Dumspter diving

[IcePrincessKRS]

[quote name='sweetpea316' date='Aug 16 2005, 10:07 AM']Haha... I havn't personally done it, but I know people who have. 
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Ditto.

[quote name='p0lar_bear' date='Aug 16 2005, 01:05 PM']If you live in a college town, it can be quite rewarding. My brother lived in Lawrence, KS near the University of Kansas...people would buy all new stuff for an apartment, then toss it a year or two later when they moved....he got a really nice couch that way...
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Yeah, I know people who go up to FUS when the spring semester comes to a close because so many people throw out stuff. I just can't bring myself to jump IN a dumpster, though.

[Craftygrl06]

I was an RA at school this past year, and at the end everybody throws out everything they don't want to take home. Well, wouldn't you know I got a vacuum cleaner, lots of beer, unopened sheets, cleaning supplies, and many things we didn't really need, but were in good condition.

My friend found a wireless router. worked and everything. It was a glorious time.

***oops, this is toledo_jesus speaking. my bad. ****

Edited August 16, 2005 by Craftygrl06

[IcePrincessKRS]

Thats hilarious and awesome.

[Aloysius]

yeah, I'm pretty sure it's not illegal. though I'm sure many stores think it's illegal and might call the cops; it is not and you can't really be arrested for anything. once they place it outside in the trash it is in the public domain.

[cmotherofpirl]

If its out of the house and on the sidewalk its fair game :

[Tony]

you would think they would be happy for you to take stuff out of their dumpsters.. they pay to have it emptied, you are providing the service to them for free!

[heavenseeker]

can't say i have

[zwergel88]

yeah that's true, there should definately be no laws against it

[blueufo7]

since I'm a lady, I don't dumpster "dive"... but I do dumpster "pick around"...

strategically, going in the evenings at apartment complexes around the time of year when leases are up is good! you won't believe the stuff people will throw away.

if you see lots of bags of clothes people throw away instead of giving it to charity, I think it would be good to "rescue" the clothes and give it to a local Goodwill or Salvation Army!

last year, i got some gorgeous bottles and candle holders and tin boxes and a chair for my apartment... of course I washed it all very well... they made great decorations. but the only thing I didn't like was the BIG spider that was on my shirt at the end of the dumpster hunt!!

[philothea]

I used to live behind a strip mall, and the stores would throw out a lot of stuff. Mostly I got out of season decorations, though.

If the garbage is off private property, anyone can take it. If it's on private property, it's trespassing and theft to take it. At least in Illinois. I'm not sure of the status of dumpsters in parking lots.

At my mother-in-law's we just put out a lot of old furniture on the sidewalk, knowing that guys in trucks drive through the 'burbs before dawn on garbage day, taking all the furniture and other useful items. I wanted to leave a note, "We have lots more good stuff -- leave your number and we'll contact you." But we decided to just keep leaving stuff out on garbage days.

If for some reason the predawn guys in trucks [i]don't[/i] take the furniture, the trash guys will bill extra for it. Hasn't happened yet, though.

Edited August 16, 2005 by philothea

[Tony]

this reminds me of the movie "The Stupids" opening part of it is where the garbage manthe trash is taken from Tom Arnold.. Tom thinks someone stole his trash, and goes off to figure out who did it

[Dreamweaver]

My dad is the master at dumpster diving. In the early 90s, he found a laptop in good condition in an apartment dumpster. THe only problem? It needed an AC/DC power converter. Granted, it was a first generation "lap top", but it was our main computer for many many years! I've gotten a bike from a dumpster, and lots of other stuff throughout the years. My parents also found an awesome wood table. A new coat of stain, and it looks great!

[morostheos]

My family members are masters at dumpster diving!!! My mom does a paper route and she goes by the houses before the trash trucks do, so she's always bringing stuff back with her. She's found computers, a mountain bike, furniture and other stuff.

I never gotten stuff out of an actual dumpster, but in college I picked up lots of stuff in the dorm trash room and outside next to the dumpster (they're usually overflowing). I've gotten a futon sofa, chair, over $150 worth of textbooks I've sold online and all sorts of other cool stuff.

It's truly amazing how much stuff people throw out

[homeschoolmom]

Many of the suburbs around here (though not ours ) have pick up days where you can put out just about anything that you don't want to pay to have hauled off... let me tell you, the traffic in those towns the night before.... Wow... About 50% of the stuff is just picked up off the curb before the trucks ever come. I wish we had this. I would get rid of a TON of stuff...