At what point do you just chuck all of your junk in a dumpster?

reader2580 · Nov 13, 2020

At what point do you just chuck everything in your garage/basement into a dumpster and just start over?

I have so much stuff/junk in my basement and garage that I can't get anything done as I can't find any of my tools or the parts I bought for projects. Heck, I bought parts two weeks ago for my ongoing solar project that I can't find.

The one room in my basement I literally cannot even step into as it is full. I have parts and tools in there I need for my solar project that I can't get to. I had a minor flood in my utility room on Tuesday so all the stuff on the floor in there got thrown into the other room which I now can't even walk into.

I don't have any clear space to set anything else in my basement at this point. Heck, I have a $2,000 solar inverter precariously set on top of other stuff right now.

Old Man Roger · Nov 13, 2020

I think you've reached that point..lol

240sxguy · Nov 13, 2020

Agreed with above. Or donate etc...

Colin Len · Nov 13, 2020

Old Man Roger said:
I think you've reached that point..lol

Yup, lol.

Personally, I both have hoarding/collecting tendencies as well as a love for minimalism and find that having lots of "stuff" just feels like a burden. It's a strange thing to have one foot on each side of the spectrum. I'm constantly buying more car parts or picking up misc stuff I find on craigslist which seems useful. But, I also go through the garage and shed a couple times a year for a good cleaning where I toss out as much as I can (well, typically I try to sell it).

p00p · Nov 13, 2020

time to purge.

reader2580 · Nov 13, 2020

Unfortunately, I won't be able to get a dumpster until Monday at earliest.

I will probably start ordering replacement parts for my solar system this evening. Maybe by the time they arrive I'll have space to store the stuff properly so I don't have to throw it all in a dumpster again.

Moosefire · Nov 13, 2020

reader2580 said:
Unfortunately, I won't be able to get a dumpster until Monday at earliest.

I will probably start ordering replacement parts for my solar system this evening. Maybe by the time they arrive I'll have space to store the stuff properly so I don't have to throw it all in a dumpster again.

Ordering replacements seems... redundant if you're going to go thru all of hour stuff. Im not sure what you're doing with your solar project, or how quickly you need it done, but I would think that you're going to find everything in the coming week (or 2) of cleaning and clearing out your rooms

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Don1357 · Nov 13, 2020

When you own too much stuff the tables flip and your stuff begins to own you; you devote your life to maintain your piles without getting much benefit in return. Get rid of about half and it would probably be a good start.

Jackfre · Nov 13, 2020

At some point you realize that it is just "stuff." Good stuff, valuable stuff, maybe, but getting rid of it is in itself a declaration of freedom and you will get more done with what remains. What will likely happen is you will go through stages in the disposal. Junk, sorta junk, maybe junk, possible junk, valuable and usable junk. What I mean is that this stuff doesn't let go of you easily. Oh, you will say, I can sell that and yes, while you may be able to even that will drive you nuts for short dough and eat your time. 86 all of it and start over.

acer66 · Nov 13, 2020

one way I try to keep clutter down is to give all my metal recycling to a buddy, have a donate/give to friends corner but it felt great.
the last time I got a container, ended up with a second one because it was so much and everything needed to go.
extra motivation at the end was that I wanted to fill up the second container as much as I could because I paid for it.
really feels great to let go of stuff.
I also helped a few people move this year and I developed a deep dislike for too much stuff.
you do not own stuff, it owns you.

PWC Repair · Nov 13, 2020

When your garage and yard start to look like Moe's.....from "storage wars".

californiamilleghia · Nov 13, 2020

George Carlin Talks About "Stuff"

Here is your answer.......

reader2580 · Nov 13, 2020

Moosefire said:
Ordering replacements seems... redundant if you're going to go thru all of hour stuff. Im not sure what you're doing with your solar project, or how quickly you need it done, but I would think that you're going to find everything in the coming week (or 2) of cleaning and clearing out your rooms

I need the solar stuff now so I can finish my project before real winter sets in. It is already beyond the point where outdoor work is really feasible in Minnesota. (At least for those not used to working outdoors in the cold.)

