Salvation Army Major Gary Masters said the disposal of illegally dumped goods across the nation was costing the organisation $5 million a year in removal fees.

''This is valuable money that could be better spent providing services for vulnerable communities in Canberra,'' he said.

''We're giving people the benefit of the doubt and like to think they're leaving the donations to be charitable, but they're really not helping us.''

Mr Masters said the problem was so bad at the Fyshwick store the group recently installed security cameras for the first time at any store in Canberra.

''The cameras are not going to solve the problem but they might give the police something to go on and possibly dissuade people from dumping rubbish outside the store,'' he said.

He said the most common items left outside stores were mattresses, furniture, electronic equipment and glassware that often was dangerous for staff to dispose of.

''When donated goods are left outside our stores, people often open bags and spread the items all over the place,'' he said. ''We have to clean it all up.

''What we'd like people to do is to come to us either during business hours or phone our hotline and then we can pick up the goods from their location.''

David Roberts, a waste disposal expert with ACT NOWaste, said the dumping of goods was a strain on waste management systems, because they ultimately ended up in landfill.

Mr Roberts said many people continued to dump electrical goods at charity stores because they were unaware they could be disposed of without charge.

He encouraged people to make use of free services provided by non-profit organisations such as TechCollect, which enables Canberrans to dispose of electrical goods free of charge.

TechCollect will be based at the Toll Express Depot in Fyshwick between 9am and 4pm on Saturday.