West Island company is on a mission to make stinky garbage cans a thing of the past

Curbside Clean wants to check one of the dirtiest and stinkiest tasks off your to-do list. The West Island company believed to be the first of its kind in Quebec leaves compost, recycling and garbage bins squeaky clean.

Owner Mike Homsy saw a gap in the market when his residential maintenance clientele would ask him to clean their garbage bins.

“I’m always looking for more effective and efficient ways to do things, so I started doing my research and I found a system that can do that effectively and also remain an eco-friendly process, which is also important to me,” he said.

The day after garbage collection, Homsy and his sister Sam Homsy bring the truck and trailer to clients’ driveways. In about three minutes they wash the bins’ exterior with a pressure washer, disinfect the inside using 360-degree spinning heads, dry them and then spritz them with a citrus scent.

“It’s the viruses and the bacteria that build up in your bins that can be harmful to the environment and to you, so the importance of cleaning your bins will keep you safe and by collecting the dirty water we can dispose of it properly at a water treatment facility.”

The business run by Homsy and his girlfriend Mel Vandersluis took off in early May after a year of planning. They currently serve 100 residential and commercial clients in the West Island, where the service is available.

The Erdele family in Dollard-des-Ormeaux heard about Curbside Clean at just the right time. They were going to throw their bin away because of the putrid smell before discovering the service they say they so badly needed.

“We will no longer be embarrassed, I guess, to keep our garbage can outside and be happy to welcome people to our house as opposed to being embarrassed by the smell,” said Darryl Erdele.

The company offers three different cleaning packages depending on what is needed.

“One on a monthly basis, which starts at $12 for your first bin and every other bin after is $9. We also offer an every-other-month service as well as a one-time cleaning service. The every other month starts at $21 and the one-time clean is $32,” said Vandersluis.

Vandersluis and Homsy still have full-time jobs, so Curbside Clean is the couple’s side project for now. Eventually, they hope to expand the family business to more neighbourhoods in the future.

“We definitely hope to expand in 2022,” said Homsy, but for now they are starting small in their neck of the woods.