Dumber than lumber · Nov 13, 2020

Dude - you are probably overthinking it.
:eyecrazy:

23ford · Nov 13, 2020

I had this problem am going thru all now and have sold/given away and organized .......feels good but I did not order any new parts till I went all and found what I had.

coljar · Nov 13, 2020

You need more outbuildings to put more junk in. :lol_hitti

reader2580 · Nov 13, 2020

I have attached a picture of the one room in my basement. You literally cannot step foot into the room right now. I have no place left to move stuff in the rest of my basement to get this room cleaned out.

This is why I plan to get a dumpster and just throw everything out.

manwithtools · Nov 13, 2020

A few shelves would go a long way in getting you organized. I always fall victim to "flat surface hoarding". I hate flat surfaces without a purpose, they just become catch all's for everything.

jdm5 · Nov 13, 2020

According to my wife I hit that point 3-4 years ago...she’s around here somewhere I think.

kwb · Nov 13, 2020

I don't think you chuck everything.

I have recently been looking at stuff in my loft and thinking that a good purge is in order. Some of the stuff has aged out, some is hobbies I don't really do any more, some is stuff I saved because money was harder to come by when it was "saved." Some of it was that I had a surplus of space when I built my shop and now I am feeling cramped and getting space back has more value than the stuff that is occupying the space.

My drops bin of metal is also not keeping some of the small bits that I used to. Those are just going into the scrap bin. Wood scraps make it to the fire pile a lot sooner. The time to manage the piles is just flat out too valuable to waste on a pile of stuff that is worth maybe $100 on a good day to the right person.

I will never be the guy that always returns every unused plumbing fitting because again the time is more valuable than the few bucks you get back. I know there is another project on the horizon and if I can do it without going to the store all the better.

jhelrey · Nov 13, 2020

What time should I be over?

mikegt4 · Nov 13, 2020

My point to purge always seems to be one week before I need something that I use to have.

nadogail · Nov 13, 2020

IMHO, You are very near that point. I suggest you set a goal of clearing a definite amount of space every month, you didn't accumulate all this at once, it happened over time. Give yourself some time to divest your self of your things, but do it.

ssdave · Nov 13, 2020

bczygan · Nov 13, 2020

Someone broke into my garage.

I have no idea what they took.........!

Bill

Git · Nov 13, 2020

Go down to Costco or whatever store your prefer and start buying the clear plastic, 12 gallon storage totes. They easily stack for now (better on shelves) and use some painters tape on the front for labels. You could easily clean up that mess in that room buy using totes like these and storing them under that makeshift table

And if you don't like that idea, dibs on those Makita cordless tools...

78SC4X4 · Nov 13, 2020

jdm5 said:
According to my wife I hit that point 3-4 years ago...she’s around here somewhere I think.

I recently cleaned out my dad's garage so they could move closer to us and then ended up cleaning out my father-in-law's stuff after he passed.

In both cases, I ended up getting rid of tons of scrap lumber - You will never use those odds and ends.

Under stacks of lumber, there were other materials, lawn chemicals for example that got buried. Since they no longer could see that they were there, they just bought more. I found multiple unopened containers of round up.
Same with the leftover screws, pipe fittings, broken landscape lights, wire, screen, brackets, etc. **** saved but long forgotten.

So, I came home and did some cleaning............. Let that stuff go. You don't know it's there and you'll never use it. Your kids will end up throwing it away.

bbbarracuda · Nov 13, 2020

Several years ago, a couple of years before my Dad passed away, he rented a dumpster. He said he wouldn't burden my sister and I with all his junk. He threw away probably half of his "stuff" that he had been saving for years. At the time, I thought he was nuts. But after he passed and I had to go through what was left, I couldn't imagine what it would have been like with double the amount. I was and am grateful for that.

Bigblockyeti · Nov 13, 2020

If you're going to save stuff, it really needs to be organized well enough so you can find it. If you're going to collect stuff you really, really better be able to keep everything very well organized. If you're going to hoard, you better have a curator to organize and catalog everything you have or it will likely be lost forever!

