Nashua Transfer Station Guide: Hours, What They Accept, and Sticker Requirements

If you've driven out to 840 West Hollis Street without a residential permit, you already know the feeling — the scale house staff turning you around while a line of trucks waits behind you. Four Hills Landfill & Nashua Recycling Center is genuinely one of the better-run municipal facilities in southern New Hampshire, but it has its own rules, fee schedules, and seasonal quirks that trip people up every year. This guide lays it all out: what the facility accepts, when it's open, how the city's bulk-pickup program actually works, where to take hazardous waste, and the state regulations that determine what's legal to dump in the first place.

With moving season in full swing — and the Mass.-border apartment turnover near Pheasant Lane Mall running especially heavy right now — knowing these rules before you load the truck can save you a wasted trip and real money.

Four Hills Landfill & Nashua Recycling Center: The Basics

Address: 840 West Hollis Street, Nashua, NH 03062
Phone: (603) 589-3410
Hours: Monday–Friday 8:00 AM–4:00 PM (scale closes at 3:45 PM); Saturday 8:00 AM–1:00 PM (scale closes at 12:45 PM); closed Sunday

The $5 Residential Permit — Don't Skip This Step

Every Nashua household needs a Residential Landfill Permit to use Four Hills. The cost is $5 per vehicle per calendar year, and it's free for residents age 65 and older. You purchase it at the Solid Waste Department office, also located at 848 W. Hollis St., and you'll need your current Nashua vehicle registration as proof of residency. This is not optional — commercial vehicles are subject to a different, tonnage-based fee schedule entirely.

If you drive two cars and expect to make multiple trips during a move or estate cleanout, pick up permits for both vehicles while you're there. It's a five-minute errand that prevents a turned-away load on your busiest day.

What Four Hills Accepts

The facility handles a broad range of material from Nashua residents:

• Household trash (MSW) and single-stream recyclables (cardboard, paper, glass, metal cans, plastics #1–7)
• Large appliances and freon appliances — refrigerators, freezers, window A/C units, dehumidifiers
• Scrap metal, brush, and soft yard waste
• Construction and demolition (C&D) debris — must weigh in at the scale
• Electronics: computers, monitors, printers, TVs, VCRs, DVD players — first 2 per year free, then $5 each
• Tires (off-rim only): first 4 per year free, then $3 each
• Lead-acid (automotive) batteries, propane tanks, books, DVDs, used clothing
• Fluorescent/CFL bulbs, mercury thermostats and thermometers, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries — office drop-off only, not at the general disposal area
• Asbestos from Nashua-generated sites only, with prior notice

What Four Hills Will Not Accept

Don't show up with any of the following — they will be turned away:

• Ammunition or fireworks
• Antifreeze, gasoline, battery acid, pool chemicals, pesticides
• Household cleaners, oil-based paints and stains
• Medical, infectious, or pathological waste; sharps (needles, syringes, lancets)
• Boats and large tree stumps
• Used motor oil (taken at Four Hills separately — confirm by phone)

A quick call to (603) 589-3410 before an unusual load is always worth it. Fee schedules and accepted materials do get updated, and the staff are straightforward about what's allowed.

Nashua's Curbside Bulk Pickup Program — Seasonal and Conditional

Nashua runs a free curbside bulk pickup program, but it comes with conditions that catch a lot of residents off guard:

• Season: Mid-April through mid-October only. There is no winter curbside bulk pickup.
• Free allowance: The first 5 oversized items per year and the first 4 off-rim tires are picked up at no charge. Additional items are $25 each.
• Scheduling: Call (603) 589-3410 Monday–Friday, or submit the Oversized Item Pickup form on nashuanh.gov by Friday afternoon for the following week's pickup.
• Curb time: Items must be out by 6:45 AM on your regular trash day.
• Brush rules: Bundles must weigh under 60 pounds, with branches no more than 3 inches in diameter and 4 feet long.
• Not eligible for curbside: Electronics and C&D debris — these go directly to Four Hills.

For anyone doing a move-out cleanout in October or later, that seasonal cutoff matters. If you're clearing a Tree Streets apartment or a South End home after mid-October, curbside bulk pickup simply isn't available — Four Hills or a junk removal crew are your only options.

Hazardous Waste Drop-Off: The NRPC Schedule

Four Hills does not accept household hazardous waste at the general drop-off. That material goes through the Nashua Regional Planning Commission (NRPC), which runs six collection events per year at rotating locations. Nashua residents — along with residents of Amherst, Hollis, Hudson, Merrimack, Milford, and several other towns — can attend any event regardless of which town is hosting.

2026 Event Schedule:

• April 18, 8 AM–12 PM — 25 Crown Street Park & Ride, Nashua
• May 9, 8 AM–12 PM — Milford DPW, 289 South Street
• June 4, 3 PM–7 PM — 25 Crown Street Park & Ride, Nashua (the only evening event)
• August 8, 8 AM–12 PM — Pelham Highway Department, 33 Newcomb Parkway
• September 26, 8 AM–12 PM — 25 Crown Street Park & Ride, Nashua
• November 7, 8 AM–12 PM — 25 Crown Street Park & Ride, Nashua

The fee is $20 per vehicle for up to 10 gallons of liquids or 20 pounds of solids, payable by cash or check to "NRSWMD." Containers larger than 5 gallons require pre-registration at (603) 417-6570.

