Swap Shop

RULES AND REGULATIONS

Hours of Operation
The Swap Shop hours of operation shall be determined by the Winchester Department of Public Works and posted at the facility. The Swap Shop operations will be open from May 1 through December 1. The hours of operation will be dependent upon the availability of DPW staff and/or volunteers to oversee the program.

Open for Drop-offs and Browsing only on these days and hours:

Tuesdays 10:30 am – 6:00 pm
Thursdays 12:00 pm - 6:30pm
Fridays 8:00 am – 2:30 pm
Saturdays 8:00 am – 3:30 pm

Drop-off
Only items deemed acceptable by the swap shop attendant shall be dropped off in the facility. Items shall not be dirty, water stained, broken, missing pieces or require major assembly when outside of the original box. Very large heavy items will also be excluded. Unacceptable items that cannot be recycled must be disposed of in yellow smart bags, taken to the trash belt/tipping building or taken home.

Acceptable Items:

  • Baby/Child equipment (no used diaper genies)
  • Books (no Encyclopedias, Text Books, Law Books, Books in poor condition or water/mildew damaged, violent or inappropriate)
  • Candles
  • Dishware
  • Household Items in good condition (silverware, pots and pans, folding chairs, etc.)
  • Jewelry 
  • Luggage in good shape not damaged 
  • Office Equipment small cabinets and desks office accessories
  • Pet Travel Carriers in good shape and not rusty
  • Picture Framed Items portraits, maps, scenes, posters
  • School Items accessories
  • Small furniture items in good condition. Flimsy particle board furniture goes into the trash.
  • Sports equipment small items
  • Tables and Chairs good condition not broken
  • Tools (hand tools, garden, mechanical, etc.)
  • Toys, games, puzzles (not broken or missing pieces)

Non-Acceptable Items:

  • Alkaline Batteries go into the trash
  • Appliances washer/dryer, etc. ($10 per item at the scale house)
  • Batteries (Rechargeable, Lead-Acid, Button cell go into the Universal Waste Shed)
  • Bed Frames/Hospital Beds (metal ones go into the metal pile)
  • Car Batteries (go onto a pallet in the trash building connected to the belt)
  • Carpets/Rugs ($10/roll or $105/ton weighed at the scale house)
  • Cell Phones and Telephones (place in Universal Waste Shed)
  • Child car seats- they have expiration dates
  • Child Motorized Vehicles – (remove recycle battery place vehicle in metal pile area or trash building)
  • Coffee machines used (place in metal pile or trash)
  • Construction/Demolition Debris (wooden/plastic windows, doors, fence, boards, sheetrock, plaster, cabinets, non-metal toilets and sinks, etc.) $200/ton at the scale house. $10 minimum price
  • Cosmetics 
  • Clothing, Shoes, Bedding linens and pillows (place all bagged items inside one of the 7 clothing collection containers)
  • Christmas Trees old assembled or in pieces, Christmas lights (place in the metal pile or on the conveyor belt)
  • Electronics, Televisions (monitors, laptops, computers, printers and ink cartridges, hard drives, key boards, dvd’s, vcr’s, stereo and game equipment, wires, etc.) All of these items are to be placed in the Electronics Recycling Container. Laptops, Monitors and Televisions require a payment.
  • Laptops and Monitors 5”-16” ($5 at the scale house)
  • Televisions - Monitors 17” – 36” ($15 at the scale house)
  • Televisions - Monitors over 36” ($25 at the scale house)
  • Entertainment Centers or Large Furniture (place inside the trash building)
  • Exercise Equipment Large/Heavy metal pieces treadmills and bikes, metal weight sets go in the metal pile area. Plastic weights go in the trash. Wooden equipment can go into the trash building.
  • Explosives/Flares/Fireworks/Ammunition (not allowed in Transfer Station)
  • Food all items
  • Freon Items air conditioners, dehumidifiers, etc. ($15 per item at the scale house)
  • Glass (drinking glasses, mugs, vases, mirrors, panes of glass, table tops, aquariums, etc.) Food all food products go into the trash
  • Futon Beds (multi-piece out of box go into the trash building)
  • Helium tanks, Fire Extinguisher’s, Metal Gas Cans empty (place in red storage container near scale house)
  • Humidifiers, Air Cleaners used (place in trash)
  • Household Hazardous Waste Materials (all oil paints, varnishes, chemicals, fuels, poisons etc.) Two Household Hazardous Waste days at the DPW Yard every year. Reciprocal agreements with several other towns throughout the April to November period each year.
  • Lawnmowers, Snow blowers, other motorized equipment, large exercise equipment (all large metal items go in the metal drop-off area)
  • Lightbulbs (regular old fashion incandescent, and LED go in trash)
  • Fluorescent bulbs go into the Universal Waste Shed
  • Liquids (all liquids, including soaps, chemicals, cosmetics, sprays, poisons, fuels etc. either into the trash or save for a household hazardous waste day. (Check HHW above)
  • Magazines (place all magazines inside one of the 4 JRM single-stream recycling compactors)
  • Mattresses, Box Springs ($10 per item at the scale house)
  • Medications/Needles/Sharps (Collection Kiosks at the Police Station open 24/7)
  • Mercury Items (fluorescent bulbs and tubes, thermometers, thermostats, etc. recycle in the Universal Waste Shed)
  • Pianos/Organs (metal pile or trash building)
  • Propane/Oxygen/other gas tanks (propane #20 tanks - $5/tank at the scale house, propane 1 pound or less free at scale house) Other prices for other tank sizes for propane or other gases)
  • Swing Sets/Slides/Structures (Metal in the metal pile, Wood/Plastic in the trash building adjacent to the conveyor belt. $200/ton at scale house. $10 minimum price)
  • Tires ($5 each at the scale house)
  • Trailers small metal pile minus tires
  • Trophies/Awards Place in trash
  • Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors (minus batteries in trash)
  • Stuffed Toys (place in the clothing trailer with wheels or trash if dirty)
  • Tires ($5 each at scale house)
  • Toasters, Toaster Ovens, Microwave ovens (place in metal pile)
  • Upholstered furniture, chairs, loveseats, couches ($10/item at the scale house)
  • Vacuum Cleaners (metal pile if metal, trash if mostly plastic)

Items Not Listed:

The acceptability of any item that is not specifically identified under the Acceptable or Non-Acceptable items will be determined by the staff and/or volunteers.

The Decision of the Staff/Volunteers is Final

Arguments among residents over an item will be settled by a flip of a coin.

Any complaints shall be submitted to the Winchester Department of Public Works by mail:

Town of Winchester DPW
15 Lake Street
Winchester, MA 01890

All complaints must include the following written information:

  • Name, address
  • Contact info (telephone number or e-mail)
  • Explanation of incident and parties involved