Service Options
Welcome to the registration page for the City of Falls Church curbside organics collection program. We are thrilled to bring composting to your incredible community. The program is month to month and consists of weekly pick-ups of your food scraps; meat, dairy, grains, egg shells, napkins and much more. We will provide you an airtight bin and liners on a weekly basis to help keep everything tidy. We then compost! And with your help, we reduce our collective carbon footprint and keep valuable nutrients in our food system. The program costs only $6/month or $66/year, and you can easily register below. All participants can get one bag of compost per year and the first 750 registrants will receive six months of free service compliments of your City ?
Service Options
Monthly Plan
- At home weekly pickups
- Bags provided
- Bin Cleaning
- First 6 months paid by the City!
- Compost back
- As long as your address is within the City of Falls Church, this pricing will automatically be applied!
Annual Plan
- Everything you get with monthly service
- One month FREE!
- Express your commitment
- First 6 months paid by the City!
- Compost back
- As long as your address is within the City of Falls Church, this pricing will automatically be applied!
Bin Options
Left: 5 gallon bin, odor sealed, handle for carrying; Right: 12 gallon bin, latched lid, wheels, handle for pulling
Kitchen Caddy Combo Pack: a two-gallon, dishwasher-safe kitchen bin, plus 30 compostable liners, all for $19.99!
FAQ
What is Composting?
Composting is the natural aerobic (with oxygen) decomposition of organic matter into nutrient rich soil.
Why Compost?
- Composting diverts our food scraps from landfills and incinerators.
- Our landfills are filling up, leading to longer and longer hauling distances, higher greenhouse gas emissions, higher waste management costs, and less space available for our trash.Food waste constitutes 22% of discarded municipal solid waste in America.
- When food scraps are left in a landfill or incinerated they release methane, a greenhouse gas that is 80 times as potent as CO₂.
- Composting is a sustainable alternative that puts the nutrients from our food scraps back into the earth and, eventually, our food system by using the finished compost as a fertilizer for local farms.
- Composting is the final step to completing a truly sustainable food cycle system.
What can I compost with Compost Crew?
For a comprehensive list, click here.
Where do I put the bin? Doesn’t it smell? What about rodents?
Our bins are fitted with a gamma sealed screw top. No rodents are getting in there, and they wouldn’t want to anyways, because the bin is completely odor-free when closed!
Remember that everyone that starts composting was already putting their food scraps somewhere. Usually, they went in a bag (or not) and into a trash receptacle. But that trash receptacle wasn’t designed for composting! No latch, no seal, and often times, thinner plastic.
From our residential to commercial services, Compost Crew uses bins and bags that are designed for food scraps. We provide the tools, services, and (perhaps more importantly), the education and training to ensure that your composting program will go off without a hitch, so that you can convert naysayers to do-gooders and partners in composting.
Customers usually leave the bin in the garage or next to the house, keeping a smaller bin in the kitchen. And, though the final decision on how to use our service is up to our crewmembers, we are happy to provide assistance and/or advice as needed.
Where do our compostables and food scraps go?
We are proud to bring our food scraps to the PG County Organics Composting Facility owned by Prince George’s County and operated by Maryland Environmental Services. More information can be found here: https://www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/583/Yard-Waste-Composting-Facility
How do I get my free compost?
Our Falls Church customers are eligible to receive finished compost for free once a year. Details about how to request your compost will be sent out via email when the finished compost is available. You can request the compost via the new customer portal.
Why not use the garbage disposal?
Composting is better than using a garbage disposal for two reasons:
- Using a garbage disposal causes wear and tear on a sewer system that is costly to maintain.
- The food scraps are mixed with the other unsavory parts of a sewer system (need we say more?), and the finished product is therefore of a lower quality with a limited range of applications. Conversely, compost is a highly enriching soil amendment with a wide range of applications.
I’m not sure if this is for me...Can I try it out for a month?
Absolutely! We offer a pay-as-you-go subscription for the low cost of $32/month with a money-back guarantee for the first month! See our Service Agreement for more detailed information.
Please note: If you are part of a municipal collection service, there are no fees associated with your service.
How do I get started?
Just sign up or request a quote on our website and we will drop off a bin and bag within one week for you to get started composting. A week after your bin drop-off, your weekly pick-ups will begin. Signup here!
Where do I purchase bins and liners?
Below is a list of all of the bins and liners that we have available for sale. To place an order, just email products@thecompostcrew.com with what and how many of each you would like, and we’ll process your order.
If you want to purchase compostable-ware and/or compostable liners not listed on our site, just make sure that they are BPI-certified compostable: http://www.bpiworld.org/ or another 3rd party certification group backed by the US Composting Council: compostingcouncil.org
When and where should I leave my bin out?
Your bin must be visible and accessible from the street, and on your pick-up day, we’ll come get it.
What if I go on vacation and need to temporarily suspend pickups?
No problem! Just shoot us an email, and we’ll suspend your service for as long as you need (1 week or 8 months!) FREE of charge!
Please note: If you are part of a municipal service, this option is not available.
What is your holiday schedule?
Our holiday schedule is listed below, but your scheduled pickup day will be constant unless you hear differently directly from us via email. Please leave your bin out until collected.
NOTE: WEATHER RELATED CHANGES WILL BE EMAILED AND POSTED VIA SOCIAL MEDIA
2020 Holiday Schedule – We will be closed on the following days:
- Friday, December 25 – Christmas Day
- Friday routes will be moved to Saturday
- Saturday routes will be moved to Sunday
- Sunday routes will be moved to Monday
- All other days remain the same
- Friday, January 1, 2021 – New Year’s Day
- Friday routes will be moved to Saturday
- Saturday routes will be moved to Sunday
- Sunday routes will be moved to Monday
What should I do if I have excess compost that won’t fit in my bin?
We’re happy to take the occasional overflow from parties and other events. Just make sure to leave everything in a secured bin and/or bag (preferably compostable) right next to your Compost Crew collection bin, clearly labeled to make sure our driver knows to take it.
If you have overflow on a more regular basis (more than once every other month), we ask that you upgrade to a 12 gallon bin for only $4/month extra.
Help! My bin is damaged or has gone missing!
If your bin is damaged or gets lost, simply call or email us at 301-202-4450 or service@thecompostcrew.com and we’ll deliver you a new bin on your next pickup day. A replacement fee to cover our costs may be assessed depending on the situation. In the meantime you can collect your compostables in your own bin or bag, clearly labeled, on your next pickup day and our driver will take them and leave you your new bin.
I still have more questions.
No problem! Just shoot us an e-mail at business@compostcrew.com or
call (301) 202-4450