The phone question that comes up a lot: "I have an old fridge to get rid of. Why is there a fee on top of the pickup?" The reason: refrigerators, freezers, AC units, and dehumidifiers contain regulated refrigerant that has to be recovered before they get scrapped. Worth understanding so the cost makes sense before you book.
Here's the plain-English version.
The refrigerant rule, in plain English
Refrigerators, freezers, window AC units, and dehumidifiers all contain a chemical refrigerant. Federal rules say it has to be recovered by a certified technician before the unit gets scrapped. It can't be vented to the air.
That recovery step costs money. Every refrigerator, freezer, AC unit, and dehumidifier that comes through a transfer station gets a fee on it to cover the recovery work.
Who does the actual recovery
For most residential disposal, the certified recovery happens at the transfer station, not at your house. We load the appliance and haul it to the disposal site. The site has the equipment and the certified tech. They pull the refrigerant before the unit goes for scrap.
Scribby's doesn't do the recovery work directly. We're not an EPA-certified refrigerant facility. The transfer station is. They handle the recovery and the disposal fee is built into your appliance removal quote.
The four appliance types this affects
The fee applies to:
- Refrigerators. Both the standalone kitchen kind and the smaller dorm-fridge kind. Wine fridges. Beverage coolers.
- Freezers. Upright freezers, chest freezers, garage freezers.
- Air conditioners. Window AC units, wall units, portable AC units. Whole-house central AC has its own removal process, usually handled by HVAC contractors.
- Dehumidifiers. Yes, even small basement dehumidifiers. They have a small refrigerant loop inside.
What the fee actually is
We keep specific pricing in the booking system, not on the website. The fee is small relative to the cost of the appliance itself (we're talking the cost of dinner, not the cost of a new fridge). It's part of the total quote when you book.
The full price is set when we quote the job.
Why this matters when you're cleaning out a basement or garage
A lot of basement cleanouts and garage cleanouts include an old fridge or freezer that's been sitting unused for years. Sometimes two. Worth knowing they'll itemize on the quote.
The most common scenarios where this comes up:
- The old kitchen fridge moved to the garage when you upgraded
- A chest freezer in the basement that hasn't been turned on in five years
- A window AC unit from when the central AC wasn't installed yet
- A dehumidifier from a flooded basement project
All four of those carry the small additional disposal cost, which is built into the cleanout quote.
"What if I just leave it at the curb"
A few NH towns will pick up appliances on bulky-item day with a sticker. The sticker price covers the disposal fee they pay downstream. So you're still paying the recovery fee, just through the town instead of through a private hauler.
Towns that don't run a bulky pickup leave you with three options: haul it yourself (transfer station charges the fee), have a hauler take it, or put it on the curb with a "free" sign (which doesn't make it disappear and creates a problem when it's still there in a week).
"What if it still works"
If the appliance still works, donation or resale is a real option. Some resale outlets and thrift stores take working appliances. The catch: they typically only take ones with verifiable working order and from the last decade or so. A 1996 fridge with the cracked door seal doesn't usually move on the donation route.
If it works and you can find a taker, you skip the disposal fee entirely.
Can you take just the refrigerant out yourself and skip the fee
No. Refrigerant recovery requires EPA certification and specific equipment. Self-recovery is illegal.
The booking call
For appliance removal, the questions are simple:
- What appliances (count and type)
- Location in the house (basement, garage, kitchen, second floor)
- Address
We'll quote the total up front. Call 603-634-9947 to schedule, or text the same number with a list of what's going.