Where Does Your Old Mattress Go? Inside Green Team’s Partnership With HandUp

Key Takeaways

• Green Team collects unwanted mattresses and works with HandUp to make sure recyclable units reach a dedicated recycling facility.
• HandUp manually takes apart end-of-life mattresses and separates materials including steel, foam, cotton, and wood.
• Recovered materials can become products such as carpet padding, pet-bed filling, scrap metal, and industrial mulch.
• The partnership helps keep bulky mattresses out of Massachusetts' already limited waste-disposal system.
• HandUp also uses its business to create jobs and support community programs through its sister nonprofit.

Getting an old mattress out of your home may feel like the end of the job. However, for Green Team Junk Removal, pickup is only the beginning. Mattresses are bulky and difficult to handle, but many of their materials can still be recycled or reused. That is why Green Team works with HandUp Mattress Recycling, a Massachusetts-based social impact company that recovers materials such as steel, foam, cotton, and wood from old mattresses.

We recently spoke with Erik Dyson, co-founder and CEO of HandUp Mattress Recycling, to learn what happens after Green Team picks up a mattress, why recycling matters, and how this partnership helps make responsible mattress disposal more accessible throughout Massachusetts.

Why Mattress Disposal Works Differently in Massachusetts

Since November 1, 2022, Massachusetts has banned mattresses and box springs from disposal, increasing the need for proper recycling options. HandUp helps meet that need by processing unwanted mattresses while supporting a broader social-impact mission. 

Today, HandUp receives mattresses from a range of sources across Massachusetts, including:

• Municipalities and local collection programs
• Junk removal companies
• Retailers
• Schools
• Hotels
• Individual residents

Dyson explained that the company saw an opportunity to reduce the environmental impact of discarded mattresses while also creating jobs and reinvesting resources into the community.

What Happens After the Green Team Picks Up Your Mattress?

When Green Team handles a mattress removal, the goal is not simply to get the mattress off the customer’s property. Green Team acts as the transportation link between customers and recycling partners such as HandUp Mattress Recycling, helping make sure collected mattresses reach a facility equipped to process them properly.

Once a mattress arrives at HandUp, the team evaluates its condition and determines the next step:

• Reusable mattresses: A small percentage may still have enough life left to be cleaned, sanitised, and resold.
• End-of-life mattresses: Most are sent through the recycling process, where materials such as steel, foam, cotton, and wood are separated for reuse.

As Dyson explained during the interview, Green Team is a valued junk-hauling partner because the partnership helps connect customers with a responsible mattress recycling option.

How an Old Mattress Gets Taken Apart

Mattress recycling involves much more than placing the entire mattress into a machine.

At HandUp, workers manually deconstruct mattresses and separate the individual components. This allows materials that would otherwise be mixed together in the waste stream to go to different recycling and reuse markets.

Steel

Mattress springs and other steel components are removed and sent to scrap-metal processors, where the metal can be processed for future use.

Foam

Foam is separated and compacted before being sent to downstream processors. It can then be shredded and repurposed into products such as carpet padding.

Cotton and Fabric

Cotton and other usable fibres can also have a second life. According to Dyson, recovered cotton may be repurposed into items such as filling for dog and cat beds or industrial cleaning rags.

Wood

Wood found in mattress foundations and box springs can be processed into products such as industrial mulch rather than taking up space in the waste stream. MassDEP estimates that roughly three-quarters of the components in typical mattresses and box springs can be disassembled and recycled.

Therefore, responsible mattress disposal can recover a surprisingly large portion of something that might otherwise appear to be one large piece of trash.

Some Mattresses Can Even Get a Second Life

Not every mattress that reaches HandUp is immediately dismantled. Dyson explained that a small percentage of newer, gently used mattresses may qualify for resale after going through HandUp’s cleaning and sanitising process. This gives usable mattresses a second life instead of sending them straight into the recycling process.

HandUp refers to this as upcycling, which keeps suitable mattresses in use for longer. Mattresses that are no longer fit for reuse are then dismantled so materials such as steel, foam, cotton, and wood can be recovered and recycled.

Mattress Recycling Creates an Impact Beyond the Landfill

For Dyson, the environmental benefits are only one part of HandUp’s mission. The company operates as a social impact business and supports its sister nonprofit, HandUp Community Impact, while also creating good-paying jobs and opportunities for employees to build new skills.

That means each mattress processed can create several layers of impact by:

• Reducing pressure on landfill capacity
• Returning recyclable materials to useful markets
• Supporting local jobs
• Helping fund community programs

In 2025, HandUp reported creating 30 full-time jobs and diverting millions of pounds of mattress materials from landfills.

Why Partnerships Like Green Team and HandUp Matter

A recycling facility can only make an impact when people have a practical way to get bulky items there. That is where the partnership between Green Team Junk Removal and HandUp Mattress Recycling comes in. Green Team handles the pickup and transportation, while HandUp provides the facility and workforce needed to dismantle and process unwanted mattresses.

Dyson hopes partnerships like this can continue expanding access to responsible mattress disposal across Massachusetts. By making recycling more convenient, more mattresses can be redirected toward reuse and material recovery instead of adding pressure to the state’s limited disposal capacity.

Contact Green Team Junk Removal for Mattress Disposal in Massachusetts

An old mattress can be difficult to move, especially when local disposal rules limit how it can be handled. Green Team Junk Removal makes mattress disposal easier by taking care of the heavy lifting, pickup, and transportation while working with recycling partners such as HandUp Mattress Recycling when appropriate.

Whether you are replacing a single mattress, clearing out a home, or removing several bulky items, Green Team can help. Schedule your mattress disposal with Green Team Junk Removal and choose a more responsible way to handle your old mattress.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I throw an old mattress in the trash in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts bans mattresses and box springs from disposal or transport for disposal, with certain exemptions for contaminated mattresses. Residents should use an approved recycling, collection, or disposal option instead.

What happens to a mattress after Green Team removes it?

For recyclable mattresses handled through its partnership with HandUp, Green Team provides the hauling while HandUp handles the specialised recycling process. The mattress is assessed and, in most cases, manually dismantled so its different materials can be recovered.

What parts of an old mattress can be recycled?

Common recoverable materials include steel, foam, cotton or fabric, and wood. These materials can be processed into products such as carpet padding, pet-bed filling, recycled metal products, and industrial mulch.

Can every mattress be recycled?

No. Mattresses that are heavily soiled, excessively wet, moldy, or affected by bed bugs may not qualify for standard recycling. HandUp evaluates mattresses before processing them and determines whether they meet its recycling requirements.

Why should I use a professional mattress disposal service?

Mattresses are large, difficult to move, and subject to specific disposal requirements in Massachusetts. A professional service can handle the lifting and transportation while helping direct the mattress toward an appropriate recycling or disposal option.