Anyone who’s lived on the Fraser Coast for a few summers knows how quickly a severe storm can wreck a yard. Branches come down, a fence gets flattened, soil washes across the driveway and palm fronds end up over half the street. Then comes the real job: getting rid of it all.
The usual answer is the ute and trailer and a lot of tip runs. On a big clean-up, that gets old fast. Branches hang over the sides, the trailer’s full in minutes, and the line at the tip crawls when the whole street has had the same idea.
At CJS Machinery Hire, we help locals across Hervey Bay, Maryborough and surrounds clear storm debris in fewer trips with a tipper truck. Here’s what you need to know to get the job done quickly, without any nasty surprises at the tip.
Why Now Is the Time to Plan
Storm season is nothing new for Queenslanders, but the timing matters. The Bureau of Meteorology says October to April is the peak time for storms, tropical cyclones and floods across Queensland, and the east coast, including southern Queensland, has its highest risk of severe thunderstorms from October to December. The next few weeks are prime time for the kind of afternoon storm that leaves a yard covered in debris.
Most of what a storm leaves behind is bulky rather than heavy: branches, fronds, broken fencing and washed-out soil. That’s where a tipper earns its keep. It carries more per load than a trailer and tips off in seconds at the other end.
Before You Start
You’ve heard the storm safety messages before, so we’ll stick to the ones that matter most for a clean-up.
Fallen power lines
Stay at least 10 metres away, which is the distance Queensland’s Electrical Safety Office gives for fallen powerlines, and treat the line, and anything it’s touching, as live. If anyone’s in danger, call 000. Otherwise, report fallen power lines to Ergon’s emergency line on 13 16 70, and keep 13 22 96 for reporting a power outage. Leave any branches tangled in lines for Ergon’s crews.
Trees on the house
If a tree has come down on the house or is too big to handle, call the SES on 132 500 or an arborist. Clear the ground-level mess yourself and leave the overhead work to them.
Broken fibro
Queensland Health says most houses built before 1990 are likely to contain asbestos in materials such as wall and ceiling sheeting, eaves and roofing. If the storm has broken fibro eaves, cladding, a shed or fencing, don’t break it up further and don’t throw it in the tipper. Keep people away, avoid creating dust and call a licensed asbestos removalist.
Photos first
Photograph the damage before anything goes on the truck. Once it’s at the tip, so is your evidence for an insurance claim.
Why a Tipper Beats the Trailer
A ute and trailer is fine for a few branches, and a skip bin suits mixed household rubbish over a week. For a proper storm clean-up, a tipper wins on trips: load it up, tip it in seconds and come straight back for the next load. It can also move between properties, so neighbours can share the hire and clear several yards in a day.
We compare tipper truck hire and skip bins in Hervey Bay in more detail in a separate guide.
What Can Go in the Tipper
| Material | Tipper? | Things to know |
| Branches, palm fronds and leaves | Yes | Cut branches to 1.2 m or less for free council drop-off |
| Tree trunks | Yes | Split them under 1.2 m long and 40 cm wide; palm trunks and trunks that can’t be mulched are charged by the tonne |
| Clean soil and sand from washouts | Yes | Keep it separate, because we’ll take it for free |
| Bricks, pavers and concrete | Yes | Charged by the tonne, and clean loads cost far less than mixed ones |
| Roofing iron and other metal | Yes | Free at council facilities; restrain sheets so they can’t lift in transit |
| Clean, untreated timber | Yes | Must go to the Maryborough Waste Facility, not Hervey Bay; check with council about treated fence palings |
| Fibro or anything possibly containing asbestos | No | Licensed asbestos removalist only |
| Household chemicals and empty gas bottles | Keep separate | Council takes household quantities free, but not fuels |
| Mattresses and whitegoods | Keep separate | Council charges for mattresses and gassed fridges |
A tipper drops its whole load in one pile, so whatever goes in together gets charged together. Keep each run to one material: a green waste run, a metal run, a timber run, and clean soil straight to our yard. Fraser Coast Regional Council only takes green waste and recyclables free of charge when they arrive sorted and can go straight into the right bins. Mix branches in with bricks or soil and the whole load can be charged as mixed waste.
