# Dumpster Preps



## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

The other day I cleaned up my office and decided to carry my own trash out to the dumpster versus making the custodian carry out a bunch of extra crap because I decided to be productive. Anyway when I got out there I lifted the lid and found an entire case of hand sanitizer, sealed in a cardboard box. The label on the side said 36 - 5oz bottles. I grabbed it and took it inside. Later I found out that a Sergeant had throw them out because the officers refused to use them (the product was not the pleasant smelling variety) and were buying their own Purell instead. So he put in a requisition for Purell, it arrived and the other stuff went into the dumpster. It was free stuff given out by Uncle Sam during the great H1N1 scare a few years back so not a big issue to toss out. Regardless, it was disposed of and now it's mine! All 36 stinky bottles. 

This is the second time I rescued stuff from the trash that became part of my preps. Have you found any awesome preps in the dumpster? One man's trash may really be another man's treasure.


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

Not so much dumpster trash but I have liberated several items from alleys in town. Also working on getting the guy at a restaurant in the mall where my MIL works to not throw away the tons 5 gallon food buckets he tosses every week if that counts.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Yup, institutions like hospitals, schools and that sort sometimes throw away tons of good stuff for one reason or another, sometimes it is just that they are switching brands


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## memrymaker (Dec 12, 2012)

Great find! Congrats on adding to the preps, that one will be so helpful if things HTF


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## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

Many places forbid removing items from their dumpsters.


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## mosquitomountainman (Jan 25, 2010)

Oh, Man ... this subject would take a book to cover. The short list is: a Coleman Canoe, four wood burning stoves, Misc. gunpowder, bullets, loaded shotshells, fence wire, lumber, windows, doors, roofing (shingles and steel), several lawn mowers (all started after putting new gas in them, two had brand new blades, all but one given away), gas generators, chairs, jars, lids, clothes, toys, hundreds of pounds of pure lead, and more ... (and this is the short list!).


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## taylort5 (Nov 6, 2008)

Hey ... Got no problem with this .

I recently found in our dumpster at the shop..
Our boss decided to clean out his garage...
Keep in mind that I would have not pulled this stuff out if it looked or smelled funny.
4 nice blankets, two brand new with tags knit beanies. Two winter coats , one with fur trim, and one quilted jacket with fleece lining. Also a really cool thermometer/ humidity gauge/ barometric pressure thingy, mounted on a nice wooden plaque. 100 feet of reinforced rubber garden hose. I had to cut off the one end cause it had a small hole in it, but hey... I can fix that!!! One huge igloo marine grade cooler, and one smaller igloo marine grade cooler. They needed cleaning , but after hot water and some bleach, almost as good as new!!!
I just couldn't leave that stuff in there!! 
Hmmm , never considered my self a dumpster diver, but.... It was right on top!!!!  
Would so do it again if I had the chance. I can't believe that he threw this stuff away!!!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

I mentioned before when our neighbors moved they threw out a coleman cooler in the dumpster. I had my DH put it in our garage. 

I was a big dumpster diver when I lived in L.A. I scored all kinds of things for my cats from the local pet store dumpster and food from the grocery store.


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## OHprepper (Feb 21, 2012)

during the summer months i will work for the local canoe livery at their camp grounds. i use my truck to go down and clean up trash. just this year i found two coolers, around 10 cases of beer, a few canoe paddles, a tent that need a patch(on the bottom), an air mattress, probably around 30 lbs of hamburger and about 50-60 uncooked still packaged hot dogs(i stopped the people right before they put it in the trash. it was a party of about 60 people, and they "just couldnt take it with them")


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## Boomy (Mar 17, 2012)

Christmas Eve I picked up a stainless steel gas grill from the frat house down the street after they got evicted.








Not the one, but the same model


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

I poke wherever I can.free stuff is good!

Forum dedicated to dumpster diving in my sig.
<-----


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

So far in the past couple of months: about 60 2"x12"x16' (needed nails pulled out), 11 rolls electrical tape, half rolls of Tyvek house wrap, too many nails and screws to count, framing brackets, all-thread (10 ') sticks, visquene, granite sink cutouts (makes great end tables), about 2000' of Romex wire in bits and pieces, angle iron, channel iron. Could list more, but im beginning to see why my wife raises hell at my dragging crap home.
Being in the trades (electrical) i see vast amounts of dumpsters and the stuff in them. I usually take a peek in them. Lotsa times ive had to pass up an item(s) because im driving a company truck. The amount of lumber that gets chucked on a residential build is almost disgusting. Guarantee those dumpsters would be picked CLEAN if this were Mexico City.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

seanallen said:


> So far in the past couple of months: about 60 2"x12"x16' (needed nails pulled out), 11 rolls electrical tape, half rolls of Tyvek house wrap, too many nails and screws to count, framing brackets, all-thread (10 ') sticks, visquene, granite sink cutouts (makes great end tables), about 2000' of Romex wire in bits and pieces, angle iron, channel iron. Could list more, but im beginning to see why my wife raises hell at my dragging crap home.
> Being in the trades (electrical) i see vast amounts of dumpsters and the stuff in them. I usually take a peek in them. Lotsa times ive had to pass up an item(s) because im driving a company truck. The amount of lumber that gets chucked on a residential build is almost disgusting. Guarantee those dumpsters would be picked CLEAN if this were Mexico City.


my DH does steel framing. We were talking about wood burning stoves with my folks. He said that the 'slicks' the studs ship on are perfect free fire wood. And they just get tossed in the dumpster at the end of the day!


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## -JohnD- (Sep 16, 2012)

I guess you could say I get paid to "dumpster dive" as I do rental maintenance and clean-up. I have hauled out all the common things furniture, clothes, etc but also run across more interesting things fishing gear, tools, knives, ammo etc... Then there are the other job perks of getting left over materials as well as getting to haul off the scrap and appliances that are too broke to broke to fix.


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## jsriley5 (Sep 22, 2012)

I used to hit the dumpsters at the shooting ranges (two nearby) fairly often and got a whole lot of brass that way. And a lot more off the ground. Have gotten heavy duty extension cord (union job and the dumpster was closer than the storage trailer) several hundred cement bricks. epoxy caulk a whole case. and I can't even remember what all tools and stuff. I have long been an addict of poking around in other peoples garbage it's a sickness I know  Dad once told me of an uncle who found a pistol on a ditch dump that just needed a hammer spring. I have been addicted ever since even though I never have found anything quite that spectacular although I have found things probably more valuable.


