How to get rid of a mattress in Clay, AL.

If you are replacing the mattress, the shop will often take the old one when they deliver. Usually one old mattress per new one, and only if it is dry and clean.

Casper

Free

Casper mattress order with In-Home Delivery & Setup ($249), continental US; one used mattress per mattress ordered. Sanitary condition judged on site; box springs must be removable intact. Source

Havertys

Free

New mattress delivered by Top Drawer Delivery. Not stated on page. Source

Purple

Free

Non-California: free with Rejuvenate mattresses; $200 add-on for select Essentials/Restore mattresses. Mattress only (no box springs); unsanitary mattresses may be refused. Source

Raymour & Flanigan

Free

New mattress purchase with delivery; free with mattress set of $500+. Safe, sanitary, free of rips and tears. Source

Rooms To Go

Free

New mattress with full service delivery. Not heavily soiled; not with Doorway Delivery. Source

Established for the county as a whole, so it applies across Clay and its neighbors.

• Jefferson County runs no collection of its own; it franchises one. The county's Residential Waste page states: "Effective April 1, 2025, Jefferson County signed a contract with AmWaste to be the franchised waste collection company for unincorporated Jefferson County. No other company is allowed to service the unincorporated areas. This is strictly for household solid waste collection. The quarterly charge for each 95-gallon cart is $59.58. Household trash will only be collected in the provided carts. Additional carts, yard waste collection, or back door service will incur additional charges." The franchise therefore reaches only the unincorporated county: it does not serve Birmingham, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Homewood, Trussville, Bessemer, Mountain Brook, Gardendale, Hueytown, Center Point, Irondale, Leeds, Clay, Fairfield, Pleasant Grove, Fultondale, Pinson or Tarrant, each of which is an incorporated municipality. The page's only statement about large items is that a resident "can enroll in a curbside service for trash, yard debris, and large bulk items" and that "A residential curbside yard debris removal service can be provided to existing AmWaste customers for an additional fee." Source Not confirmed: No price, allowance, item limit or booking rule is published for AmWaste bulk collection in unincorporated Jefferson County — only that additional services "will incur additional charges". Not confirmed: Whether a mattress qualifies as a "large bulk item" under the franchise is not stated by the county or by AmWaste.
• AmWaste's own Alabama page confirms from the operator's side that the county franchise and the city contracts are separate things, and it is explicit about which door a resident must knock on. Under "Alabama Residential Service Areas" it lists "Chambers County", "*City of Hoover", "*City of Vestavia Hills", "Town of Pike Road", "*City of Fultondale", "*City of Pelham", "Jefferson County", "*City of Homewood", "*City of Trussville" and "Montgomery County – Excluding Montgomery City limits", with the footnote "*If your area is listed as 'City of', please contact the city directly for service setup and requests." So the same hauler serves Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Fultondale, Homewood and Trussville under city contracts that the cities administer, and unincorporated Jefferson County under the county franchise. AmWaste's residential services page adds only that "Our residential curbside garbage collection service is available on a contract or subscription basis, depending on where you live. In some locations, we provide curbside collection through a contract with your local municipality. If that's the case, you'll need to contact your city or county directly". No bulk-item price, allowance or mattress rule is published anywhere on the AmWaste site. Source Not confirmed: AmWaste publishes no bulk-item terms, fees or limits for any Alabama service area. Not confirmed: The city-by-city terms behind the Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Fultondale, Homewood, Trussville and Pelham contracts are city-layer research and were not pursued here.
