The enormous black bag in these photos is not an official city garbage bag. It belongs to Covering (커버링), a private collection service that removes mixed household waste directly from your door.
Its 220-liter bag measures approximately 110 × 141 centimeters and is intended for bulky items that will not fit inside Covering’s standard 80-liter bag. The printing lists old clothing, blankets, small appliances and discarded household goods as examples. As long as the items fit completely inside and the bag can be closed safely, they generally do not need to be separated by material.
How to Set It Up
- Download the 커버링 app from the Korean App Store or Google Play.
- Register your address and confirm that collectionpl is available in your neighborhood. The regular bag service currently covers Seoul, Incheon and parts of Gyeonggi Province.
- Select 봉투 신청, meaning “request a bag,” and choose 대형 커버링 봉투 220L. The first large bag is currently advertised as free.
- Register a payment card and choose a collection date.
- Open the bag fully, place the largest items at the bottom and fill empty spaces with clothing or other lightweight waste. Sharp edges should be securely wrapped so they cannot puncture the plastic.
- Close the bag completely and leave it outside your door before 10 p.m. Collectors normally arrive between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
The app is currently offered in Korean, but foreigners can still navigate it with a phone’s screenshot-translation or camera-translation feature. The most useful buttons are 봉투 신청 (request a bag), 수거 신청 (request collection), 주소 (address), 결제수단 (payment method) and 이용내역 (service history). Enter your Korean address carefully, including the apartment building and unit number, and add clear access instructions if your building requires a door code. Questions can also be submitted through 내 정보 → 1:1 문의하기, the app’s customer-support section.
The service costs ₩2,500 per visit plus ₩1,400 per kilogram. A five-kilogram collection, for example, would cost approximately ₩9,500. Payment is charged automatically after the bag is collected and weighed.
Unlike municipal disposal, Covering does not require a separate bulky-waste sticker for items accepted through its bag service. However, furniture or appliances too large to fit require the company’s separate 방문수거, or in-home collection service. Construction debris, medical waste and potentially dangerous materials should be confirmed with Covering before disposal.
For foreigners puzzled by Korea’s detailed recycling rules, paying someone else to do the sorting may be the easiest setup of all.
Vocabulary
- 커버링 (keobeoring) — Covering, the service’s name
- 수거 (sugeo) — collection or pickup
- 봉투 (bongtu) — bag
- 폐기물 (pyegimul) — waste
- 헌옷 (heonot) — used or discarded clothing
- 문 앞 (mun ap) — outside the door
- 커버링 (keobeoring) — covering
- 오늘 밤 (oneul bam) — tonight
- 수거 예정 (sugeo yejeong) — scheduled for collection / pickup
- 특별 크기 버림 봉투 (teukbyeol keugi beorim bongtu) — special large-size disposal bag
- 헌옷 (heonot) — old / discarded clothes
- 이불류 (ibullyu) — bedding, blankets, quilts
- 폐가전 (pyegajeon) — discarded electrical appliances
- 폐가구 (pyegagu) — discarded furniture
The large text on the bag says: - 커버링이 오늘밤 수거 예정
(keobeoring-i oneul-bam sugeo yejeong)
“Covering is scheduled for collection tonight.”
Related Articles and Links
- Official Covering website and pricing
- How the 220-liter bag works
- Guide to disposing of large trash in Korea
- Guide to disposing of small appliances
Korea’s Giant 220-Liter Trash Bag: Let an App Sort It Out
The enormous black bag in these photos is not an official city garbage bag. It belongs to Covering (커버링), a private collection service that removes mixed household waste directly from your door.
Its 220-liter bag measures approximately 110 × 141 centimeters and is intended for bulky items that will not fit inside Covering’s standard 80-liter bag. The printing lists old clothing, blankets, small appliances and discarded household goods as examples. As long as the items fit completely inside and the bag can be closed safely, they generally do not need to be separated by material.
How to Set It Up
- Download the 커버링 app from the Korean App Store
or Google Play.
- Register your address and confirm that collection is available in your neighborhood. The regular bag service currently covers Seoul, Incheon and parts of Gyeonggi Province.
- Select 봉투 신청, meaning “request a bag,” and choose 대형 커버링 봉투 220L. The first large bag is currently advertised as free.
- Register a payment card and choose a collection date.
- Open the bag fully, place the largest items at the bottom and fill empty spaces with clothing or other lightweight waste. Sharp edges should be securely wrapped so they cannot puncture the plastic.
- Close the bag completely and leave it outside your door before 10 p.m. Collectors normally arrive between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
The service costs ₩2,500 per visit plus ₩1,400 per kilogram. A five-kilogram collection, for example, would cost approximately ₩9,500. Payment is charged automatically after the bag is collected and weighed.
Unlike municipal disposal, Covering does not require a separate bulky-waste sticker for items accepted through its bag service. However, furniture or appliances too large to fit require the company’s separate 방문수거, or in-home collection service. Construction debris, medical waste and potentially dangerous materials should be confirmed with Covering before disposal.
For foreigners puzzled by Korea’s detailed recycling rules, paying someone else to do the sorting may be the easiest setup of all.
Vocabulary
- 커버링 (keobeoring) — Covering, the service’s name
- 수거 (sugeo) — collection or pickup
- 봉투 (bongtu) — bag
- 폐기물 (pyegimul) — waste
- 헌옷 (heonot) — used or discarded clothing
- 문 앞 (mun ap) — outside the door
Related Articles and Links
- Official Covering website and pricing
- How the 220-liter bag works
- Guide to disposing of large trash in Korea
- Guide to disposing of small appliances