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## OHprepper (Feb 21, 2012)

-JohnD- said:


> I guess you could say I get paid to "dumpster dive" as I do rental maintenance and clean-up.


this truly is the way to go. my grandpa owns a bunch of rentals, and my dad and i clean them out for him from time to time. the best thing i ever got out of one?? i got an sks from behind a water heater in the basement of a rental. the barrel was a bit pitted, but it was still full of cosmoline! after an afternoon with sandpaper and a can of duracoat, it was good as new!


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

My grandpa does this; he's close to town so gets better things than I would. A neighbor of his passed away leaving no children and her entire estate to her church. Before the house was sold he was told he cld have everything in the garage (except the car) for $150. He got 2 freezers (chest and upright), over 300 canning jars, 5 scanners (needing repair), battery charger, as well as a bunch of tools. 

I scored at my inlaws last week; they were gonna throw out some old glass jars because they didn't have lids; I can't fin lids for 7 (they are huge), but I can still put them to use holding small, non perishable preps.


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## Wellrounded (Sep 25, 2011)

Half of what I own came from a dumpster or tip, including my house. At the moment we are getting all our stock feed from our local mill, they bag up everything when they clean up and then give us a call (they were just tossing it, about a ton a week!). Most of the building materials come from the rubbish pile at the back of the local building supplies wholesaler, we come home with everything from furniture grade timber with a knot or two to 15 ft plasterboard sheets with a corner broken off. We completely finished one bedroom, timber lined walls and plaster board ceilings, from just one house build rubbish pile in our local town and still have an entire house floor area of floor tile sheeting (they changed their mind and pulled it up a few weeks after it went down...) to use from the same place. 
It always amazes me the stuff people think of as rubbish. We have a lot of young visitors here and they love to throw stuff out, over christmas one young man thought he'd have a bit of a clean up and we found all sorts of stuff in the bin including tubs of pipe fittings he must have taken out of the filing cabinets they are kept in.... They have such a throw away mentality!


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## machinist (Jul 4, 2012)

It seems obvious to me that these kids who throw stuff away had really bad parenting. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, etc.

These kids have had WAAAY too much given to them, not had to work for what they got, and taught to value APPEARANCES over anything REAL.

And who do we have to blame for this? It ain't the kids. They are just doing what they were taught. They were programmed by the TV commercials, because their parents did not have time to raise them. Advertisers knew this, and brainwashed entire generations to CONSUME. 

Some of the parenting flaws are rooted in the welfare/freebie mentality established by various "Social Engineering" experiments, such as the ADC program that required the mother to be SINGLE to qualify. So, families got broken up and now we see the results. 

The authors of such "vote buying programs" fit on my list somewhere below whale feces, which land on the bottom of the ocean.


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## Tweto (Nov 26, 2011)

When I was a kid, I would check a vending machine companies dumpster every Thursday. Thursday was the day that they would throw out all of out-of-date food. Would come home with a sack full of candy bars, ho ho's, etc. Never got sick from any of it. When ever I walked by a garbage can, I would look in it. You can learn a lot about people by looking at their garbage. I knew where all the alcoholics and perverts lived. The same people would always have garbage cans full of empty whiskey bottles and then there was the perverts that always had porn magazines, good times!


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

Wow cool stuff you guys have found. May have to add dumpster diving to my alley searching trips


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

Hmm last time I went dumpster diving was in college... Behind NCR world headquarters looking for.... Er.. Never mind... I was never a Comp Sci major, never went to U of Dayton... Eh what is NCR?!?


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

8thDayStranger said:


> Wow cool stuff you guys have found. May have to add dumpster diving to my alley searching trips


The best time to dive is right after a tenant has moved out but before trash collections. I have used CL to figure out when people are moving out and got the next day to see what they left.

Also, spring and summer break at the university is a good time to dive. College kids get rid of all kinds of stuff! When I lived with my ex we ended up with 2 full size fridges for free when the local college let out for the summer.

Here is Cali you have to time things right to get the good stuff for free. Everyone here wants to get paid for their crap. I do mean crap! I have seen ads for used dry cleaner hangers $1 each! Canning jars are selling for $3 a used jar on CL here!


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

Actually the boss guy that threw out all the coats, weather measurement decoration, etc is the type that really ticks me off. Every year, we go through our clothes (and believe me, we have a ton of clothes) to look for stuff that is still good, but is too big, too small, out of fashion, a little "too" worn for business professional. We divide my wife's into two piles - casual and professional, and same with mine. The casual for my wife gets added to my daughters (along with any old toys, stuffed animals - etc), gets inventoried, and we take them to the GA Coalition Against Domestic Abuse. The rest gets inventoried and goes off to Goodwill. Yes, we take the tax deduction, but the real reason is to assist others.

I have shopped in goodwill, for antiquing and collectibles - I found 2 complete sets of Star Wars empire strikes back and 2 sets of return of the Jedi... They were like $.75 per glass - sold them on eBay for $5 per glass... I have looked through the clothes, but my size typically isn't available...


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## machinist (Jul 4, 2012)

All the dumpsters around here are enclosed now, for some reason, so I don't bother trying. The County landfill used to let us pick over whatever we wanted, but local corruption put a stop to that. Later on, I caught an employee there loading up aluminum in his personal truck, and hauling it off, then met him selling it at the scrap yard. I guess he didn't want any competition for the good stuff. 

Alley watching is still productive now and then, but the best source I have is the metal scrap yard. No, the stuff isn't free, but the prices are just above scrap weight price, or around 15 cents to 20 cents a pound. 

I have furnished half of a machine shop out of that scrap yard, and hauled home vast amounts of steel for home projects at 1/5 of retail cost, or less. 

Last summer at this scrap yard, I found a pile in an old truck box that was clearly the remains from some old mechanic's shop. I bought a 5 gallon bucketful for $20, and came home with:
-Blackhawk ring compressor
-Blackhawk ridge reamer
-Proto slide hammer with the axle flange end.
-Proto body file, that is adjustable for contour, and had a pair of "Vixen" files for body lead or Bondo.
-3 bodywork dollies.
-Battery test meter, 6V., 12V., and 24V., up to 90 amps, and checks good with my Fluke meter.
-Several styles of pullers, Blackhawk, Proto, and other top brands. 
-A handful of wrenches. 

Some kids must have scrapped out grandpa's stuff after he died, I suppose, because they were too frickin' stupid to know what they had! I figured the pile would easily sell used for $100 to $150.


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

Grimm said:


> *Everyone here wants to get paid for their crap. * I do mean crap! I have seen ads for used dry cleaner hangers $1 each! Canning jars are selling for $3 a used jar on CL here!


