us a photo before it goes in.
Where a roll-off dumpster can sit
The box sits where you mark it: your driveway, your lot, or your jobsite. On your own property you do not need a permit anywhere in the metro. On a public street or the right of way in Omaha you need a street obstruction permit from the City of Omaha before the truck arrives. You apply for it; we point you to the current application and tell you if your spot is likely to be approved. The suburbs and the Iowa side each run their own process. The rules are on do you need a dumpster permit in Omaha.
Your driveway is yours to protect. A loaded box is a lot of steel and weight, and scrapes, cracks, or marks can happen. We place the box carefully where you mark it, and you pick the spot with that weight in mind.
When a roll-off is the wrong call
A roll-off is the wrong tool for a few jobs. If you have a few trash bags, your weekly pickup handles it. If you need someone to carry things out of the house, that is not what we do; we drop the box and you load it. If the only place for the box is a busy street and you do not want to deal with the permit, a smaller box in the driveway usually solves it. And if you need a lidded bin emptied every week behind a store, that is a front-load dumpster on a route, not a roll-off.
One more that trips up contractors: if you are pouring concrete and need somewhere for the mixer truck and the tools to rinse out, that is a concrete washout box, a different product. It is a low 7 yard box, $350 for 30 days with all weight included. It is for washout, not for broken slab or demo; that is still the heavy-debris box.
For everything else that fills more than a couple of trash cans, a roll-off is the simplest way to get it gone. RMS has made about 50,000 deliveries across the Omaha metro since 2014, most of them to a driveway.
Roll-off dumpster questions
What does roll-off mean?
Roll-off means the box rolls off the back of the truck. The truck tilts its bed and the container slides down rails onto the ground. At pickup, the same truck hooks the box and rolls it back up. The name describes the delivery, not the box.
Is a roll-off dumpster the same thing as a dumpster?
Dumpster is the general word, and a roll-off is one kind. It is the temporary open-top box you rent for a project. The permanent lidded bin behind a store is a front-load dumpster, emptied on a route by a different truck. When someone in Omaha says they rented a dumpster for the garage, they mean a roll-off.
How big is a roll-off dumpster?
RMS roll-off dumpsters come in seven sizes: 10, 12, 15, 20 Yard Short, 20 Yard Long Heavy Duty, 30, and 40 Yard. A 10 Yard box is roughly 12 feet long, 8 feet wide, and 3 feet tall. A 40 Yard box is roughly 22 feet long, 8 feet wide, and 6 feet tall. Those dimensions are approximate; the cubic yard number is the one to go by.
How long can you keep a roll-off dumpster?
Seven days are included in every RMS rental. Pickup is automatic on day seven unless you call or text for an earlier pickup. Need it longer? It is $25 per extra day or $100 per week, and you just keep us in the loop.
Do you need a permit for a roll-off dumpster?
Not on your driveway or your own property. On a public street or sidewalk in Omaha you do, and the City of Omaha issues it. Apply before delivery; our drivers do not drop a box on the street without one.
How much does it cost to rent a roll-off dumpster in Omaha?
At RMS, $200 for a 10 Yard up to $500 for a 40 Yard, with delivery, pickup, seven days, and the included tons in the price. Extra days, distance beyond the core area, a dry run, an overfilled load, or weight over the included tons can add to it, and we tell you about each one before you book.
Get a box on the ground
Call or text (402) 510-7016, or book online. Tell us the project and we size it over the phone. Call in the morning, and the box is often on the ground before lunch.
Keep reading
- Dumpster size guide: which box for which project
- Dumpster sizes and prices in Omaha
- What can go in a dumpster: yes, ask, never
- Do you need a dumpster permit in Omaha?
Sources
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Sustainable Management of Construction and Demolition Materials: epa.gov/smm/sustainable-management-construction-and-demolition-materials
- Every price, included weight, dimension, fee, and rental term on this page is from the RMS Dumpsters online store and the company’s own figures.
