The short answer
| Garage | Truck fill | Flat price |
|---|---|---|
| One bay, walls and rafters only | 1/4 | $241 |
| One-car detached, alley-loaded, typical | 1/2 | $431 |
| Two-car attached, cleared to the slab | 5/8 | $513 |
| Two-car with a loft or attic trusses | 3/4 | $587 |
| Three-car suburban, packed | Full | $732 |
Short lists price by item instead: lawn mower $65, propane grill $71, upright freezer $149, treadmill $115. The per-visit minimum is $75.
Indianapolis has two completely different garages
Almost every garage cleanout in this metro is one of two jobs.
The detached alley garage. Broad Ripple, Irvington, Herron-Morton, Cottage Home, Fountain Square, Garfield Park. One car wide, built in the 1920s, sitting at the back of the lot on a gravel alley. The roof may sag, the side door sticks, and it has not held a car since the second Bush administration. Access is usually excellent — a truck backs down the alley to the door — as long as the alley is passable and nobody has parked across it.
The suburban three-car. Fishers, Westfield, Carmel, Zionsville, Greenwood, Avon, Noblesville. Wide concrete apron, overhead storage racks, a workbench along the back wall, and a third bay that was sold as a boat bay and has been a storage unit since the day of the walkthrough. Easy truck access, much more volume.
Same published prices, very different totals, because the second one holds three times as much.
Why the garage fills every winter
This is the Indianapolis pattern and it is remarkably consistent. In October the patio furniture, the grill cover and the pool noodles come into the garage. In November the holiday bins come down from the attic and land in the middle. In December the car moves outside 'just for now'. January and February bring salt bags, a snow shovel, an ice melt bucket and whatever got shoved aside to reach them.
By March you have a garage you can walk into sideways and a car that has spent the whole winter scraping frost. That is why spring is the busiest garage-cleanout season here, and why the first warm Saturday in March is the single most-requested day of the year.
What is actually in there
| Item | Flat price |
|---|---|
| Lawn Mower | $65 |
| Charcoal Grill | $59 |
| Propane Grill | $71 |
| Patio Table | $89 |
| Patio Chair (Each) | $30 |
| Freezer (Upright) | $149 |
| Mini Fridge | $115 |
| Treadmill | $115 |
| Weight Bench | $69 |
| Weight Set / Free Weights | $93 |
| Bicycle | $37 |
| Basketball Hoop (Portable) | $115 |
| Artificial Christmas Tree | $37 |
| Storage Cabinet | $74 |
| Carpet (rolled) | $68 |
| Small Junk Pile | $82 |
| Medium Junk Pile | $129 |
| Large Junk Pile | $208 |
Two real garages, added up
Detached one-car off an Irvington alley. Upright freezer $149 + lawn mower $65 + charcoal grill $59 + bicycle $37 + medium junk pile $129 = $439. That is within a few dollars of the half-truck rate of $431, so you would take the $431 and stop counting.
Two-car attached in Greenwood, third of it is exercise equipment. Treadmill $115 + weight bench $69 + weight set $93 + patio table $89 + patio chair $30 + patio chair $30 = $426. Again close to the half-load rate, so $431 versus $426 is a coin flip and you take whichever is lower.
That crossover is the useful thing to know. Once a garage contains more than about five or six real items, volume pricing usually wins, and both ladders are published so you can see it happen.
The rafters, the loft and the pull-down
Older detached garages in Indianapolis have open rafters, and there is always something on them: storm windows from before the vinyl replacement, screen doors, lumber offcuts, a ladder, a canoe. In the newer suburban builds the equivalent is the overhead rack system and the pull-down attic stair over the third bay.
Both are slow, and both are where a quarter-load estimate quietly becomes a half. When you are describing the job, look up before you guess.
What does not go on the truck
Garages are where household hazardous waste collects, and it has to go a different route — everywhere, not just here. Set aside old paint and stain, thinners and solvents, lawn and garden chemicals, motor oil and antifreeze, gas cans, propane tanks and car batteries, and check the current household hazardous waste drop-off options for your county.
The mower is fine to take once the tank is drained. The propane grill is fine once the tank is off it — keep the tank, it can usually be exchanged where you buy propane.
Booking it
Two Indianapolis timing notes. The first thaw weekend in March is busy, so book a few days ahead if you want a Saturday. And in the month of May, plenty of people in Speedway and the neighborhoods off Crawfordsville Road and 16th Street clear the garage so they can rent the driveway and the bay out over race weekend — if that is you, get it done in April, because the week before the race is not when a truck wants to be in that part of town.
A one-car detached garage is usually a couple of hours. A packed three-car takes most of a morning.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a garage cleanout cost in Indianapolis?
A typical one-car detached garage is a half truck at $431. A two-car attached garage cleared to the slab is usually $513, and a packed three-car in Fishers or Westfield is $587 to $732. A single bay with only wall and rafter clutter can be a quarter load at $241.
Can the truck get down my alley?
Usually yes — the alley-loaded garages in Broad Ripple, Irvington and Herron-Morton are often the easiest access in the city. Let us know if the alley is badly rutted or if a neighbor tends to park across it, and the crew will plan the approach.
Do I have to pull everything out to the driveway first?
No. The crew works from inside the garage, including the rafters and the overhead racks. There is no long-carry fee.
What about the paint cans and the gas can?
Those are household hazardous waste and go through a county drop-off rather than on the truck. Check the current options for your county. A drained lawn mower is fine to take at $65.
Is it cheaper to price by item or by truck load?
For up to about five items, itemizing is usually cheaper. Past that, the truck-fill ladder normally wins. Both are published, so you can compare the two numbers before booking and pay the lower one.