I think that this happens everywhere. Back in the day when you had to pay to take out an ad in the newspaper classifieds you had to discipline yourself with regards to realistic pricing - ask too much and you're going to be burning your cash as you wait for calls that don't come. Now with free advertising it's kind of like the lottery - put a high price on the good and hope someone buys it and if not then try again with a lower price.

I saw the same thing when I set out to buy a 2 year old used car - people were nuts about pricing. Most every private seller was trying to price their car at what a dealer would sell for. Why would anyone buy privately if for the same price they could buy at a dealer and get factory extended warranties thrown in, free service sweeteners, cars inspected before being put on the lot, etc.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Recently, I curb picked a new-appearing (VERY little use) Kirby Heritage II vacuum with the ENTIRE accessory package! Free for the taking... she said it was too heavy?!

When I was 14, I bought a nearly-new Yamaha XJ550 Maxim motorcycle with money I made *ENTIRELY* from fixing up and selling old lawnmowers, weedeaters, bicycles and such from people's trash!!!! (I paid $1200 for the bike)


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

Bobbb said:


> I think that this happens everywhere. Back in the day when you had to pay to take out an ad in the newspaper classifieds you had to discipline yourself with regards to realistic pricing - ask too much and you're going to be burning your cash as you wait for calls that don't come. Now with free advertising it's kind of like the lottery - put a high price on the good and hope someone buys it and if not then try again with a lower price.
> 
> I saw the same thing when I set out to buy a 2 year old used car - people were nuts about pricing. Most every private seller was trying to price their car at what a dealer would sell for. Why would anyone buy privately if for the same price they could buy at a dealer and get factory extended warranties thrown in, free service sweeteners, cars inspected before being put on the lot, etc.


Usually you can make more money selling than trading in... Look at kbb individual estimates are always higher than trade... But selling higher than dealership? Only if car is better - lower miles, etc..


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Grimm said:


> The best time to dive is right after a tenant has moved out but before trash collections. I have used CL to figure out when people are moving out and got the next day to see what they left.
> 
> Also, spring and summer break at the university is a good time to dive. College kids get rid of all kinds of stuff! When I lived with my ex we ended up with 2 full size fridges for free when the local college let out for the summer.


Both are great tips! I have also scored huge right when college is getting out for the summer.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Bobbb said:


> I saw the same thing when I set out to buy a 2 year old used car - people were nuts about pricing. Most every private seller was trying to price their car at what a dealer would sell for.


It depends on what part of the country, "Cash for Clunkers" made used car prices go up a lot. Not so much here in Texas, maybe we have fewer gullible people here?


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

LincTex said:


> It depends on what part of the country, "Cash for Clunkers" made used car prices go up a lot. Not so much here in Texas, maybe we have fewer gullible people here?


The ads would stay up for a long time which tells me that the cars weren't selling. I used to check every day. I saw some ads up for 3 months and they weren't budging on price. I was in no rush, just waiting for the right deal to appear. The gullible people weren't the buyers for when people are forking over their own cash they tend to pay attention to comparative pricing. The gullible people, I think, were the sellers, for most of these folks were greedy and trying to get top dollar but they were rarely in the market as sellers of cars so they had some fantasy of getting dealer price which they would never pay if the roles were reversed.


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

invision said:


> Usually you can make more money selling than trading in... Look at kbb individual estimates are always higher than trade... But selling higher than dealership? Only if car is better - lower miles, etc..


No, not selling higher than dealer, selling at the same price as dealers. They'd go online and find the dealer blue book price and sell at that. They'd ignore the dealer blue book price for dealer purchases.

Why would anyone pay a dealer price for a car to a private seller?


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## machinist (Jul 4, 2012)

It isn't always what you find, but what you can DO with it that matters. Get creative! Nearly all of my chicken facility came from salvage:










The metal on the building, inside and out was $2/sheet, junk price.
The windows (storm windows too!) are throwaways from a friend who had new ones put in his mobile home. 
Gave $5 for the steel door with a 9-lite glass.
The feeder is an oil drain pan under a section of round furnace duct, held together by fence wire and covered with a junk pan. Hung on a dog chain, all free. 
The nests were made from old rectangular furnace duct, with wood roosts from junked house trailer studs.
The waterer was given to me by a friend who quit raising chickens.
Steel Tee posts ($.75 each) and fence wire (1/4 retail price) also came from the junk.

The concrete floor cost a lot more than ALL the rest of the building and furnishings.


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

I built a goat hut. Everything except the screws came from a dumpster that a contractor was using for a house remodel. I eventually got it painted but I don't have any pics.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Did you keep the "GOATS" though, for some reason that just cracks me up


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

cowboyhermit said:


> Did you keep the "GOATS" though, for some reason that just cracks me up


Since they share the pasture, I wanted to make sure the goats knew it was for them and the horses knew it _wasn't_ for them.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Bobbb said:


> Why would anyone pay a dealer price for a car to a private seller?


Simple ignorance. It happens all the time.

The last four vehicles I have bought have all been purchased on eBay. It is a great place to buy due to low prices, but a bad place to sell - due to low prices


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Im gonna try an experiment: ive got 20 plus pcs of old corrugated tin from an old barn. If i was looking for tin i would be willing to pay 2$ a sheet for them. Im gonna put them in our local Shopper rag that comes out every Wed. and see what offers i can get.


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## Jason (Jul 25, 2009)

UncleJoe said:


> Since they share the pasture, I wanted to make sure the goats knew it was for them and the horses knew it _wasn't_ for them.


You don't have to make up a cover story, Joe. You'll figure out which are the horses and which are the goats eventually.


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## Jason (Jul 25, 2009)

mosquitomountainman said:


> Oh, Man ... this subject would take a book to cover. The short list is: a Coleman Canoe, four wood burning stoves, Misc. gunpowder, bullets, loaded shotshells, fence wire, lumber, windows, doors, roofing (shingles and steel), several lawn mowers (all started after putting new gas in them, two had brand new blades, all but one given away), gas generators, chairs, jars, lids, clothes, toys, hundreds of pounds of pure lead, and more ... (and this is the short list!).


Boy if only you guys wrote books for a living...


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

seanallen said:


> Im gonna try an experiment: I've got 20 plus pcs. of old corrugated tin from an old barn. If i was looking for tin i would be willing to pay 2$ a sheet for them.


If you were near me in Texas I would give $4 a sheet.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

We don't have dumpsters nearby because contractors were dumping concrete in our dumpsters. People who didn't even live in our subdivision ruined it for all of us.

