"One Man's Trash is Another Man's Treasure"

[Dan in Pasadena]

Okay, I admit to having a good bit of "Fred Sanford" in me. I come by it naturally as my Dad was a scavenger too. Anyway, found this little wall mount ShopVac this morning with about a 10ft hose. Works PERFECTLY. No cracks, stains, nothing. Even the filter is pretty clean. Not overly powerful but fine for small cleanups or light debris in your car.

I found these cabinets listed on Craigslist a few weeks ago. I had them in my truck less than an hour from listing. These will replace open metal shelving that allowed lots of dust to accumulate. I will make replacement doors for the upper shelving but it clearly had them once. They will be painted and used for small parts & fastener storage.

Just to be clear, I do not only "take". I have also left on the curb with a "Free" sign on it: an old but working gas lawn mower, a table saw, some chome F150 rims, and some lumber. I couldn't use them but I figured someone else could. Kinda a poor man's "paying it forward" I guess.

Let's see your freebies gentlemen.

 

[Jim_No_Garage]

I was green before the term was coined . . .

The list of curb side acquired furniture in my house is extensive:

Living Room :
Coffee table and 2 side tables (similar coloring but 3 different styles)

Dining Room:
4 person oak table in perfect condition - people were moving
2 Drawer faux oak lateral file cabinet
Our dining room is really the homework room so the networked printer is there.

Kid's Bedrooms:
Chrome bakers rack and metal retail display rack for storage

Basement:
A junky 5 foot homemade workbench with casters - I wanted the casters and didn't have a screwdriver in the car (doh!). Rolled it into the basement and it's been there 3 years.

Ton's of bookcases and dressers for storage.
IKEA tables used a hobby tables for my son.

The only rule I have - NO UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE. I get all itchy just thinking about that . . . . .

Jim

 

[HSpencer]

My recent "freebie" thread

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=182693

 

[nine4gmc]

Good score on the vacuum, and nice of you to pay it forward as well. Here is my freebie, best one in a while. I met and started working with a guy that buys/sells trailer loads of store damages/returns. He gets lots of items and one was this Char Broil grill, it looked like it may have been a store display that got hit by a forklift. He don't have time for some things and said I could have this one. I brought it home, took it apart and banged out the dents as good as possible. It's missing the left fold out shelf and I had to fix the tabs on the hinges for the front door and epoxy the electric start switch but I got it back together and you can hardly tell it was wrecked. FREE!! I'll be infrared cooking in no time, just need a bottle now!! Oh, I also paid it forward to my neighbor who got my old(good condition) charcoal grill, he used it more anyway.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Wow, that grill for FREE is a great score. I'd keep that guy a friend for sure!

 

[incurablescrounge]

I agree on the no upholstery idea! I stay away from air conditioners and dehumidifiers as well. I brought home a dehumidifier and I found roaches inside a little late. Orkin for a year, thank you very much! Orkin guy said roaches love them, heat, water, hiding space all in one.

 

[930dreamer]

Free oven for a powder coating set up (tested, works), heavy solid cored door, one cabinet, but I could have grabbed the whole kitchen.

 

[SpyderGiant]

I got a 20" flatscreen monitor that works that someone was going to give away.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Free oven for a powder coating set up (tested, works)...

I'm keeping my eye out for one on Craigslist.

 

[synchro7]

Big electric oven for powder coating. 3 10' sections of 10' high pallet shelving(with a total of 15 shelves). And an almost new drywall jack. Works great for working on 8' florescent lights. All for just hauling it away.

 

[rickyboy]

I saw a kid tossing out a computer a few yrs ago, into the dumpster for the apt. where I was living at the time. I dug it out and found it worked fine. A little slow but I defragmented and reformatted and it did one of my kids just fine for a yr. or two.
It was just packed with **** when I "found it". **** web sites in his favorites, photos .....a lot pretty discusting. I mean I like a fine looking lady with her clothes off but some of the $hit he was looking at was pretty questionable.

 

[crazytrain]

We have a yard sale every year and usually do pretty well selling the things we no longer need or want. Anything left over usually gets donated or set out front with a free sign. Everything from lumber, old screen door, boxes of clothes and furniture goes fast.

I put my old gas lawn mower out front for free the other year and before I made it back to the back yard some guy was loading it up. It ran but was having carb trouble I fixed it to many times when I should have been mowing before just buying a new mower. I always check curbs while driving, never know what someone might toss or set out and cruise craigslist often.

 

[softailgarage]

"Basement:
A junky 5 foot homemade workbench with casters - I wanted the casters and didn't have a screwdriver in the car (doh!). Rolled it into the basement and it's been there 3 years."

