Florence wants your cart at the curb by 7:00 a.m. on collection day and back off it within 24 hours of being emptied, and the city puts cart care on you. TidyCan cleans your bin on the same day the city empties it, so it goes back up the driveway clean instead of sour. Service starts at $30 every 4 weeks for up to two bins.
Florence gives you 24 hours to get the cart back in
Section 22-22 of the Florence city code sets the rule. The cart has to be at the curb, or wherever the sanitation department has designated, by 7:00 a.m. on your collection day, within two feet of the curb or alley and at least three feet from anything else, with the handle facing away from the street. Then it has to come back in: carts “must be removed from the curb or alley no more than twenty-four (24) hours after they have been emptied by the sanitation department.”
The city’s own website is not consistent about the morning time. One section says 7:00 a.m. and another says 6:00 a.m. The code says 7:00. If your street gets an early truck, earlier is the safer habit.
The 24-hour rule has the same side effect every curb rule has. The cart comes back up the driveway within a day of being emptied, still wet and still coated, and then sits next to the house for another week in Alabama heat.
| Florence cart rule | What the code or city says |
|---|---|
| At the curb by | 7:00 a.m. on collection day (§ 22-22) |
| Placement | Within two feet of the curb or alley, three feet from anything else, handle away from the street (§ 22-22) |
| Back off the curb | Within 24 hours of being emptied (§ 22-22) |
| Storage | “Carts cannot be stored curbside” (city Solid Waste guidelines) |
| Not collected | Liquids, paints or other hazardous materials (city Solid Waste guidelines) |
| Monthly fee | $22.50 for garbage service (§ 22-71) |
The cart belongs to the city, but the care is yours
“Residents are responsible for garbage and recycling cart care. Bag waste to maintain cleanliness.”
City of Florence Solid Waste guidelines
Florence provides a 96 gallon garbage cart, and it stays with the house if you move. The city’s guidance puts cart care on the resident, and residents pay to replace a cart that is damaged beyond repair. Garbage and recycling are both collected once a week, on the same assigned day.
Florence Solid Waste, for reference: 256-760-6495. The recycling drop-off at 1200 Terrace Street is open around the clock. Bulk trash and yard debris go through the Street Department at 256-760-6460, in piles no bigger than four feet high, ten feet long and five feet deep.
Recycling rides along on garbage day
Florence collects the blue recycling cart every week, on the same day as garbage. That makes it the easiest bin to clean alongside the trash cart, and the one people forget. Rinsed containers still leave sugar and residue that bakes onto the walls of a closed cart.
Why a Shoals summer is the whole problem
This is not a matter of opinion. NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 climate normals for Muscle Shoals Regional Airport, the reporting station for the Shoals, put the average July high at 91.6°F and the average July low at 71.4°F. The nights barely cool the cart off. A closed plastic container with food waste in the bottom sits in that for weeks at a time, and that is what turns a cart into something you hold your breath to open.
Florence’s historic districts and its newer streets
Florence had 42,716 residents in 2024, according to the Census Bureau, up from 40,178 in 2020. Much of the older housing sits in the city’s historic districts, from Sannoner and Wood Avenue to Walnut Street, Seminary-O’Neal, College Place and East Florence. Every one of them is on the same weekly cart schedule, and so is every newer street across the 35630, 35633 and 35634 ZIP codes.
What we do about it in Florence
We run Florence routes on the same day the city empties your cart.
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Self-contained truckOur truck carries its own water and power, so nothing is connected to your house.
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200°F washWashed inside and out with high pressure water heated to 200°F.
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Sanitized and deodorizedThen set back where it belongs, ready for the week.
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Nothing down your drivewayNo harsh chemicals, and the wastewater leaves with us rather than running down your driveway.
Ready to stop dreading trash day? Monthly service in Florence is $30 and covers up to two bins. Request a quote or call 256-320-8042.