The state of Wisconsin made it illegal to throw away computers. Before that, I used to go to the city recycling point and look for computers to rescue. Some I got going and gave to thrift shops. Others I took parts from and brought back. I got a nice vintage Windows 98 computer--a Dell P3 800 MHz with 512 megs ram, a 30gb hard drive, a CD-ROM, and an internal Zip 250. I use that to play old games on.


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## edgarinventor (Dec 27, 2008)

Yes, there are lots of Free Stuff people just keep throwing away, like all kinda Hotel Detergent 20 Liter Cannisters, that can be used for liquid storage and even for movable drawers and storage bins, Electrical and Electronics that can be re-used, and if you care to browse into this Post of mine, English text already theres, you'll get a way top make a seat out of anything, repetitive molds for nest to nothing, in PU glue molding, and a easy-peasy Sauna: 
http://faz-voce-mesmo.blogspot.pt/2013/02/abancador-e-uma-camara-para-scan-3d-uma.html


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

In Oregon, especially in and around the area we are in, dumpster diving is a huge no-no. Although there are people who still do it, the neighborhoods they are in are yuppy/hipster neighborhoods where it's all cool and they can get away with it, I am not, we're in the country and the town nearby is small and cop presence is heavy (small town cops plus lots of county and state coming through since you have to pass through our town to get to the mountain).

Nowadays, these businesses want money for everything, they don't want anyone to have their tossed stuff, and to top it off, I went looking around for some pallets to stack firewood on, and all the businesses I stopped at wanted money for their broken down junky pallets. In fact my older brother suggested we just use pallets for firewood, but you can't just get them for nothing anymore....makes you kind of sick.

Saw a video on youtube of a woman in Montana doing it and she would find all sorts of useful things, and even food, however, I tend to shy away from the idea of the food.

I suppose that brings up another subject...wasted food. Often one entire box of fruit or veggies can get thrown out at grocery stores due to one bad piece. There are so many people struggling, that seems so unbelievably wasteful. I remember my grandmother helping my mother prep culled fruit and she would just cut off the bad spots, no one ever got sick.


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## fred45 (Sep 3, 2010)

*dumpster*

it was not a dumpster but I was driving home on trash day and saw a gunstock sticking out of a trash can.my first thought was oh an old pellet gun! turned out to be a stock to an HR shotgun. looked deeper and found the barrel, no forend. without the forend the barrel falls off when you open the action. so I took it to a friends shop and we brazed a steel block on the bottom of the barrel, and drilled a hole through, we knocked out the pin the barrel rotated on and then drove it back through the new hole. behold the "ugly stick"


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## Boris (Apr 10, 2009)

i need to find some dumpsters!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

We went to look at some property out in BFE last weekend and the tenants had just moved out. The stuff they left made me squee! But we couldn't take anything with us as the owners have to hold it for 30 days before it can be tossed or sold. 

There were all kinds of farm tools and garden tools. I even saw an old drop side crib that would have been perfect for baby #2 with a little refinishing. Then I wouldn't have to pick which kid got our crib when they start their own families...


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

Grimm said:


> We went to look at some property out in BFE last weekend and the tenants had just moved out. The stuff they left made me squee! But we couldn't take anything with us as the owners have to hold it for 30 days before it can be tossed or sold.
> 
> There were all kinds of farm tools and garden tools. I even saw an old drop side crib that would have been perfect for baby #2 with a little refinishing. Then I wouldn't have to pick which kid got our crib when they start their own families...


Did you at least strike a deal with the owner to remove the "junk" free of charge? That's worked for me in the past. Got a couple lawn mowers and fishing gear that way.


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## seagrape (Mar 15, 2012)

Plastic tubing from hospital waste--unused, that is. Dialysis units sometimes have unused halves of their dialysis tubing that they toss.


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## edgarinventor (Dec 27, 2008)

seagrape said:


> Plastic tubing from hospital waste--unused, that is. Dialysis units sometimes have unused halves of their dialysis tubing that they toss.


...And Surgical Tubing makes excellent rubber for Slingshots.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

8thDayStranger said:


> Did you at least strike a deal with the owner to remove the "junk" free of charge? That's worked for me in the past. Got a couple lawn mowers and fishing gear that way.


No. If we were going to rent the property I would have asked but they were even ready to do repairs which would put them 2-3 months away from renting it.


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## -JohnD- (Sep 16, 2012)

Grimm said:


> No. If we were going to rent the property I would have asked but they were even ready to do repairs which would put them 2-3 months away from renting it.


the 
Could have tried to strike a deal for both the repairs and clean-up in trade for free rent! They provide materials you provide the labor!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

-JohnD- said:


> the
> Could have tried to strike a deal for both the repairs and clean-up in trade for free rent! They provide materials you provide the labor!


Yeah... no. Here in California you are only allowed to repair and deduct 2 during your rental term and you can not deduct for labor costs only materials.

My DH and I want to just move in and unpack. We have a toddler and making massive repairs and cleaning are not on our list of family fun time.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Today while finishing up a McDonalds remodel, i brought home two battery powered emergency lights, 7 80# sacks of higrade concrete, about 70' of 1" rebar, 5 sheets of FRP, 4- 24"x36"x1/16" sheets of stainless steel, assorted pieces of leftover tile.


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## prmhs (Jan 16, 2009)

*Miscellaneous Gathering*



cowboyhermit said:


> Yup, institutions like hospitals, schools and that sort sometimes throw away tons of good stuff for one reason or another, sometimes it is just that they are switching brands


I work in the medical field and (thanks to the _RIDICULOUS_ :nuts: rules of CMS or the JCAHO - (called appropriately JAK-O) they have to get rid of items which had to be given expiration dates. I gladly accept those items and tuck them away (not meds - things like bandages, wound dressings, etc.). You would be amazed at what some entities are forced to throw away.
Happy prepping :beercheer:
prm


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## Salvation (Feb 23, 2010)

I found a pair of Steiner military binoculars in the trash after a move out. Got online to find that they cost $900 for a new pair. So I posted them on Craigslist up for trade. Within a week or so I traded the binoculars for a brand new(never been fired) Remington 870 12 gauge and $300 cash. I thought it was pretty good for something I found in the trash.


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

seanallen said:


> Today while finishing up a McDonalds remodel, i brought home two battery powered emergency lights, 7 80# sacks of higrade concrete, about 70' of 1" rebar, 5 sheets of FRP, 4- 24"x36"x1/16" sheets of stainless steel, assorted pieces of leftover tile.


Nice haul!


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

8thDayStranger said:


> Nice haul!


Yeah it was, thanks! Now im getting to the point where my sheds are overflowing and ive got so MUCH crap laying around that im gonna inventory it and have a MANS yardsale. Never seen one of those arount here, but i bet im gonna sell the hell outta some stuff.