• Not an option: The county's only free county-wide drop-off program will not take a mattress, and it says so by listing everything it will take. The 2026 Household Drop-Off flyer states "Residents of Jefferson County, AL can drop off electronics/TVs, household hazardous waste (HHW), *rinsed recyclables and used household cooking oil for free", then itemizes every accepted category: "Electronics / TVs / Paper to Shred are ACCEPTED at ALL EVENTS" (cable boxes, cameras, cell phones, computers, cords, e-cigarettes, ink toner, cartridges, laptops, modems, monitors, printers, remotes, security equipment, small appliances, tablets, televisions, smart watches, vapes; "On-site Paper Shredding: Regular Paper (5 box limit)"); and "HHW & Recyclables are ONLY ACCEPTED at the April and October Events" — automotive fluids and "Tires without Rims – (8 tire limit)", household aerosols, batteries, chemicals, cleaners, fire extinguishers, gas cylinders, light bulbs, smoke alarms, mercury items, paints and solvents, "Large Appliances: Freezers, Machinery, Refrigerators, Water Heaters" and "*Rinsed Recyclables: Aluminum Cans, Glass Bottles, PET #1 and HDPE #2 Plastics". Furniture and bedding appear in no category. The 2026 dates are January 31, March 14, May 9, June 13 and September 12 for electronics and shredding, and April 25 and October 17, 8–11:30 AM, for household hazardous waste plus electronics and recyclables, at sites including the Birmingham Zoo, the Center Point Satellite Courthouse, Village and Valley Water Reclamation Facilities, Birmingham City Hall / Linn Park, Camp Bessemer and Camp Ketona. The county's free events take a refrigerator and eight tires but not a mattress; its own advice for a mattress is the paid landfill route. Source Not confirmed: The flyer does not name mattresses in its "Items that are NEVER ACCEPTED" list either — that list is asbestos, explosives, medical waste, PCBs and radioactive/unidentified materials. The exclusion of bedding follows from the accepted categories being itemized, not from a named refusal.
• The county rule a reader with a mattress on the curb actually needs is the Weed and Litter Ordinance, Ordinance No. 1188 enacted February 20, 1990 as amended by Ordinance No. 1223 of December 11, 1990. Section 1.20 applies it "to each and every parcel or portion of a parcel of land lying within the unincorporated area of Jefferson County". Section 1.30 C makes it "unlawful for the owner, proprietor, tenant or other person in charge or control of a lot, place or premises that lies within the unincorporated area of Jefferson County to fail to keep said lot, place or premises clean and free from litter", and defines litter to "mean and include garbage, refuse, junk, debris, salvaged materials, household furniture, trash, used motor vehicle tires, inoperable motor vehicles, kitchen or other household appliances, rags, paper, cardboard and other non-decorative matter" — household furniture by name. Section 1.40 designates offenses as violations under Title 13A of the Alabama Criminal Code, "punishable by a term of imprisonment in the County Jail, not to exceed 30 days and fine not to exceed $200". The county's Residential Waste page states the same rule in plainer words: "It is against the law to store these items on your property for weeks, to bury or burn them." Illegal dumping and trash issues are reported to 205-325-5321, Option 6. Source Not confirmed: The ordinance binds only the unincorporated area; each incorporated city in the county sets its own litter penalties, which is city-layer research.
• Not an option: The metro's one Habitat ReStore refuses used mattresses in its own words. Habitat for Humanity Birmingham's ReStore page gives the store as "7952 Crestwood Boulevard, Irondale, Alabama 35210", "(205) 951-1234", open "Monday – Saturday 8:00 am to 5:00 pm", "Closed Sunday", and offers both drop-off during store hours and a scheduled pick-up for larger items. Under "Items We Accept" it lists furniture, general household items, building materials, cabinets, appliances (working condition), lighting, vehicles, windows and flooring. Under "Items We Do Not Accept" the first entry is "Used mattresses", followed by used paint, televisions, board games, toys and clothing. The affiliate's office is at 4408 Lloyd Noland Parkway, Fairfield, Alabama 35064. So the obvious reuse route in Jefferson County takes a sofa and refuses the mattress, and a wasted trip to Irondale is avoidable. Source Not confirmed: The affiliate does not publish its county service area on its own ReStore page or on its habitat.org affiliate listing, so the refusal is recorded for Jefferson County, where the store sits, and not asserted for Shelby or St. Clair.