Yard Cleanup in Laval, QC: Hiring and Disposal

Choose the cleanup scope before requesting quotes

Walk through the front yard, backyard, beds and paved areas with the provider, or send photographs of each area. Identify leaves, fallen branches, weeds, loose rubbish and items you want to keep. Mark plants that should remain. Ask the provider to list mowing, bed clearing, bagging, branch bundling and hauling as separate tasks so you can compare the same work across offers.

For ordinary leaves, consider mulching as an option. Laval recommends shredding fallen leaves with a mower so they decompose on the property. The city advises against this approach for leaves from diseased trees; it accepts those leaves in the brown bin or at a leaf drop-off site. Tell the crew about suspected tree disease before agreeing to mulch. [1]

For an overgrown yard, distinguish lawn and brush cutting from clearing established planting beds. Laval limits lawn, weeds and brush to 20 centimetres on developed properties and 30 centimetres on vacant land. The city makes exceptions for maintained beds, ornamental and native plants, perennials, trees and shrubs. Ask the crew to identify what it intends to cut before it begins. [4]

Prepare leaves and branches for collection

If you choose municipal collection, ask the crew to use paper bags or cardboard boxes for leaves that exceed the brown bin’s capacity. Laval prohibits plastic bags in the organic collection, including bags sold as compostable or biodegradable. Have the provider include acceptable bags in the quote, or agree that you will supply them. [1] [2]

Agree who will move the bin and bags to the collection point. Laval allows brown-bin setout after 7 p.m. the evening before collection or before 7 a.m. on collection day. Place the bin on your property at the end of the driveway, with its wheels facing the house and one metre of clearance around it. Use the city’s address search to check your collection day. [2]

Have the crew separate small branches from larger wood. The city’s yard-residue guidance requires collection bundles to contain branches under 1.2 metres long and under 4 centimetres in diameter, with a maximum bundle weight of 25 kilograms. Laval directs large branches, logs, trunks and stumps to the écocentre or bulky-item collection. It directs invasive plants to garbage collection rather than compost; ask for identification before the crew mixes unfamiliar plants into leaf bags. [1]

Confirm the hauling plan and total quote

Ask for a written total that states labour, bags, loading, transport, disposal charges and applicable taxes. For hourly work, confirm whether the rate covers the whole crew or each worker, and agree on a spending limit before approving extra work. Request a property-specific cleanup quote, with municipal disposal fees listed apart from the provider’s labour and transport charges.

If the provider plans to use Laval’s municipal drop-off facilities, discuss your participation. The city says a company doing work or renovations for a Laval resident must have that resident accompany it and present identification and proof of address. It also prohibits dump trucks and dump trailers from accessing the écocentre. Ask the provider to confirm that its vehicle and planned load meet the destination’s rules. [3]

Laval accepts a maximum of 3 cubic metres per visit. For wood, including branches and trunks, construction debris and soil, it allows up to 12 cubic metres per address each year without charge, subject to identification and residency requirements. The city charges 29 Canadian dollars per additional cubic metre above that annual allowance. Tell the provider about earlier drop-offs and ask who will pay any fee. [3]

Schedule the visit and inspect the result

Agree on a weather rescheduling policy and whether you want one visit or a return visit after more leaves fall. Nearby Montréal Trudeau Airport’s 1991–2020 climate normals show October rainfall of 101.6 millimetres and November snowfall of 16.3 centimetres. Use these historical airport averages as context when discussing scheduling flexibility, rather than as a forecast for your home. [5]

Ask the crew to agree on a start time and equipment choice. Laval advises residents to avoid noisy landscape maintenance in the evening or early on weekends and to limit leaf-blower use. The city presents construction and renovation hours as separate advice; confirm an appropriate yard-cleanup schedule with the provider. [4]

Before the crew leaves, inspect the agreed areas together. Check that it kept marked plants, removed the agreed rubbish and separated debris for the chosen disposal routes. If hauling forms part of the job, ask for confirmation of the destination. For collection preparation, check the bags and bundles, then confirm who will set out the brown bin.

October–December snowfall near Laval

Choose the finish and disposal route

Your hiring checklist

1. Photograph each work area and mark plants and belongings to keep.
2. Choose mulching, collection preparation or hauling for each debris type.
3. Request a written scope and total, including supplies and disposal.
4. Confirm whether an hourly rate covers the crew or each worker.
5. Agree on access, parking, gate clearance and a weather backup date.
6. For municipal hauling, confirm your attendance, documents and the provider’s vehicle.
7. Walk through the finished job with the crew before closing out the work.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the crew leave leaf bags for municipal pickup?

Yes, if it prepares them according to Laval’s rules. Use paper bags or cardboard boxes beside the brown bin, and set out the bin too. The city will not collect overflow leaf bags without it. Agree who will handle setout if the cleanup happens before collection day. [1]

Can I use compostable plastic bags?

Laval prohibits plastic bags in its organic collection, including compostable and oxobiodegradable bags. Ask the crew to use paper bags, or put accepted material loose in the brown bin. [2]

Can a contractor take my branches to the écocentre without me?

Confirm the access arrangement before approving municipal hauling. Laval says a company doing work at a resident’s home must have the resident accompany it with identification and proof of address. If you cannot attend, ask the provider to propose another disposal destination. [3]

Can the crew blow leaves into the street?

No. Laval prohibits placing fallen leaves in the street. Specify mulching, collection preparation or hauling in the work order, and keep the crew’s collection piles on your property. [1]