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

seanallen said:


> Yeah it was, thanks! Now im getting to the point where my sheds are overflowing and ive got so MUCH crap laying around that im gonna inventory it and have a MANS yardsale. Never seen one of those arount here, but i bet im gonna sell the hell outta some stuff.


Put a list up and prices on here.. Might be hard to figure shipping, but who knows.


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## Hoggrydr11 (Nov 1, 2009)

UncleJoe said:


> Since they share the pasture, I wanted to make sure the goats knew it was for them and the horses knew it _wasn't_ for them.


How long did it take you to teach them goats to read, longer or shorter than the horse's? That is cool!


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

Hoggrydr11 said:


> How long did it take you to teach them goats to read, longer or shorter than the horse's? That is cool!


It started out as a joke between AuntJoe and I. After I finished it she asked me how we were going to keep the horses from scratching on it which would tear it up pretty quick. So when she went in the house I grabbed a can of spray paint from the shed. When she fed that night I told her to go check out the solution I came up with.

I eventually put up a small corral of electric fence around it only I didn't connect it to the power source. The horses won't go near the fence but the goats never cared about the main electric fence. They just climbed right through.


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## Startingout-Blair (Aug 28, 2012)

invision said:


> Hmm last time I went dumpster diving was in college... Behind NCR world headquarters looking for.... Er.. Never mind... I was never a Comp Sci major, never went to U of Dayton... Eh what is NCR?!?


National Cash Register. My dad retired from NCR. He ran around fixing all their equipment all the time. Would go to Dayton for classes


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

Startingout-Blair said:


> National Cash Register. My dad retired from NCR. He ran around fixing all their equipment all the time. Would go to Dayton for classes


NCR? What's NCR? Sorry, spent to much time in the "ghetto" down the street @ University of Dayton... Everything from that time frame is fuzzy...

Of course a friend of mine told me one time, he printed out a listing that had every company who kept their firewall root user as anonymous and the password was left anonymous - it also had their firewall IP address - the firewall manufacturer - oh yeah two column printing on old dot matrix feed paper when stacked was 5 inches tall.... And again according to my friend, during that time there were some good names on that list..... Let's see if I can remember (queue theme for jeopardy) Wait it is coming back to me... Ah... National... cash... Urgh sorry bro... It's just to fuzzy for this former ME major...


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

The universities are excellent dumpster diving areas when classes let out for the year. Lots of dorm furniture gets put out for trash pickup; also books, clothing, and small appliances. Most college kids are too lazy or ignorant to clean up that old pizza oven or dorm size refrigerator, and if their parents don't take them to task....scooooore! School supplies up the kazoo for the taking. Stay away from anything illegal though - NOT worth it! Hospitals throw out loads of still-sealed medical items (gauze squares, sutures, some scissors, and other small items) because they are part of 'suture kits' or other 'kits' where fewer items were used than needed. (If you know someone who works in a hospital housekeeping dept. you may be able to get into their 'trash room' to look thru the clear garbage bags before they crush them - or offer to purchase unused surplus - they don't pay housekeepers all that much.) Score extra points for ace bandages or kling wraps. Moving on to commercial dumpsters - behind many book stores, they throw out the unsold paperbacks after ripping off the covers. I developed several excellent libraries for bibliophiles from such places. Do make sure that there is no ordinance prohibiting dumpster diving, you don't want a ticket or free trip to jail from some bored security guard or town cop. Permission to go thru stuff is always the best, if you can get it.


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

Kappy, yes here dumpster diving is illegal and Oregon has plenty of busy bodies that would rather call cops than to mind their own business.

I don't know about anyone esle, I see someone in a dupster and I wonder what they are fiding so interesting, albeit the idea some could get into a really gross situation, I don't think to call the cops. It does not matter to me if they are retrieving garbage.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

My DH reminded me of one of my best dumpster finds/preps... A 1968 all metal Kenmore sewing machine in the wooden cabinet. I spent $50 to get it tuned up and it was ready to go!


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

My coffee table and end table, a blade lawn mower (Bub hates that chore lol), old wooden table for the workshop and I don't know how many tools. Ppl will throw away perfectly good things to buy the latest model.


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

I suppose my "dumpster" stuff has not been exactly from dumpsters but from Craigslist. Lots of free furniture in the past, or super cheap furniture. I have never bought a new piece of furniture. We have gotten tons of redeemable cans, usable wood, gardening supplies and on, free, so maybe that counts?


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## PAPreppers (Oct 9, 2012)

My prepping partner and I stop at Dunkin Donuts to get 5 gallon buckets. They use them to mix the glaze and stuff like that and soon after just throw them out. Great for a cache, really sturdy.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Today while doing work on a residential remodel job, i dumpster dived and came up with some extra large wire baskets. They are 24"x24"x12". Perfect for my prep shelves. Got four of them. Also got two HUGE ROLLS of heavy canvas fabric. They are about 5' wide and im guessing 50' long. The only downside is that they are this glaring red color. Im thinking dye red to dark brown or black. Also found a couple of receiver hitch inserts with 2" balls on them. One of them os a 8" drop hitch. Also found half a box of 30.30 rounds. A lot of little girly clothes that i passed up.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

seanallen said:


> Today while doing work on a residential remodel job, i dumpster dived and came up with some extra large wire baskets. They are 24"x24"x12". Perfect for my prep shelves. Got four of them. Also got two HUGE ROLLS of heavy canvas fabric. They are about 5' wide and im guessing 50' long. The only downside is that they are this glaring red color. Im thinking dye red to dark brown or black. Also found a couple of receiver hitch inserts with 2" balls on them. One of them os a 8" drop hitch. Also found half a box of 30.30 rounds. A lot of little girly clothes that i passed up.


Here is a tip when dying fabrics use boiling hot water, double the amount of dye you think you need and add some white vinegar and salt to the dye bath.


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

seanallen said:


> Today while doing work on a residential remodel job, i dumpster dived and came up with some extra large wire baskets. They are 24"x24"x12". Perfect for my prep shelves. Got four of them. Also got two HUGE ROLLS of heavy canvas fabric. They are about 5' wide and im guessing 50' long. The only downside is that they are this glaring red color. Im thinking dye red to dark brown or black. Also found a couple of receiver hitch inserts with 2" balls on them. One of them os a 8" drop hitch. Also found half a box of 30.30 rounds. A lot of little girly clothes that i passed up.


Dude!! I need to head south and find these dumpsters you got!! You seem to find stuff that's right up my alley! That canvas is a huge score!


