Are you a dumpster diver?

[Shellie]

After you vote in the poll, please post some really good things you have gotten while trash trolloping.

[Shellie]

I've gotten an antique 3 legged milking stool that I was offered 50 bucks for and turned it down.

I've also gotten a pretty plant stand that I still have today. There is a story behind that one.

[RamboPreacher]

After you vote in the poll, please post some really good things you have gotten while trash trolloping.

In no particular order and randomly as I recall over the years:
Apple Lisa
"boom box" with little TV built in
laptop
couch
recliner
dinning room table and chairs
dufflebag full of Army clothes
boxes of new 3/4" video tapes
boxes of new VHS tapes
several TV's
couple microwaves
sleeping bags
lawn chairs
tent
reams of copy/print paper
probably more, but all I can recall off the top of my head.

[Penny]

It good to know I am not alone...

my dinning room chairs

A bean bag
desk chair
monitor
dog house
high chair
drinking glasses
a box of tennis balls

[dalebert]

dumpster diving? r u guys for real? Really?

[Brenda]

Nope, not me. But someone gotta a pretty nice night stand from us when my husband set one out at the curb; last week.

[forestwalker]

Of course I do! I work at a university.

You wouldn't believe what these kids throw in the dumpster when they move out of the dorms and (especially) the campus apartments in June.

[RamboPreacher]

dumpster diving? r u guys for real? Really?

yup. not something I do every day, but whenever ther eis spring cleaning days, or when there are ending of semesters at the local colleges, and other events that peopl just want to move or clean and don't' want to take the time to sell things, and just want to get going.

as an example, on the last day of basic training, the dumpsters all got filled up with great "treasures" of things that the troops didn't want to ship or take with them. stereo's, clothes, furniture, etc. this is a common thing at the dumpsters and areas around colleges where students are as well.

gotta draw your own line as to what's "acceptable" for digging or picking up. for example, I put a palate of old 486 and 386 computers on the curb one year, while cleaning out my basement, including many monitors, color and B/W. they were all gone the next morning, even though they were all dead in one way or another.

[A2JGirl]

Every April our town has "Clean Up" month... once a week during that month, crews come through and haul off whatever you set by the curb. You are allowed to put pretty much anything out there, including appliances, as long as it isn't building debris.

Needless to say, the town looks AWFUL for the whole month of April (my in-laws came to visit last Easter and we had to quickly explain why the whole place looked like a dump!).

I've never stopped, but I always drive by really slowly during April, just in case something happens to catch my eye.

At our wedding, one of the families gave us some items they had salvaged from the trash (as he worked as a garbage man). We got a set of dishes and a good little frying pan.

I snagged a beat up old rocking chair one time for use in our "Walk Thru Jerusalem" last Christmas.

[dalebert]

so, like if i were driving through your town i might see ur tail end sticking up in the air, wiggling feverishly, as you are tring to retrieve "stuff" from a dumpster?

[Full Quiver]

I collected nearly 100 nice office chairs which were cleaned up, repaired if needed, and sold for World Missions or should I say the World Mission Dept. Who knows where the money went. This netted about $1000 for the cause.
The dumpster did not have trash in it. It was solely for the use of getting rid of this furniture. NorTel, Northern Telecom, was buying all new furniture and threw this out.

[dolfan]

I sort of did once and almost got charged with a felony.

Here's the story: When I opened my first office as a solo lawyer, I needed some office furniture. I got word one day that the local office of the state health department was getting rid of a bunch of good desks, chairs, filing cabinets and the like when they were getting ready to move into their new building. The person who told me said they'd gotten some stuff, and that they had all of it "out back", that it was there for the taking. This was on a Saturday.

So, I told my brother, and we jumped into his pickup truck and off we went. The health department was, at the time, located next door to the local fire department. We pulled into the parking lot of the fire department to walk over and look at what was "out back". Lots of good things, metal desks, really well-kept items, some dents and dings after years of use on a lot of it, and some outright junk, all piled together. No one from the health department was there. So, a couple of the local firemen were milling around outside and we asked about it. "Yeah, shore enough, they're givin' it away. People's been gittin' it all mornin'."

Well, I helped myself to 3 metal desks, 2 filing cabinets and a few chairs. Bonanza!!! Took it to my new office, and commenced to usin' it. My brother got one of the desks for himself, too.

In one of the filing cabinets --- I discovered a few days later --- was a drawer full of private health records. So, I dutifully called the health department and said, "Hey, thanks for the furniture, but did you know you left some records in one of those filing cabinets? Shall I bring them to you?"

Response: "Hold on, please." Silence, woman comes back to the phone. "Sir, those items have been reported as stolen."

"Do what?"

"We put a lot of stuff out back and came back to find most of it gone. We called the police and reported it stolen. Now, who did you say you are?"

Keep in mind, I'm new in town, too. I felt myself go pale. I gave the woman my name, and told her everything that happened, about the firemens' story and all of it. I also told her that I'd drop what I was doing right then and bring every bit of it back, too.

"Well, honey, [notice the change of tone there], hold on just a minute." Silence again. She comes back. "Don't do anything. I'll call you back."

Now, I don't know if I should start contacting my own lawyer or what at this point. I heard nothing and slept little for 3 days. Then, she called me back. "Honey, don't you worry about that. You just keep it."

I still have 2 of the desks to this day. Wound up giving the filing cabinets to the local Community Action folks who subleased my office from me when I moved.

[JustJay]

I have done it once looking for ebay items.

My friend's dad does it religiously and recycles and does ebay. He makes about 1200 per month doing this.

[Dr. Ron]

I totally furnished the new offices in South Dakota and West Texas off the dump.

I knew the days that the state goverment sent their trucks because my wife worked for the state.So I would follow them and when they threw the stuff out, I picked it up and took it to the state office.

1. desks/chairs
2. swing file folders and frames
3. computer paper
4. telephones
5. office chairs
6. pens/pencils
8. partial reems of paper in various colors9.
9. partially used legal pads and spiral notebooks
10. filing cabinets.....folding tables.....
And the list goes on...

I still have a chair that I found and refinished that is beautiful!

[Daniel]

My latest excursion was yesterday when I found a laundry basket in good condition and a very well kept travel bag.