One man's trash, another man's treasure???

Man if you really think about it you could probably make a decent profit just from collecting others junk and reselling. I thought about hauling off furniture for people and then cleaning it up. A lot of people throw their furniture out when they mobe so they dont have to haul it somewhere and they just get new stuff. Well my aunt works at a 2nd hand store and they pay ok prices for the furniture there it is a consignment store. Anyways it could be profitable.

Oh yes I have often picked up something that someone else had thrown out and really used it. Yes it is really ridiculous what some people throw out isn't it. We used to do this a lot when we lived in Government Housing and either keep it for ourselves if we need it or repaired it and given it to our friends that badly needed it. We have found televisions, washing machines, refrigerators all different kinds of things that are really valuable.

i never really done that before because i never find something really good to pick up from someone's trash... whenever i find something outside someone's house, it is really a junk and it is already so dirty and in bad condition... so i don't even bother to pick it up... i guess you must be a lucky person then... :-)

That is how I got my kitchen table and two good chairs. I did take the table to the car wash though and power wash it. I got it from the dumpster at my apartment. I also found well over 300 baseball card there too. Some are worth about $12 but most are only worth a few cents. I live near a collage so students are always throwing out couches, chairs, and even those mini fridges. You can find just about anything you want to fill your place up.

yeah, i have. i live in an apartment building and sometimes when people move out they leave things they don't want to take with them by the dumpster. sometimes there still good. i got some dresser ends and right now i'm using that for my clothes. which was something i needed anyway. my husband also found an unopend bag of socks and 2 leather jackets, that fit him. we also found an electric scooter and right now the monitor on our other computer, which is okay, for now. there was also a kids safety gate which was actually the same exact brand we had, so my husband picked that up too. also when i was growing up, my dad worked for a movie theater and you would be amazed to the things people left behind. after a few months the lost and found stuff was normally thrown away or given to goodwill, so my dad let us go through it before he did so. i got a lot of bags, umbrellas, a few jackets (which we always washed before putting on) and some toys here and there. we weren't a poor family, we were middle class, but we were taught the value of things and liked everything we got.

I lived in that philosophy back in my high school days. Since I was separated from my family to study I had to be self-sufficient. I worked 2 part-time jobs and did everything I could to economize and be practical. In my area where I would stroll around in the mornings or do my newspaper rounds I'd see some notebooks or school materials and I would automatically just get it and speed off. Even if I saw a pair of nice condition shoes I'd get it and clean it. That's how poor I was back then but I'm pretty sure I was more fortunate than others. Some would literally fight over who gets ownership of someone's trash.

I have been an avid dumpster diver for a few years now. It's amazing the things some people will throw away. Furniture, books, toys, electronics... it's great. And they'd be going to waste just taking up space in a dump somewhere and decomposing. if they're usable items, why not put them to use? You've given me an idea for a new discussion topic!

i am afraid to say i am the same as you lol. i think some people are mad the stuff they trhrow away is like new at times and i am more than happy to save myself a few pounds by reusing their so called junk, i have found many treasures like a lovely oak dining table with six chairs and at the time me and my partner had just moved out and we were driving to town when we saw it so we both chatted about how mad the people were and came to the conclusion that they were probably just moving and thats why it was outside but on our way back home the same table was there so we stopped went to the door and asked if we could have it the lady was more than thankfull as she was waiting for a removal man to take it away and said ahe could cancel him and save herself some cash. well we got it home and gave it a bit of t.l.c and trust me it is a beautiful table and we have had it now for nearly three years and when people visit they always comment on how lovely it is. my partner has also got himself a nearly new bike this way and many other little trinkets its amazing the treasures that others regard as junk.

We have one day a year that you can put out anything that isn't toxic and you should see the people that drive around picking stuff up. I haven't picked anything up because I would just be to embarrassed to be seen doing that. But I want to, just a chicken to go do it. :) We have a good will center here and we donate our things there so we don't have much out on the street for that big pick up day.

My best find was when I was a little kid. I found a bike that someone had thrown away just because it was a little scratched up. I was a little worried that someone else stuck in the dumpster to be mean, so I even went up to the door and asked the people who owned the house. They had thrown it out because it didn't "look nice" anymore. I already had a bike at the time, but I had a classmate that didn't who had complained that his parents couldn't afford one for him. We weren't really friends or anything, but I thought it would be nice if he got a bike. So I cleaned it up good and took it to him. I'd never seen anyone so happy in my life! We told everyone his parents had gotten it for him so he wouldn't get picked on for accepting charity. =)

no i have never been to in such experience but i belive you thats really true people do thing like that and they have no problem thorwing their usefull stuff just like that. and its very clever and kind of you that you make thoese things work again and it came benifitial for you and i dont think in that there is any kind of shame or anything. if you can make any usage of it then you can easily go for it without thinking about anything. Regards, Sam

Yes, have done it before... I have picked up a great kitchen stand... and one of those barbie motorized jeeps... it was like brand new even had a working battery... and I had a friend that had a charger... that was probably my best find.. when I lived in long island you wouldn't believe the things people would put out for trash.

Yes I think this is true. I have seen some lovely wooden chairs outside someones house waiting to be picked up for trash and I was going to get them, but unfortunately I was too late. They just needed stripping down and revarnishing. I had an old computer monitor outside my house and someone took that, unfortuantely they didn't know that it didn't work!

When I was a kid, I used to collect empty soda pop bottles in school. I trade them to the person who sells the soda pop and I'm paid for every bottle I return. Sometimes I get enough for a soda pop of my own, sometimes even a snack to go with the drink. A perfect example of another man's trash, my treasure! :)

I have thought about it before but usually what I see won't fit in my car. I was watching tv the other night on a cable station and these guys go out and pick up things on the side of the road fix it up and create something totally different out of it then take it back and leave it on the side of the road again in front of the same people's house that threw it out originally and ring or knock on their doors and run off. The other day someone threw out an old table and they made it into a game table with a checker board and chess board and a chinese checkers board on it and the top slid back and forth to display the different boards. It was really neat.

I have done this many times. I have went to dumpsters to drop off stuff and saw one time I found a whole bag of great books! I love to read so that was a tresure to me! My husband has found tools before too. Sometimes people just get tired of stuff and go buy new stuff and throw the old stuff in the dumster, because they don't have time to sell it or don't want to bother with it. I have laways thought that another man's trash could be another ones treasure! I've seen stuff in peoples yards too but haven't had the nerve to stop yet. I've even seen stuff with a sign that says.."free stuff" sitting in front of peoples yards. I love to find stuff like that!

Sure, I'm about to purchase a dremel, it's a tool that you can design wood with, and I'll be searching for pieces of wood and junk that other people left out.

I found tons of stuff people are throwing out. I've been know to take my truck around on trash nights to get some good stuff. One time my wife and I needed a chair. We went out that night and found someone throwing one out that had notherin wrong with it. I found an old washing machine (to old to use) but keep my towels and such in it in the garge. Other things we've found that were good but had no use for, we have sold and made decent moneu off it at our yardsale. I would say the best thing we ever found is a couch. It was great, no spots or smells. We used it for years but got rid of it becasue we had no room. I wish we could find a couch as good as that one again.

Yes i have picked up other peoples trash. Some people throw nice stuff away. It saves the budget when things are tight. We have found lawnmowers, snowblower, tv stand and bookshelves to name a few.

girl...!!!you know what i think about that...everything i have is either used or trown away hehehehe, and they sure come in handy