Roll On/Roll Off Skips vs. Traditional Skips: Choosing the Right Option for Your Project

Choosing the right skip for any waste disposal project is important. Get it wrong and you could end up spending more than you need to, not have enough room for all your waste or even end up overloading your skip – which brings its own problems.

One solution you may not have considered is a roll on/roll off skip – or maybe you’ve seen them listed on our site, but you aren’t sure exactly what they are or whether they’d be the right choice for your own waste project.

In this article, we’re going to explain what a roll on/roll off skip is, how it differs from a standard skip and what kind of waste disposal projects it could be used for.

What is a roll on/roll off skip?

The first thing you’re likely to notice about a roll on/roll off skip is that it’s much bigger than a standard skip. For instance, our largest standard skip size is 12 yards – that means that it has 12 cubic yards of space available for any waste. Our roll on/roll off skips, on the other hand, start at 20 yards, with our largest being a massive 40 yards. 

Roll on/roll off skips also differ from traditional skips in their shape, in that they tend to be cuboid – i.e. the shape of a cube – rather than trapezoid. 

Last, but not least, roll on/roll off skips – because they are so much bigger and likely to weigh much more than a traditional skip – are also loaded onto and unloaded from the trucks that move them about differently. Given the name, it should be relatively straightforward to work out that that is achieved by rolling them on and off the truck, rather than being lifted on and off with a crane attachment, as is the case with a traditional skip.

When to hire a roll on/roll off skip

Roll on/roll off skips are usually used in large commercial projects that generate large amounts of waste. That’s simply because it’s much more economical to hire one very large skip rather than multiple smaller skips. 

But it’s not just about the money. If you have smaller skips coming and going all the time, it could prove far more disruptive to your operation – as well as the local community – possibly even resulting in more mess being left lying around the site while you wait for the next new skip to arrive.

Even better, bigger skips mean fewer trips made by our trucks, and that can only be good news for the environment. But remember, you only get these benefits if you actually need the bigger container, so be sure to think carefully about how much waste you’ll be generating before you place your order. You also need to be sure that you’ve got the available space for it once it’s actually been delivered to you!

Projects and waste streams likely to need roll on/roll off skips include:

• Construction and demolition sites
• Site clearances
• Particularly large and/or bulky waste
• Long-term waste and recycling streams
• Large office/industrial clearances

When to hire a traditional skip

Just because traditional skips are smaller than roll on/roll off alternatives, it doesn’t mean that they can’t be just as useful in many commercial and domestic projects. From smaller building jobs and house, garage and garden clearances to kitchen and bathroom renovations, you’ll find a skip hire size to suit in our range.

If you’re still in need of advice on choosing the right commercial skip size for your waste project, our previous blog should tell you all you need to know. 

As for domestic waste projects, our earlier blog on the subject contains some helpful tips on how to choose the right size skip.

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Here at Enfield Skips, we’re your local waste management experts, with a range of traditional and roll on/roll off skips to suit any commercial or domestic waste disposal project. We’re licensed waste carriers with our own waste transfer station, which ensures that the vast majority of the waste that we collect is recycled rather than ending up in landfill.

Want to find out more? Then get in touch with our helpful team today.