The Lincoln academic year
May move-out: keep, move or get rid of a mattress
Decide what happens to the mattress before move-out week. Lancaster County residents can take one to the City of Lincoln's North 48th Street transfer station with a covered, secured load. If you are keeping it, have it cleaned before you move it.
When this matters
Week of May 4, 2026
Centralized checkout began Monday, May 4; meters near the halls were hooded for one-hour loading. (UNL Parking and Transit Services announcement)
May 9, 2026, 1 PM
All residence halls closed. Graduating students had until 11 AM on May 10. (UNL Move Out)
May 9 to August 23, 2026
UNL summer break. (UNL Housing)
Where can you take a mattress in Lincoln?
| North 48th Street facility | Bluff Road facility | |
|---|---|---|
| Address | 5101 N 48th St | 6001 Bluff Road |
| Who it serves | Lancaster County residents (waste transfer station) | Lancaster County refuse haulers |
| Load rule | Covered and secured | Covered and secured |
| Trailers | Cargo space under 60 sq ft | Over 60 sq ft |
| Payment | Credit card, cash, check | Cash, check, accounts |
| Phone | 402-441-8104 | 402-441-8102 |
All from the City of Lincoln's Solid Waste Management page. Lincoln's hazardous waste center, HazToGo, shares the 5101 N 48th St address, which is handy if you are clearing paint or chemicals out of the same apartment.
What should you do in move-out week?
- Decide by May 1. In 2026 UNL's halls closed at 1 pm on May 9, so May 1 leaves a week to book a haul or a cleaning: keep, move, give to someone you know, or get rid of it.
- Strap and cover the load. The city requires covered and secured loads.
- Plan around campus. In 2026 UNL hooded meters near the halls for one-hour loading and held commencement at Pinnacle Bank Arena on May 8 and 9.
- Keep cardboard out of the landfill load, because UNL's move-out page notes corrugated cardboard isn't allowed in city landfills.
Keeping it for next year?
- Have it cleaned at the apartment before move-out.
- Leave the bed unmade until it is dry to the touch before it is moved; the moisture check before we leave tells you where it stands.
- Check your care label and warranty terms before any cleaning.
What we don't know
- The 2027 move-out schedule. UNL posts it in spring.
- Current transfer station fees. They are in the city's rate schedule, which changes; call ahead.
Questions from students and parents
Can a Lincoln resident take a mattress to the Bluff Road landfill?
The city lists Bluff Road as the disposal site for Lancaster County refuse haulers. Residents use the North 48th Street facility.
What does the transfer station charge?
The City of Lincoln publishes its rates in a Solid Waste Management rate schedule. We don't repeat the figures here because they change; call 402-441-8104 before you go.
Should I leave my old mattress by the dumpster?
No. UNL advises students to avoid curbside beds, so a bed left by the dumpster is a problem for the next student, not a donation. Take it to the North 48th Street facility or give it to someone you know.
Sources
- UNL Move Out, checked October 3, 2026
- UNL Parking and Transit: Campus traffic and parking adjust for events (April 30, 2026), checked October 3, 2026
- UNL University Housing: Break periods, checked October 3, 2026
- City of Lincoln: Solid Waste Management, checked October 3, 2026
- UNL Student Legal Services: What about Bed Bugs?, checked October 3, 2026
Changelog
- October 3, 2026: First published, using the May 2026 move-out schedule.
- October 3, 2026: Hooded-meter row now cites the UNL Parking and Transit announcement.
- October 3, 2026: Narrowed the keeping-it guidance to cleaning before move-out.
- October 4, 2026: Added question headings; replaced a Knowledge Center link with the dry-to-the-touch step.
Published October 3, 2026, updated October 4, 2026. Written by Lincoln Mattress Cleaning, locally owned and operated by Sleep Sanitation.
Elsewhere in the academic year
- August move-in: a mattress plan for students and parents
- Buying a used mattress for a Lincoln apartment
- A parent's mattress checklist for the UNL year
- UNL residence halls vs off-campus apartments: who owns the mattress?
- Nebraska Wesleyan move-in: a mattress plan for Prairie Wolves
- Union Adventist University move-in: mattress timing for Warriors
- Greek house mattresses in Lincoln: odor and semester turnovers
- Parents: how to book a mattress cleaning for August move-in
- Dorm mattress vs apartment mattress: when to sanitize in Lincoln
- Graduation weekend: mattress turnarounds near UNL
- Southeast Community College in Lincoln: Woodhaven Hall and off-campus beds