Donation, Reuse and Disposal · Fort Myers & Lee County
Donation, Reuse and Disposal
What Lee County charities accept and turn down, and how a cleanout with us works: usable items set aside for local organizations that accept them, the rest hauled away. We’ve donated to Goodwill Southwest Florida, Habitat’s ReStore and The Salvation Army. Text photos for a free estimate; you approve the price before we schedule.
Most cleanouts are part donate, part dispose. The hard part is knowing which is which before the truck shows up. Below: what Habitat’s ReStore and Goodwill Southwest Florida accept and turn down, using their own published rules; an item-by-item answer for the things people ask about most; how to donate a piece yourself; and how a cleanout with us handles the usable items.
Who takes what in Lee County
Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore (31 Willis Rd., North Fort Myers, and 9080 Bonita Beach Rd., Bonita Springs) accepts furniture in good condition, appliances under 10 years old that work and aren’t rusted, cabinets with their doors attached, standard doors, new boxed flooring, working light fixtures, lawn mowers, grills and tools. It doesn’t take mattresses, armoires, entertainment centers, exercise equipment, tube TVs, clothing or children’s items. It offers free pickup for items that meet its size requirement: (239) 652-0388. Its accepted-items list has the details.
Goodwill Southwest Florida accepts clean, sellable clothing, housewares, small appliances, books, toys, bicycles, sporting goods, flat-screen TVs, computers and assembled furniture. It doesn’t take mattresses or box springs, sofa beds, entertainment centers, cribs, car seats, treadmills, pianos, pool tables, large rugs, building materials or major appliances. See its donation guide.
Lee County’s Topaz Court facility (6441 Topaz Court, Fort Myers) takes residents’ household chemicals, including latex paint, pesticides, pool chemicals and propane tanks, at no charge, and recycles computers, printers, TVs and monitors. See the county’s facility page. For curbside bulky pickup and city-by-city rules, use our Lee County disposal guide.
Donate or dispose: item by item
Furniture: Habitat’s ReStore and Goodwill Southwest Florida both take clean, sellable furniture without stains, tears or pet damage. Neither takes entertainment centers. ReStore also turns down armoires, bunk beds and Murphy beds; Goodwill turns down sofa beds and furniture that’s been taken apart.
Mattresses and box springs: neither ReStore nor Goodwill accepts them used. Curbside programs treat them as bulky items; our disposal guide lists the rules by city, or we haul them with the rest of the load.
Appliances: ReStore takes appliances under 10 years old that work and aren’t rusted, but not gas appliances, used wall ovens or dishwashers made before 2014. Goodwill doesn’t take major appliances at its donation sites, though it says some newer working units may be picked up from a home.
TVs and electronics: Goodwill takes working flat-screen TVs, computers, monitors and printers. Neither Goodwill nor ReStore takes tube TVs. Lee County recycles computers, printers, TVs and monitors at the curb next to (not in) your garbage in county service areas, or at Topaz Court. Wipe or remove drives before anything leaves the house. See TV removal when a set is too heavy to move.
Clothing, linens and housewares: Goodwill takes clean clothing, shoes, linens and accessories that aren’t well-worn, wet or mildewed, plus clean, working housewares and small appliances. ReStore takes cookware, dishes and small kitchen appliances that aren’t cracked or broken, but not clothing.
Cabinets and building materials: ReStore takes kitchen and bathroom cabinets with their doors attached, standard 80-inch doors, full-sheet drywall, lumber 6 feet or longer and new boxed flooring. It doesn’t take cut or used wood, used flooring or wall-to-wall carpet. Goodwill doesn’t take building materials.
Exercise equipment, pianos and kids’ gear: Goodwill takes only small exercise equipment (no treadmills), and ReStore takes none. Goodwill turns down pianos and organs, and cribs, car seats and recalled items; ReStore doesn’t take children’s items. These usually leave with the load.
Paint, chemicals and propane: Lee County takes household chemicals from residents free at Topaz Court (drop-off sites). Everything else, we’ll haul.
How a cleanout with us handles usable items
Before we start, set aside what the family is keeping, selling or giving away, and tell us. Then we clear the rest. As we load, usable furniture, appliances, clothing and household goods are set aside and offered to local organizations when they can accept them. Metal is separated for recycling when practical, and the rest goes through an appropriate legal disposal stream.
We’ve donated to Goodwill Southwest Florida, The Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, SuperThrift Fort Myers and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. Each organization sets its own guidelines and decides what it can accept, so plan on the whole load leaving the house on the day, whether or not a given piece is taken.
Clearing a whole home? See estate cleanouts, whole-house cleanouts or senior downsizing. Wipe or remove drives and phones before pickup so your data stays with you.
What makes an item donatable
Charities look for clean, working, complete items. Stains, tears, odors, pests, missing parts or damage usually rule an item out, even if it looks fine in a photo. Don’t plug in damaged equipment to test it.
When you send photos, show the pieces you hope will be donated up close: cushions and fabric, tabletops, drawers pulled open, and the label on any appliance, since its age matters to ReStore.
Donating it yourself
For a single good item, call the charity first and confirm they’ll take it, then arrange pickup or drop-off with them. Habitat’s ReStore offers free pickup for items that meet its size requirement. Don’t leave things outside a closed donation center; most won’t take items left after hours. Retailer haul-away or your city’s curbside bulk pickup may suit other items; our Lee County disposal guide has the rules for each area.
Next step
Text photos of everything that’s going, room by room, and tell us what stays and which pieces you’d like donated if they’re accepted. Text a photo for a fast price, call, or get your free estimate online. You approve the price before we schedule; large jobs can get a free walkthrough. Every job has a $99 minimum; see how pricing works.
Questions about donation, reuse and disposal
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Get a donation, reuse and disposal estimate
Send a few photos and the pickup address. Tell us about stairs, gates or anything else between the items and the truck. We serve Lee County and will talk through the job with you before agreeing on a pickup date.
Service information updated October 14, 2026.