SuperCat · Nov 13, 2020

ssdave is right on the money! I started my own decluttering project a few months ago and have read a few books specifically on decluttering along the way. He just distilled the major points of several entire books in one post. Amazing. My project is still in progress, but I have unloaded quite a bit of stuff already and things are improving. It is surprising, but "less is more" in more ways than one. :thumbup:

InsanePyro · Nov 14, 2020

I'm a big fan of '87 thru '96 Ford trucks...I've been purging parts for a little over a year, just reached a point

nadogail · Nov 14, 2020

If you have dug yourself into a hole, and want get out, IMHO, the first step be to stop digging.

By that I mean you should stop accumulating stuff for "someday". If it is for an immediate use, like next week, OK. But, not stuff for "someday".

I am following my own advice, I have realized that I don't know anyone who will appreciate the trove of "someday" stuff.

You did not get into this situation overnight and you should allow yourself time to get out.

RivennHewn · Nov 14, 2020

I love that I always have a dumpster at work, and I always take advantage of it.

Best job benefit ever!

matt_i · Nov 14, 2020

A couple of houses ago I was "shelf poor" and this caused similar issues.

Everytime I went to the shop I enforced with myself that "something's leaving with me and not returning".

It worked pretty well, I need to get back into that. The incremental approach seemed easier to manage.

HenryAZ · Nov 14, 2020

I did my purge before moving from a small townhouse in MD to our new retirement house in AZ, with a 3 car garage (had no garage before). Anything that cost more to move than buying new was an automatic purge, plus a lot more stuff I had hoarded. With all that extra space here in AZ, somehow I find myself "filled up" again, with tools, machines, etc. Nature abhors a vacuum.

MushCreek · Nov 14, 2020

I went out to my shop and poured out a gallon jug of water. It took ten minutes to reach the floor!

My shop IS a mess. It's been an evolution- I've always collected stuff, but when we built a house and moved, it really became a problem. First, I cleaned out the attached garage, and we just park the wife's car in there. Then, I wanted to finish the basement, so all of the **** down there was moved. Got the basement done and clean. Next, I built a great room in 1/3 of our barn. All of the **** in there had to be moved. All of that stuff has been condensed into the shop loft (where it really isn't causing much trouble) and my shop, where it IS causing a problem.

I can't actually put everything away. There's more stuff than storage. I'm 67, and cutting back on projects, but first, I need to get rid of many of the projects I have. I have a boat all torn apart, that I need to sell. I have spare parts from several cars. I have a lot of leftover tools from building my house that I'm never going to use again. I have a LOT of building supplies- lumber, electrical, plumbing, etc.

I'm a bit stuck, because I don't really like the idea of dealing with the public right now. We're in a covid hot spot, so I avoid people as much as I can. A yard sale is out. I suppose I could sell some big-ticket items, meeting in a parking lot and being really careful. Right now, I'm almost tempted to do what the OP said- chuck it all and start over. I wonder how much $$ I could net having an auction house handle it? Certainly more than just scrapping it all. All of us with this affliction need to get started, though. Maybe I'll put some smalls up on ebay to get my feet wet.

Blind1 · Nov 14, 2020

Moosefire said:
Ordering replacements seems... redundant if you're going to go thru all of hour stuff. Im not sure what you're doing with your solar project, or how quickly you need it done, but I would think that you're going to find everything in the coming week (or 2) of cleaning and clearing out your rooms

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We seem to have found the problem....

Just “ordering new parts” is legit hoarding behavior. Suggest you fix THAT issue before you tackle any projects.

toyotadriver · Nov 14, 2020

I haven’t read the entire thread yet but.....have you tried organizing first? Maybe you don’t have a lack of space...maybe you have a lack of organizational skills.

gtsgarage · Nov 14, 2020

Moving is a great way to get rid of stuff. I moved a few years ago and had accumulated a ton of spare Mustang parts from my restoration. I forced myself to get rid of a lot of stuff. I actually went in with a friend who was retired he sold it all and we split the profit. Win-win.

sberry · Nov 14, 2020

Justcstraightening up would take an hour in that little room and get half the space for free.

At what point do you just chuck all of your junk in a dumpster?

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