Abstract: Any bundles in household refuse are broken up and this refuse is then coarsely comminuted with the broken up bundles, only the hard components of the refuse being comminuted with the light components merely being temporarily deformed between a pair of rollers having surface formations. Thereafter the coarsely comminuted refuse is separated by means of a drum-type sieve into a heavy fraction and a light fraction. The light fraction is finely comminuted into granules which are blown into a burning chamber in which they are suspended on a gas. The granules are combusted in this chamber to form a hot gas that is recirculated to sterilize and dry the heavy fraction and to dry the finely comminuted light fraction before its burning.