The Dkeli 13 Gallon Automatic Motion Sensor Trash Can is worth buying if you want a touchless kitchen or recycling bin that still opens manually when the batteries die. We liked the first one enough to buy a second, and both hold a standard 13-gallon supermarket bag. Easy buy.
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How this review was made: written from my own video review of this product. Every opinion here is my own, from using it myself.
| Capacity | 13 gallons |
|---|---|
| Material | Stainless steel, wire-drawing finish |
| Opening | Infrared motion sensor, battery powered |
| Manual backup | Side open/close buttons plus lift-off lid |
| Bags | Standard supermarket 13-gallon bags |
| Care | Wipe surface with a rag; removable lid and inner liner |
We Bought the Second One Within Weeks
Here in my house, we recycle, and we started with just one of these. Then we liked it so much we ended up getting a second one, so now there’s a pair sitting side by side: one for bottles and plastics, one for everything else. Both are the Dkeli 13 gallon motion sensor trash can, both 13 gallons each, both open by sensor. You just move your hand over the top and the lid goes up. That’s it.
Okay, so why two instead of one big one? Because a single 13-gallon bin fills with recycling in about the same time it fills with regular trash, and splitting them means neither one overflows mid-week. Two matching stainless cans also just look better than one nice can next to a plastic bin from the garage.
The Battery Backup Is the Part That Matters
They run on batteries, and that’s usually where touchless bins fall apart. Not here. If the sensor stops reading your hand, there are open and close buttons right on the side. Press open, press close. If the battery is fully dead, you can still just lift the lid off by hand and use it like a regular trash can.
That’s three ways into the same can, and it’s the reason I’d buy these again. A sensor bin that bricks itself when the batteries die is a plastic sculpture. This one degrades into a normal can and keeps working.
The stainless surface is the other long-haul piece. It’s a wire-drawing finish, so smudges wipe off with a rag, and the sensor is water-resistant so a splash near the top isn’t a problem.
Where a Sensor Bin Gets Annoying
Anything that passes over the top opens the lid. That’s the trade with every motion sensor trash can, and it’s worth thinking about before you pick a spot for it. A toddler who’s figured out the trick, a dog tall enough to clear the lid line, a drawer you open right above it. The manual close button helps, but the sensor is doing its job either way.
And because the batteries are a consumable, these aren’t quite set-and-forget the way a step can is. You’ll replace them eventually. Not a deal-breaker, just something a step-pedal bin never asks of you.
Changing the Bag Takes Three Pieces
Lid off, inner retaining ring out, inner bucket out, bag change is three pulls and about ten seconds. The sequence sounds fiddly written down, but each piece stacks cleanly and there’s no fumbling to get them apart.
Three pieces sounds like a lot written down. In practice it’s a few seconds. The upside is the bag is fully hidden, no edges hanging over the stainless, and when something leaks it leaks into a liner you can rinse rather than onto the metal.
Regular supermarket 13-gallon bags fit, which is the part I’d want to know before ordering. No proprietary liner, no subscription, nothing special to hunt down. Check the current price and color options on the product page.
What You’re Paying For With a Touchless Trash Can
You’re paying for one specific moment: walking to the bin with a raw-chicken cutting board in both hands and not having to touch anything. Every other feature, the 13-gallon capacity, the stainless body, the removable liner, is table stakes on any decent kitchen can. If that moment doesn’t happen in your kitchen, the sensor adds nothing.
One thing on timing. The price on this one moves, so checking the live price is worth the thirty seconds rather than assuming today’s number is the number. It’s a steady seller rather than a trending one, which usually means fewer flash dips.
Buy Two If You Recycle
Get two from the start if you separate recycling. That’s the one thing I’d tell past me. Buying the second one weeks later worked fine, but the pair is the setup that fixed the problem, not the single can.
Measure your gap first too. Thirteen gallons is a full-size kitchen bin, not an under-counter size, so a narrow slot between a cabinet and a wall may not take two of them side by side. And pick up batteries with the order so you’re not unboxing it and immediately opening the lid by hand.
Pros
- Sensor opens with a hand wave, no touching the lid
- Manual open and close buttons on the side if the sensor stops reading
- Lid lifts off entirely, so a dead battery doesn’t kill the can
- Top, inner ring and liner all come out in seconds for bag changes
- Takes standard 13-gallon supermarket bags
Cons
- Anything passing over the top triggers the lid, so placement matters with kids and tall dogs
- Batteries are a consumable you’ll keep replacing
- Bag changes involve three separate pieces coming out
- 13 gallons is full-size, so two side by side need real floor space
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you put it in the bathroom or a bedroom?
Yes, Dkeli lists it for bathroom, bedroom, living room, office and study use. The only limit is size. Thirteen gallons is a kitchen-scale bin, so in a small bathroom it’ll dominate the floor.
How do you clean the stainless outside without streaking it?
A damp rag along the grain of the brushed finish. The wire-drawing surface is specifically meant to wipe clean, and the sensor is water-resistant so a slightly wet cloth near the top is fine. Don’t submerge the lid, the electronics live in it.
Will the lid seal in the smell?
Only if it’s closed. Dkeli notes the seal depends on keeping the lid shut, which is worth knowing with a sensor can, since anything drifting past can pop it open and leave it that way. The close button exists for exactly this.
What if I don’t like it after it arrives?
Dkeli states a 100% refund if you’re not satisfied, handled by contacting them directly. Amazon’s standard return window applies on top of that.
Does the inner liner come out separately from the can?
Yes. The lid comes off, the inner retaining piece lifts out, and the inner bucket is separate from the stainless shell. That means spills get rinsed out of plastic in the sink instead of sitting against the metal.
Get it now
Dkeli 13 Gallon Motion Sensor Trash Can
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If you separate recycling, skip the single-can experiment and order two from the start, that’s the only thing I’d do differently. The sensor works, the battery fallback actually holds up, and a matching pair running side by side is the setup that eliminated the mid-week overflow entirely.
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