Mole Valley asks households to use a refuse bin, a mixed recycling bin and a food caddy, and sells a separate brown-lidded garden bin. The pages we checked do not publish one timetable for refuse and recycling: your dates are on the council's collection calendar, and everything has to be out by 6am.
Last checked against 4 sources (www.molevalley.gov.uk).
What goes in each bin
Refuse bin · General waste
Bin · Varies by area, so check your address
Yes please
Household waste that is not recycling, garden waste or food waste
Bagged ash
Cardboard stained with food, grease, paint or dirt
Not in this one
Extra rubbish that does not fit with the lid closed
A second refuse bin: each household may present one
Rubble, earth, paint tins, sand and other building waste
More than four sacks on a collection day, for the small number of properties that use sacks instead of bins
Mole Valley does not collect food waste every week. Mole Valley provides a 7L silver indoor caddy and a 23L green outdoor food bin with a lockable lid for properties on the food waste service, excluding most flats, which may have a small communal bin with a red or green lid instead. The food page we read tells you to put the green bin out by 6am and leave it until 4pm, and it does not state that the collection is every week.
Garden waste is a paid-for service. The annual collection cost is £74.50 per brown-lidded wheeled bin. You can request up to six bins. The subscription runs for 12 months of fortnightly collections, and you can join at any time of year. The garden waste service runs all year. The council reserves the right to suspend collections for up to 2 weeks over Christmas, and says refunds are not made for that suspension.
Report a missed bin, textiles or small electricals on the council's form. The crew should return within two working days of the report, unless the bin was contaminated. Saturday is not a normal working day, though crews sometimes return then, so leave the bin out. Report within two working days of the collection. The bin needs to have been at the edge of the property by 6am, with the right waste in it. During the disruption described on the page, check the list of outstanding roads after 6pm before you report.
From 31 March 2026 the mixed recycling bin also takes empty aerosol cans, rinsed cartons, clean non-black plastic plant pots, and empty squeezy metal and plastic tubes. Put recycling in loose. A clear sack of extra recycling can go next to the bin. Black sacks and carrier bags are not taken.
If the recycling bin is contaminated, the contractor will not empty it and will not come back the same day even if you take the wrong items out. Remove them for the next collection.
Flatten extra cardboard, tie it in a bundle, and put it beside the recycling bin, or keep it dry in a clear sack. Dirty cardboard goes in the refuse bin.
Vapes are treated as a fire risk. The council asks you to return them to the shop or manufacturer. A vape with the battery removed and no electrical parts left can go in the rubbish bin.
Food caddies can be lined with old shopping bags, bread or salad bags, newspaper or compostable liners. Do not use black bin bags. Most flats use a communal bin rather than the outdoor green bin.
Garden waste has to be loose in the council bin. The bin stays the council's property. A lost or damaged garden bin can be replaced, and the garden terms say a new bin should arrive within 10 working days of payment. You can take garden waste to a Surrey community recycling centre without a subscription.
Bin questions in Mole Valley
How much is a Mole Valley garden waste bin?
£74.50 a year for each brown-lidded bin, with fortnightly collections for 12 months. You can have up to six bins, and changes to the number of bins are made at renewal rather than part way through the year.
What time do Mole Valley bins need to be out?
The food bin goes at the collection boundary by 6am, with the other bin, and the council asks you to leave the caddy out until 4pm so it is emptied.
Does Mole Valley take cartons in the recycling bin?
Yes. From 31 March 2026 cartons, aerosol cans, non-black plastic plant pots and squeezy tubes can go in the mixed recycling bin if they are empty and, for cartons, rinsed.
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