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

8thDayStranger said:


> Dude!! I need to head south and find these dumpsters you got!! You seem to find stuff that's right up my alley! That canvas is a huge score!


Lol... Its this stinkin job ive got, Stranger. Im all over the Gulf Coast. I see probably 25-30 different jobsites every week, and i do my very best to plunder. If im not in the dumpsters on lunch break, im pilfering through vacant lots or attics. Anywhere ppl pile stuff up to dispose im there. Recently a customer was cleaning out her kitchen for a remodel. I was there meeting with her discussing her electrical plans/wishes. Wound up giving me this brand new deep fryer. Looked it up and it costs about $100.00 retail. Know what i did with it? Took it home and fried up a huge batch of redfish. Yummmm...


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## cqp33 (Apr 2, 2012)

Sentry18 said:


> The other day I cleaned up my office and decided to carry my own trash out to the dumpster versus making the custodian carry out a bunch of extra crap because I decided to be productive. Anyway when I got out there I lifted the lid and found an entire case of hand sanitizer, sealed in a cardboard box. The label on the side said 36 - 5oz bottles. I grabbed it and took it inside. Later I found out that a Sergeant had throw them out because the officers refused to use them (the product was not the pleasant smelling variety) and were buying their own Purell instead. So he put in a requisition for Purell, it arrived and the other stuff went into the dumpster. It was free stuff given out by Uncle Sam during the great H1N1 scare a few years back so not a big issue to toss out. Regardless, it was disposed of and now it's mine! All 36 stinky bottles.
> 
> This is the second time I rescued stuff from the trash that became part of my preps. Have you found any awesome preps in the dumpster? One man's trash may really be another man's treasure.


Sentry - we got some of that stuff on my ship, it smelled like hell but i used it! Also figured out that if you shake it up it mixes the fragrance back into it as well! Like it went stagnant or something but the fragrance was still in there just needed a really good mixing up again, like a lot of shaking around! I got 4 boxes, each box had 12 quarts!


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## sgtrunningfool (Dec 8, 2012)

I live on a military base and during key move times I find all sorts of stuff


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## charles1198 (Mar 10, 2012)

Through the years, I've saved a bunch of useful stuff from the junkyard -- a hand made wooden rocking horse, CD rack, metal John Deere toys, utility cabinets, saw horse, new hats, tackle and boxes, a nice percolator, and a giant tub of almost new HUGE tarps (30x20).


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## lotsoflead (Jul 25, 2010)

a great dumpster prep is to get a 20yr dumpster, dig a hole and put the dumpster in it up side down in the hole, put about 4 ft of dirt over it. The dumpster becomes a nice shelter, from hurricanes, torandos, and also a good place to store food.


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## Boomy (Mar 17, 2012)

charles1198 said:


> and a giant tub of almost new HUGE tarps (30x20).


That's big enough for a teepee each! few years ago I would have killed for a couple.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Boomy said:


> That's big enough for a teepee each!


And EXPENSIVE!


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

See the tarps are a good find, they're like having unsticky duct tape, they work for just about everything.

We keep our old tarps. I love going to Harbor freight, their tarp sizes and prices make me excited!! (lady ******* shopping, Harbor Freight....even found a cammo tarp one time too, it disappeared when my son moved out...lol).

Speaking of stuff you find and keep. I was watching that "Hoarders" show....you know one of my first thoughts are when they show someone with just a lot of stuff (not filthy garbage or rotten food, that's nasty) on _*their property*_, I think "why are they bothering these people about what's on their property? So then I start thinking of all the things they have and a lot of time its junk metal, truck trailers, etc...and think what great resources those are and what a shame it is they were being just tossed on this show....Is that just me that finds that show odd in that they get into someones business on what someone has on their property and why they just toss it all when they do?


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

HoppeEL4 said:


> See the tarps are a good find, they're like having unsticky duct tape, they work for just about everything.
> 
> We keep our old tarps. I love going to Harbor freight, their tarp sizes and prices make me excited!! (lady ******* shopping, Harbor Freight....even found a cammo tarp one time too, it disappeared when my son moved out...lol).
> 
> Speaking of stuff you find and keep. I was watching that "Hoarders" show....you know one of my first thoughts are when they show someone with just a lot of stuff (not filthy garbage or rotten food, that's nasty) on _*their property*_, I think "why are they bothering these people about what's on their property? So then I start thinking of all the things they have and a lot of time its junk metal, truck trailers, etc...and think what great resources those are and what a shame it is they were being just tossed on this show....Is that just me that finds that show odd in that they get into someones business on what someone has on their property and why they just toss it all when they do?


Normally, these companies that remove the clutter from the hoarders' homes haul it to a central location then sift through it for recyclables, scrap and resell-able items. They are making more money than just the removal service. Why do you think they push sooooo hard for these people to get rid of sooooo much.


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

Sometimes it is obvious they are trying to help these people improve their situation (county is moving in for condemnation...filthy garbage everywhere), but often it seems someone just has a junkyard situation going on, and it is their property, and sometimes nowhere too close to anyone elses, it seems our government and others think they can decide when we have too much stuff, and tell us what to do with it. I find this pattern a little disturbing, and I am nowhere near a hoarder, in fact that show makes me get up and clean much like someone talking about their kids getting head lice makes you want to itch or go shower your head.

I like organization, I like to know where things are and not lose track of truly useful items I know I will need or paid to have for a purpose. I watched one of those shows here a former school teacher had tons of clear containers stacked all around with books, craft stuff, art stuff, and none of it was garbage, it was not dangerous and it was useful, yet her family and this crew decided she needed to get rid of it all, although it was all contained and inside of her home, in fact she had ok room to get around in, no mounds and piles of clothes and junk, no animal feces, no human waste, no rotting food, seemed even minimal dust as well.

Then there is that part of me, that could undesrtand how some of these people found this way of living, buried in stuff piled to the ceilings, comforting. Imagine yourself a victim of an abusive childhood, or one of constant abandonment, you begin to push people out with things, and it begins to close in on you like a cocoon, you feel safe, it keeps people out, it sort of mentally "hugs" someone who is otherwise feeling really vulnerable to the world. I feel sorry for those who were in that position.

Then, there are those who truly did need intervention, mental illnesses abound and some just cannot see the wretchedness of those true messes. It's just the ones that have a lot of stuff and they are picked at to get rid of it, even though it is their own home and property and the stuff is not human or animal waste of refuse....then it just seems like a busy body project for others who have nothing better to do than to tell someone how much stuff they should have in comparrison to others...