Where It All Goes
Residents can drop off up to 4 m³ or 1 tonne of clean garden waste for free at any council waste facility except Aramara Transfer Station. Branches must be no longer than 1.2 metres and no wider than 40 cm in diameter. In Hervey Bay, that’s the Hervey Bay Waste Facility on Aalborg Road at Nikenbah, open 7 days from 7.30 am to 5 pm (closed Christmas Day). Expect the tipper to go over the weighbridge, because council charges loads from vehicles over 4.5 tonnes GCM on a weighed or volume basis. Green waste is still free up to 4 m³ or 1 tonne, but anything over that, along with palm trunks and trunks too big to mulch, is charged by the tonne. If you’re unsure how a load will be charged, call council on 1300 79 49 29 before your first run.
If heavy rain has washed soil or sand across your property and it’s genuinely clean, with no rubbish, rocks, concrete, vegetation or contaminants, bring it to us. We offer free soil disposal at our Booral yard. Drop-off is by appointment only, so give us a call first. We can’t take green waste or mixed loads.
Metal, including roofing iron, goes free at both the Hervey Bay and Maryborough facilities. Clean timber is different: it has to go to the Maryborough Waste Facility on Ariadne Street, and it attracts a fee. Clean concrete and bricks are charged by the tonne at a much lower rate than when they’re mixed with other waste, which is one more reason to sort your load and keep each material to its own run. Fuels aren’t accepted at either facility, so check council’s hazardous waste guidance before you load chemicals or gas bottles.
Loading Tips That Save Trips
Spread the weight and don’t overload
Spread each load evenly across the tray, and watch the weight on heavy runs: storm-soaked soil, waterlogged timber and masonry can reach the truck’s payload limit long before the tray looks full. Overloading is unsafe and illegal, so if you’re unsure, do two lighter runs.
Cut branches to 1.2 metres
Shorter lengths pack tighter, are easier to restrain and meet council’s size limit for free green waste drop-off.
Cover and restrain every load
Queensland law requires every load to be properly restrained. Put a tarp or cargo net over green waste and restrain anything solid that could shift. We cover the basics of load securement in a separate guide.
Mind soft ground and overhead lines
A loaded truck bogs quickly on a lawn or unsealed driveway after heavy rain, so stick to firm ground where you can. When it’s time to tip, only raise the tray on firm, level ground, and look up first, because a raised tray can reach power lines and overhanging branches. We cover more on avoiding common mistakes when loading and unloading tipper trucks in a separate guide.
Self-Drive or Wet Hire?
A car licence won’t cut it. A C class licence only covers vehicles up to 4.5 tonnes GVM, so you’ll need the right truck licence to drive the tipper yourself. We cover what licence you need to drive a tipper truck in a separate guide.
No truck licence? Our Driver for a Day service gives you a truck and a qualified driver for $500 a day plus fuel. Your crew loads while the driver handles the tip runs. If you already have a truck and just need someone behind the wheel, our drivers start from $250 a day. Wet hire works especially well on bigger properties, rural blocks and multi-yard clean-ups where the truck will be on the road most of the day.
Get Ahead of the Next Storm
Trimming overhanging branches before the next storm means less to clean up after it, and council takes clean green waste for free year-round. For trimming and gutter work at height, our cherry picker hire gives you a more stable working platform than a ladder. Whether you need a licence depends on the machine, because a WP high risk work licence is required for boom-type elevating work platforms with a boom of 11 metres or more. Check the requirements with us when you book, or hire the cherry picker with one of our operators. Leave any branches near power lines to qualified professionals.
Book early, too. Demand for machinery jumps after a big storm.
Storm Clean-Up Made Simple with CJS Machinery Hire
When a storm hits, you want the yard cleared quickly without dozens of trailer runs. Our tipper truck hire gives Hervey Bay locals a reliable, well-maintained 6-tonne Isuzu tipper, with straightforward pricing and no deposits.
- Half-day hire: $150 for 4 hours
- Daily hire: $250 per day
- Weekly hire: 1,400 perweek (200 per day over 7 days)
- Discounts for repeat customers and bookings of 3 days or more
- Delivery and pick-up available, or collect and return the truck yourself at no charge
- Trucks are supplied full of fuel and must be returned full
To hire, you’ll need a valid driver’s licence, the appropriate truck licence if you’re driving yourself, and a credit card. No licence? Ask us about wet hire with one of our drivers.
We’re a family-owned business based in Booral with over 25 years’ experience in construction and earthmoving. We service Hervey Bay, Torquay, Urangan, Maryborough and surrounding areas within 100 km, including Gympie and Bundaberg, and we’re open 7 days, 6 am to 5 pm.
Call us on 0427 767 027 or get in touch to book your tipper before the next storm rolls in.
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