Why did the truck skip my pile?

Usually a stick or two. The town is direct that limbs, rocks and debris damage the vacuum, so a contaminated pile is left rather than sorted. The other two reasons are placement and timing — outside the one-to-five-foot band from the curb, or set out after 7 a.m.

How far from the curb is right, exactly?

Between one and five feet from the back of the curb or the edge of the street. Tight against the curb is too close, and up in the yard is too far. Aim for the middle of that band and you have margin on both sides.

Does the town collection cover the whole yard?

It covers what reaches the curb strip. The truck does not enter the yard, the beds, the fence lines or the ground around the foundation, and in most Vinton lots that is where the bulk of the leaves are. The town gives you free disposal. The raking and dragging is still yours.

What if I miss the December 11 cutoff?

Loose piles stop being collected and you are back to bagging them for your regular bulk day. That matters in a late-drop year — oaks around here routinely hold leaves past the middle of December.

Can you just get it to the curb so the town truck takes it?

We can tell you what that costs, and it is often the cheaper way to use a good program. Send us the address for a price and we will clear the beds, fence lines and back yard into a clean pile inside the band before 7 a.m. on your day — or load the whole thing out on the trailer if you would rather not think about the calendar at all.

Town of Vinton · Roanoke County

Vinton's leaf truck is good. It is also particular.

Vinton is incorporated, so it runs its own collection instead of falling under Roanoke County. A vacuum truck comes through and takes loose leaves — no bags to buy, no bags to fill. What the town asks in return is precision: a specific band of ground, a specific hour, and a pile with nothing in it but leaves. Get those three right and the program works about as well as a municipal leaf program can.

Get a price for your address Ask for a written quote

What Vinton does with your leaves

Loose-leaf vacuum, plus bagged year-round · 2026 season

From November 2 through December 11, 2026, you rake to the curb strip and a truck vacuums it up. Where exactly you rake matters — the town wants the pile no closer than a foot and no further than five feet from the back of the curb, which is a real band, not a suggestion. It has to be there by 7:00 a.m. on your day, clear of the sidewalk, and it has to be leaves only. Outside that six-week window the loose-leaf truck stops, and bagged leaves ride along on your regular bulk day all year instead.

The band: no closer than one foot, no further than five feet from the back of the curb or the edge of the street.
The hour: everything raked to that spot by 7:00 a.m. on your collection day.
The contents: leaves only. No sticks, limbs, rocks or debris — those damage the vacuum, and a contaminated pile gets left where it is.
Not in the street, not in the gutter. The town's stated reason is ponding and washout, not appearance.
The pile must not block the sidewalk.
Outside the loose-leaf window, bagged leaves go out weekly on your regular bulk day.
Bulk and brush come once a week on your refuse day, from the street-side property line — not from alleys.
The town says up front that weather and equipment breakdowns push the route back. The schedule is a plan, not a promise.

Do not rake them into the street

Vinton is explicit that leaves do not go in the street or the gutter. A pile in the gutter line dams up storm water, and that is the stated reason rather than tidiness.

Town of Vinton leaf collection guidance, Public Works 540-983-0646.

Burning them

Vinton sits inside the Western Virginia Emissions Control Area, where open burning is prohibited May through September. On top of that, Virginia’s 4 PM Burning Law bans open-air burning before 4 p.m. from February 15 through April 30 anywhere within 300 feet of woodland, brushland or a dry field. Between the two, autumn is one of the narrower windows — and burning a wet leaf pile is miserable anyway.

Three details stand between you and a free haul

The band, the hour, and a pile with nothing but leaves in it. We do the part the truck will not — beds, fence lines, around the foundation — and put it where Vinton wants it, on time and clean.

See my price now (540) 302-5511

Your address and about a minute for a real price. Or call and talk to the person who does the work.

Questions we get in Vinton

Why did the truck skip my pile?: Usually a stick or two. The town is direct that limbs, rocks and debris damage the vacuum, so a contaminated pile is left rather than sorted. The other two reasons are placement and timing — outside the one-to-five-foot band from the curb, or set out after 7 a.m.
How far from the curb is right, exactly?: Between one and five feet from the back of the curb or the edge of the street. Tight against the curb is too close, and up in the yard is too far. Aim for the middle of that band and you have margin on both sides.
Does the town collection cover the whole yard?: It covers what reaches the curb strip. The truck does not enter the yard, the beds, the fence lines or the ground around the foundation, and in most Vinton lots that is where the bulk of the leaves are. The town gives you free disposal. The raking and dragging is still yours.
What if I miss the December 11 cutoff?: Loose piles stop being collected and you are back to bagging them for your regular bulk day. That matters in a late-drop year — oaks around here routinely hold leaves past the middle of December.
Can you just get it to the curb so the town truck takes it?: We can tell you what that costs, and it is often the cheaper way to use a good program. Send us the address for a price and we will clear the beds, fence lines and back yard into a clean pile inside the band before 7 a.m. on your day — or load the whole thing out on the trailer if you would rather not think about the calendar at all.

Nearby, with different rules

Roanoke City

Bagged only — paper, never plastic

Rake leaves into a Roanoke street and the city can bill you $100 plus the contractor's cost. Here are the bag rules, the four collection windows, and what to do instead.

Roanoke County

Biweekly bulk & brush, A/B week rotation

Roanoke County collects bulk and brush biweekly, but not materials from paid contractors. That one line decides how leaf cleanup works in Cave Spring, Hollins and Glenvar.

Salem

Loose-leaf vacuum, curbside, no charge

Four miles from Roanoke, Salem does the opposite: automated leaf trucks, no bags, no charge, and the city asks you to pile loose leaves at the street. Here is how it works.

What do you need done?

1 / 4

Written quote back within one business day. No spam, no sales calls at dinner. We only use this to quote your yard.