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

All that lumber i mentioned a while back. FINALLY!!! got all those stinkin nails pulled out and sorted for length. Got about 30lbs of rusty nails in a bucket. What to do with them? Thinkin about making a pile of caltrops for future use. Lay two in an x. Spot weld. Then lay another across them at an angle and spot weld again. When deploying just set them out nail head dowm points up. #bad juju for tresspassers. 
Anyway, got all the lumber sorted and stacked. Gonna build a 20' x 20' workshop. Gonna need a lot of floor joists, so i took a few boards and ripped a 2" x 4" stud outta it and now have a stud and joist outta one stick of lumber. Dk exactly how many joists im gonna need but between joists and rafter rips i should be able to supply roughly half my studs. So: before i put my perlins and metal on my walls and roof, i got to encase the entire frame with plastic stapled very well. Have a buddy who is gonna spray foam the entire wall and ceiling area for me with closed cell foam. The deal is i wire his house for him and he sprays my shop. Bout an even deal i guess. Any way, this thin is gonna be awesome when im done.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Grimm said:


> my DH does steel framing. We were talking about wood burning stoves with my folks. He said that the 'slicks' the studs ship on are perfect free fire wood. And they just get tossed in the dumpster at the end of the day!


Not only firewood. They are good for arts and crafts mtls, small handyman jobs etc. Whenever i get done w a big job here at the casa i sort through the cutoffs and usually keep a few pcs. Almost always wind up needing them for this n that.


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## gabbyj310 (Oct 22, 2012)

I collect all kind of jars(pickle, mayo,olive)(the large glass and plastic ones with screw on lids)for storage...(Pitch in a oxgen asorber).Also regular size peanut jars are good for storage of odds and ins(heirloom seeds,bandaids,etc.)Those little packets of salt& pepper,mustard,mayo,wrapper toothpicks too.


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## Ezmerelda (Oct 17, 2010)

HoppeEL4 said:


> Speaking of stuff you find and keep. I was watching that "Hoarders" show....you know one of my first thoughts are when they show someone with just a lot of stuff (not filthy garbage or rotten food, that's nasty) on _*their property*_, I think "why are they bothering these people about what's on their property? So then I start thinking of all the things they have and a lot of time its junk metal, truck trailers, etc...and think what great resources those are and what a shame it is they were being just tossed on this show....Is that just me that finds that show odd in that they get into someones business on what someone has on their property and why they just toss it all when they do?


This post is exactly what I wanted discussed on this thread: http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f26/hoarding-buried-alive-brainwashing-8006/. Unfortunately, only a few people got where I was coming from - most of them were too hung up on the mental health diagnosis, and the grossest episodes, to see my point.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

seanallen said:


> Not only firewood. They are good for arts and crafts mtls, small handyman jobs etc. Whenever i get done w a big job here at the casa i sort through the cutoffs and usually keep a few pcs. Almost always wind up needing them for this n that.


I keep reminding my DH to grab any useable wood or scrap. We have a shelving unit in our garage that is made out of scrap metal studs and cast off plywood.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Grimm said:


> I keep reminding my DH to grab any useable wood or scrap. We have a shelving unit in our garage that is made out of scrap metal studs and cast off plywood.


If he has access to extra or scrap metal, i would suggest he grab as much as he can. Not for scrap money, but for future fabrications. I spent 15 years in the welding/fab biz, had hundreds of opportunities to stock up on materials. Now that im out of the biz, im constantly needing mtls for this or that on my little side projects. Im not willing to pay retail prices, so the only mtl i get is off of jobs or dumpsters.


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## Justaguy987 (Mar 2, 2013)

This would be my avatar picture if it would show up better so small.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

At the same time a person shouldn't discount selling things for scrap either, steel doesn't pay a fortune but still it is cash. For instance people would roll up barbwire around here and just throw it on a pile or also things like rusty nails and stuff. If you load up a trailer you can get a decent cheque then buy some "scrap" that is much more usable, a lot of yards will sell pipe, tubing, or sheet for just above scrap prices.
Of course any other metal will be worth more, copper, aluminum, lead. Last summer I sold a level, short truck box of batteries for well over $1000


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

Slicks....funny, out here we call them "stickers" (not sure why). At first I was trying to envision what a slick was...then I had to think hard and realized out here it was a sticker. 

One of the things I have been trying to do was go to this huge shipyard that keeps posting on Craiglist for large shipping type crates. My son swears the wood they use for those is no good, too thin to really do anything with, but to my knowledge they ship in huge pieces of granite and other stone slabs, I would think it would have to be good wood to hold that?

I had thought to try to get some and used them to make a little workshop with, if the wood was thin then use ot for lap siding...

Ezmerelda, I plan to go to your thread.


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## Toffee (Mar 13, 2012)

I've never dumpster-dived by myself, but now I am wondering where I could actually go around here. My dad and I would dumpster-dive at his work when we were borrowing equipment to make rabbit hutches and carriers, but nothing over the top.


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

Toffee said:


> I've never dumpster-dived by myself, but now I am wondering where I could actually go around here. My dad and I would dumpster-dive at his work when we were borrowing equipment to make rabbit hutches and carriers, but nothing over the top.


I've been looking in every one I see now. No treasure yet though.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

8thDayStranger said:


> I've been looking in every one I see now. No treasure yet though.


Construction sites, office/commercial renovations, residential renovations, etc. Ease back behind retail shopping centers and check their dumpsters. You would be AMAZED at the stuff them ppl trash... get to know some local homebuilders. They shouldnt mind you pilfering through the dumpsters. The more you take out the more they can put back in making less dump charges on them. Ive been known to drag home trailer loads of concrete form boards. Guess them folks were too lazy to knock off the scale and have a good sound board. Ive managed to sell a lot of the lumber and stuff. Once i even got a deal from a builder. Bought 160 treated 4" x 4" x 8' @ $1.00 each. Turnd around and sold them for $4.00 each. 


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

Yeah construction is dead around here. They just added a movie theater to the local mall though. I tried getting in their dumpster but they wasn't havin any of that. Tried to go back after they left and security didn't like that either.