Accepted: oil-based paints, paint thinners, varnish, wood preservatives, solvents, pesticides, herbicides, pool and spa chemicals, automotive fluids (antifreeze, gasoline), driveway sealers, household cleaners, lithium-ion and button-cell batteries.

Not accepted at HHW events: latex and acrylic paint, used motor oil, asbestos, smoke detectors, electronics, medications, freon appliances. Those go to Four Hills or other specific channels.

More information at nashuarpc.org/hhw or (603) 417-6570.

New Hampshire Disposal Laws That Affect Nashua Residents

State law under NH RSA 149-M:27 bans several categories of material from solid-waste landfills and incinerators entirely — meaning Four Hills legally cannot accept them in the general waste stream regardless of what you're willing to pay:

• Lead-acid (wet-cell) batteries — banned since 1991
• Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries — banned effective July 1, 2025
• Electronic devices — TVs, monitors, computers and peripherals, DVD/VCR players, cell phones, tablets — banned since 2007
• Leaf and yard waste — banned from landfill disposal

Under RSA 149-M:58, mercury-added products (fluorescent and CFL bulbs, mercury thermostats and switches) are also banned from the general waste stream — which is why Four Hills takes them only at the office, not the general drop area.

One thing that surprises people who've moved from Massachusetts: mattresses are not banned from New Hampshire landfills. There's no NH mattress-stewardship program requiring special disposal. You can drop a mattress at Four Hills under your residential permit. Similarly, as of May 2026, New Hampshire has no statewide paint-stewardship program — Governor Ayotte vetoed the relevant bill in March 2026, and the House override failed in April. Leftover latex paint either dries out for trash or goes to a HHW event.

Illegal dumping is a serious matter under RSA 149-M:15 — civil penalties run up to $25,000 per day, with criminal misdemeanor or felony charges possible. If you see illegal dumping in Nashua, report it to local police or NH DES at (603) 271-2942.

When to DIY, When to Use City Pickup, and When to Call a Pro

Most Nashua residents can handle small cleanouts on their own using the city's systems. Here's a practical breakdown:

DIY at Four Hills Makes Sense When:

• You have a pickup truck or SUV and can make it during weekday or Saturday hours
• Your load is under the volume that requires multiple trips
• You're dropping standard household recyclables, scrap metal, or a couple of electronics
• You have your residential permit already (or it's worth the trip to get one)

City Curbside Bulk Pickup Works Well When:

• It's between mid-April and mid-October
• You have 5 or fewer qualifying bulk items
• Items are furniture, mattresses, or large appliances — not electronics or C&D debris
• You can schedule a week in advance

A Professional Junk Removal Crew Makes More Sense When:

• You're doing a full estate cleanout, move-out cleanout, or hoarder cleanout where volume exceeds what one or two trips can handle
• Items include freon appliances, mixed C&D debris, and electronics all at once — sorting and routing that yourself takes serious time
• The pickup window is outside the April–October bulk season
• You don't have a vehicle rated for the load, or you physically can't move the items to the curb
• Timing matters — same-day or next-day removal fits your move-out deadline

A Recent Nashua Cleanout: Kessler Farms Estate Scenario

Earlier this year, our team handled an estate cleanout for a family in the Kessler Farms neighborhood. The homeowner had passed, and the adult children — two of whom lived out of state — needed the house cleared within a week ahead of the real estate listing. The load included a 1970s-era refrigerator and a chest freezer (both freon appliances), a full bedroom set and sectional sofa, roughly a dozen boxes of electronics ranging from old desktop towers to a CRT television, miscellaneous tools, and construction scraps left from a half-finished basement project.

Sorting that load through the city's systems would have required: scheduling curbside pickup for the furniture (and verifying the seasonal window), making a separate Four Hills trip for the freon appliances, another for the electronics, another for the C&D debris, and a hazardous-waste event for certain shop chemicals. Each of those is a separate appointment, a separate vehicle trip, and time the family simply didn't have.

We handled the full load in a single visit — sorting materials for proper disposal routing, including the freon appliances, which require certified refrigerant recovery. The family got the keys back to the estate agent on schedule. That's the practical case for a residential cleanout service: it's not that the city's systems don't work, it's that running multiple queues simultaneously during a grief-driven timeline is genuinely hard.

Factors That Affect Your Quote in Nashua

We don't publish a price list — every Nashua job is quoted based on the actual load. Factors that affect what you'll pay include:

• Volume: How much truck space the load occupies
• Item types: Freon appliances and electronics require specific disposal routing with associated fees
• Accessibility: A third-floor French Hill apartment is a different job than a ground-floor garage in Sky Meadow
• Sorting complexity: Mixed loads with hazardous items, C&D debris, and standard furniture take longer to process
• Same-day vs. scheduled: Urgency affects crew availability
• Distance to disposal facilities: Four Hills is our primary facility for Nashua jobs, but specific materials route elsewhere

Call us at (603) 404-0386 or visit our contact page for a free, no-obligation estimate. We serve Nashua and the surrounding communities including Hudson, Hollis, Merrimack, and Milford — see our full Nashua service area page for details.

We're a Christian-owned, licensed, and insured company. Honest quotes and straightforward service are the foundation of how we operate — no hidden fees, no pressure.