 

[HeelSpur]

I know a guy who put a fridge out and put a sign on it, "works".
No one took it so he put a new sign on it, "for sale $5",
someone stole it then.

Guess it was no fun if it was free anyhow.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I have two stool (like old ones found in a high school classroom) that I picked out of a dumpster.

A freind found an Oreck sweeper in a dumpster when they were remodeling the public library. All it needed was a new switch and now it resides in his basement for his family room.

 

[cincinnati_kid]

I have gotten a lot of things out of the garbage. I have 2 push mowers both needed no work. One was a 2 year old craftsman the lady told me there was nothing wrong with it she didnt want to fuss with the bagger any longer. I didnt have the heart to tell her is was also a multching mower. I got my husqvarna weed eater from the same house. The lady told me she couldnt get it to run. The pickup tube in the tank fell off....... runs great. Got my stihl blower out of the garbage all it needed was a primer ball and a gas cap. I got my char griller grill (propane, charcoal and a smoker) out of the garbage not a thing wrong with it not even any rust. The grill is huge at least 6ft long haha. patio chairs that needed a coat of paint. plus tons of stuff i have sold of given to other people. It amazes me what people will throw away. I tour the wealthy neighborhood near me looking for the good stuff.

 

[zuk123]

20 ft of rain gutter and 10ft of downspout for my rental house.

$300 office chair.

Solid wood interior door, perfect match for my '40's rental.

Lots more that I can't remember at the moment.

Someone commented that people with more money will throw out things that in poorer neighborhoods would be for sale was totally correct. I see it all the time. Heck, at times I've even been in that position where it was more desirable to me to get rid of something than to got good money for it.

I'm always glad when someone else can get use from something I have no use for.
And I'm glad when I can save something useful from the scrappers.

zuk

 

[Jim_No_Garage]

Last night someone took a stereo cabinet from the curb that we had put out.

I've given away a perfectly good (but too small for me) clay chimnea. The guy came running around the back of the house where he saw me mowing to make sure it was ok to take it.

I've given away a chaise lounge to a jogger (she came back later for it after I brought it back to the garage to save it for her). Again this was while I was mowing the lawn.

I put a wooden bench that had a cracked seat at the curb. I didn't like it . . . The guy tosses it in his truck and yells "Gorilla Glue" as he drives away. He's picked up other things over the years. He had a garage sale and was trying to sell thing he'd picked up at my curb!

I put our white PVC arch/arbor at the curb. Some decorators took it for a party and were going to trash it afterwards. Hope they put it at the curb for another go when they were done with it.

Jim

 

[trdtaco]

Always picking up junk..

Just today I told my manager to call the crown forklift people and have them come fix the hand pallet jack the the bearings went out on one of the rollers.. he says just throw it outback and someone will grab it.. he said he will order a new one.. so I got a pallet jack in the garage now!! Do not know if ill ever use it tho....

 

[dolfans]

I can never find anything that is free around. I check craigs list in the free section and everything is in other cities/towns. Wish i could find things

 

[Zeke]

I've never bought a new house vacuum in my life. I find them in the alleys with a belt broken, bag full or just packed up with **** behind a stuck tooth pick or something.

Got a pretty new Dirt Devil HEPA upright last week from 4 houses down. It was packed with lint behind pine needles from the tree. The sorry asses got so pissed at it that they ripped the power cord clean off. Cleaned it out, wired it up and it's ready to go.

Right behind 3 others. (sigh)

 

[Moose02]

we have someone around here that just goes around and cuts the cord off everything that's put out on the street guess the copper is like gold now

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Hmmm, I don't know what happened to the 1st photo I uploaded? It was right side up and somehow(?) flipped itself 180 degrees without my having done anything!

I walk my dogs regularly and in our residential area there are a couple long alleys. People put all sort of stuff out there. Mattresses usually (makes my skin crawl just thinking of someone taking those!). But also milk crates, small pieces of furniture - some have decent hardwood for small projects. Bikes or parts of bikes. Vacuums as Zeke (Milt) said are regulars, car rims. You've just gotta walk the alleys or the streets the day before or morning of trash pickup days.

 

[ken w.]

The fat guy across the street threw out a riding lawn mower last year. I pushed into my garage and had it running in 5 minutes.It was out of gas and the fuel shut off was closed.

I picked his push mower from the garbage a month later. A new plug and it started right up.
I got his snow blower this fall. A shear pin broke.
All my yard equipment has been picked. It's sometimes good to be a picker.

 

[Oldbear]

My old town of Strathmore has a "Take it or Leave it" area at the recycling yard. Some abuse it to get rid of junk or grab everything to go sell at their weekly "Garbage Sale". But for the most part it works great - we've gotten and given there often. I'll post some when I get home.