Anytime we throw away wood at work, it ends up in my backyard. My boss is so used to me saying "what you gonna do with that? Can I have it?" He normally just looks at me as soon as he sees a pile of stuff and says take it.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Sometimes when they do a one off project with concrete and they build custom forms there can be a ton of wood that gets scrapped. I asked one time and took a TON of 3/4" plywood and 2x4's home, catch was I agreed to take everything so they didn't have to make a trip with a trailer. Definitely was worth it though, I still have some stacked up
Oh and there was a bunch of 1 inch rebar in the pile too, that stuff is pricy


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

cowboyhermit said:


> Sometimes when they do a one off project with concrete and they build custom forms there can be a ton of wood that gets scrapped. I asked one time and took a TON of 3/4" plywood and 2x4's home, catch was I agreed to take everything so they didn't have to make a trip with a trailer. Definitely was worth it though, I still have some stacked up
> Oh and there was a bunch of 1 inch rebar in the pile too, that stuff is pricy


Got some of that a while back. Dunno bout yall, but things are zingin down here on the Gulf Coast. Maybe its because im around construction all the time. Looked in a dumpster today. Saw about 3-4 sheets old plywood in there. The catch: a piece of concrete about 6' x 9'x 1' was laying over most of them. Those dumpsters can hold some weight! Needless to say, that wood is still there.


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## Toffee (Mar 13, 2012)

I checked craigslist today and oh my fish, there is so much free stuff on there. Someone is giving away a greenhouse, even. If only I could go pick it up.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Toffee said:


> Someone is giving away a greenhouse, even. If only I could go pick it up.


Where there is the will, there is a way!!


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

My inlaws are tried an true hoarders; mil wanted to keep a damaged beyond repair buffet just because 'I might put it in the kitchen'. Mind you, the buffet was in a building that was rotting around in, it had been smashed by roof fall and had fallen through the rotten floor. They have a treadmill that is never used, closet is over flowing and they still have my hubs grandparents clothes in a closet and refuse to get rid of them. They won't go thru their things to get more room in the house. 

My husband and I are preppers; he built a cabinet in my kitchen to hold our canned stores, lets me store the bulk preps in the garage, and helps me decide on what big purchases we need. Our home is the same size as my inlaws, but we don't have things that aren't used on at least a monthly basis.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Im @ downtown Mobile rt now. This whole street has tornado damage to medium extent. No demolished houses, just a bunch of destroyed roofs and light structural damage. In a long city block street ive counted 8 dumpsters. Lookin so far, a couple sheets of blue styrofoam board, old wire, old windiw frames w no glass, shingles from hell, and lots and lots of old wood siding.


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## 8thDayStranger (Jan 30, 2013)

Tornado zones are great for getting wire. A couple of years ago we had some bad twisters and I sorted miles of wire. Everyone in my area was smart. They scrapped all they could. They kept anything useable too. It's all country folks here though.


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

Portland is ripe for dumpster diving to my understanding. I do have my qualms about stepping into one and picking stuff out. I have to be honest I would hesitate on food, but would not on useful non-food items.


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

I'm a bit old for dumpster diving but I take advantage of OKC's "BIG Trash" days. One weekly trash pickup day per month is Bulk/Big trash day. Put your trash at the curb and the city will haul it away. The service isn't free...you are billed by the cubic yard, on your next water/sewer/trash removal bill. I check out the piles for useful items and take them home. Some items are too big for me to handle alone so I take Davis along. This spring we've brought home a cable spool that was used as a patio table and had been finished, a not so useful but highly decorative snowman, an end table that just needs a paint job (Davis tightened all of the leg bolts), a milk crate, and a 5'x10' packing crate that required the assistance of a friend who has a pickup truck.

The end table has been passed on to someone who needed living room furniture, the cable spool is covered with my rose cuttings and other garden starts, the milk crate will be added to the milk crates used to store food stuffs in the pantry, and the packing crate will be my raised bed herb garden. 

I've missed a lot of good finds because they were too big for the Ford Focus or someone else got them before I could get back to them.


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

construction sites are good places to dive, or if you can get permission. some will give it because they have to pay to have stuff hauled away, and the more you take, the less they pay. of course, employees get first dibs, so you may have to take a number or start working with them part time. I got tons of canning jars from the local recycling center for the asking. Not to mention pallets, a couple broken freezers, pots & pans, all manner of things. The pickings were so good I considered trying to get a part time job there, but there were not any openings.


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

HoppeEL4 said:


> Speaking of stuff you find and keep. I was watching that "Hoarders" show....you know one of my first thoughts are when they show someone with just a lot of stuff (not filthy garbage or rotten food, that's nasty) on _*their property*_, I think "why are they bothering these people about what's on their property? So then I start thinking of all the things they have and a lot of time its junk metal, truck trailers, etc...and think what great resources those are and what a shame it is they were being just tossed on this show....Is that just me that finds that show odd in that they get into someones business on what someone has on their property and why they just toss it all when they do?


I think that show has an agenda...trying to make people see prepping as somehow mentally ill hoarding. How many older folks are being badgered by the younger sheeple in the family for their 'hoarding' ways? I can't stand to watch it - seeing the pain of the person being bullied into giving up their stuff is NOT entertainment unless you enjoy watching others' pain. I don't.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

kappydell said:


> ... from the local recycling center....


Need to try that. The local scrap metal places no longer sell to the public: "buy only". It makes me cry to see all the stuff that is "new" or "near new" that get sold for scrap metal.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

LincTex said:


> Need to try that. The local scrap metal places no longer sell to the public: "buy only". It makes me cry to see all the stuff that is "new" or "near new" that get sold for scrap metal.


That is so frustrating, one scrap yard I went to had all kinds of good material dropped off, we offered to pay whatever premium they wanted since we were there with the trailer anyways, they said no way
Other yards around here still let you pay a bit above scrap for what you want to load up, often there is brand new steel in odd lengths drill stem etc, they make money without having to do a thing, what is the harm:dunno:


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## mojo4 (Feb 19, 2012)

My nephew works for a construction equipment rental firm. They recently decided to standardize all their tools and equipment so they tossed out darn near everything. Presses, hand tools, welders...... My nephew estimated around 300K of tools supplies and equipment! Worst of all he didn't call his favorite uncle for the cleanup! Just devestating to me!!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

Right now because we are preparing for a move my best dumpster prep was a bunch of good clean useable sturdy cardboard boxes! BIG ones! Found them this morning when I went to take out the trash.


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## HoppeEL4 (Dec 29, 2010)

kappydell, I understand, I hate watching when they haul off everything, but you have to admit some of those people have an outright filthy home and sometimes the stuff just could not be save. Animal feces on everything, rodent feces, roaches....absolute ICK! However it is painful to watch them toss stuff out of not dirty homes. Again one show where a woman was a former teacher had lots of stuff collected and organized, not dirty, but they pushed her to lose it all. That bothered me. I would prefer to see them help them go in and organize and find out what they wanted to get rid of instead of forcing them, let them take their time. Sure maybe some people do use those things as a way to cope with bad stuff that has happened, but to then traumatize them to throw it out, no it's wrong.

As I said, only in those clean homes, not in the filthy ones, then of course you have to have some intervention for their sake and sometimes the community.


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