 

[Oldbear]

The fat guy across the street threw out a riding lawn mower last year. I pushed into my garage and had it running in 5 minutes.It was out of gas and the fuel shut off was closed.

I picked his push mower from the garbage a month later. A new plug and it started right up.
I got his snow blower this fall. A shear pin broke.
All my yard equipment has been picked. It's sometimes good to be a picker.

How does he feel seeing his "junk" isn't junk?

 

[Richard D]

I saw a kid tossing out a computer a few yrs ago, into the dumpster for the apt. where I was living at the time. I dug it out and found it worked fine. A little slow but I defragmented and reformatted and it did one of my kids just fine for a yr. or two.
It was just packed with **** when I "found it".

That would increase it's value for me...

 

[Richard D]

Instead of cussing the local scrapman and chasing him away, I made buddies with him. He brings me stuff that looks interesting or really old, and I give him a bit more than scrap value. It is amazing what some people will give him as scrap and he just lets it go (he's pretty clueless). One recent example, a little metal box he didn't bother to open, full of new USA made taps. Probably a nickle's worth at the scales.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

The fat guy across the street threw out a riding lawn mower last year. I pushed into my garage and had it running in 5 minutes.It was out of gas and the fuel shut off was closed.

I picked his push mower from the garbage a month later. A new plug and it started right up.
I got his snow blower this fall. A shear pin broke.
All my yard equipment has been picked. It's sometimes good to be a picker.

Sound like its good to be this guy's neighbor. He's an impatient SOB isn't he?! Yeah, I wondered too what he says when he sees you tooling around the power tools he paid hundreds of dollars for!

 

[1953mercury]

When ever I drop off recycle at Waste Management I always "go shopping" in their scrap metal roll-offs. I'm always amazed at the stuff people toss out, and free is my favorite price. Mike

 

[RECox286]

I've never been amazed at what I find curbside. If I need something,

all I have to do is wait long enough, by golly. In fact, my garage,

shed and driveway look more like the JY, than the JY does. It's all

just too good to throw out.



Uncle Bob

 

[cincinnati_kid]

Best place to but steel for projects is the local scrap yard. Get it for a fraction of retail but you have to do some hunting.

 

[RECox286]

I have never been amazed at what some people throw out, or why

it shows up on the curb. All I know is that if I need something, all

I have to do is wait long enough.

Uncle Bob

 

[Kevin54]

I can never find anything good at the curb, but I've tossed out some pretty good stuff for others. I feel I've been lucky with work and things over the years. I didn't make a lot of money but there are others out there that really struggle, so most of the stuff I put out has a "FREE" sign on it. Normally it doesn't last more than a 1/2 hour out front of the house.

 

[cincinnati_kid]

man I havent been garbage picking in a few months but you guys have given me the urge to and tonight is garbage night in the nice neighborhoods. Maybe I will report back with some finds. although I have a car I need to get finished up so I can sell it. HMM decisions.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

If you do can we get some pics?

All you other guys that have posted great finds w/o pic's, you KNOW a few if us here are saying, "Yeah right!"

 

[Oldbear]

If you do can we get some pics?

All you other guys that have posted great finds w/o pic's, you KNOW a few if us here are saying, "Yeah right!"

I'll post some tonight when I get home.

 

[KEH]

Bags of leaves. Use them on garden to keep down weeds and grass and to conserve moisture.
Daughter likes bags of pine needles for yard landscaping. She had to cull out some of the yards because the people put cigarette butts in the bags. Then the owners of her best yard for already bagged pine needles started letting someone bag and sell the nedles. She has had to shop for other suppliers, wit some success. Bales of pine needles are expensive if anyone has noticed, also they are not really baled, just packed into a frame by hand and tied. Free ones are much better.

KEH

 

[bczygan]

Look at my avatar...I don't have enough time to list it all. I need to use that time to pitch some stuff out.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Bags of leaves. Use them on garden to keep down weeds and grass and to conserve moisture.
Daughter likes bags of pine needles for yard landscaping. She had to cull out some of the yards because the people put cigarette butts in the bags. Then the owners of her best yard for already bagged pine needles started letting someone bag and sell the nedles. She has had to shop for other suppliers, wit some success. Bales of pine needles are expensive if anyone has noticed, also they are not really baled, just packed into a frame by hand and tied. Free ones are much better.

KEH

Ha, never woulda thought of pine needles & leaves as "treasure" but hey, whatever floats your boat. I was thinking of tools and gizmos, carpentry materials & hardware, etc