City-wide Fall clean-up - entertaining...

[Scooter_man]

Here we go again, all of the junkers will be out this weekend. Last year I paid my $5.00 and had a mounding pile by the curb over the weekend. By noon on Monday, when the city truck came by, I didn't have $1.00 worth of stuff left for the city to take.

It's simply amazing what some people will stop for/pick up. I guess the old saying is true = 'One man's trash is another man's treasure'. I don't mean good stuff either, i'm an ex-junker / pack-rat so if i'm throwing it out, it's gotta be bad.

Some of the junkers were 'High Tech' too - they had handheld spotlights driving by shining it on the piles to see if it was worth stopping for (after dark). It's almost worth the $5.00 to see just what all some people will take - but then i'm easily entertained I guess.

Is it like this everywhere - or just in Missouri?

 

[dparm]

I watch them from my balcony on the street below. Almost always a late 1970s Chevy pickup with a busted tail lamp and scrap stacked 40 feet high.

 

[vtb]

I've lived in MD and VT, neither has that kind of clean-up. VT is too rural, and MD is too strictly controlled.

Sounds entertaining though. We have to have yard sales, or as they say in VT "tag sales". Craigslist is good, but shady sometimes.

I recently scored a brand new filter for my Shop Vac. Just sitting in a pile of other stuff, with a sign that says FREE. Made sure to get it before it got rained on.

 

[gomes512]

Originally Posted By: dparm
I watch them from my balcony on the street below. Almost always a late 1970s Chevy pickup with a busted tail lamp and scrap stacked 40 feet high.


Yep, back end almost scraping the pavement and frame bent between cab and bed.

 

[Boomer]

When my 90 year old father passed away last year, I cleaned out his apartment. I put about the stuff that a charity wouldn't take out by the apartment dumpster with a "FREE" sign on it. It was all gone within the hour! I was truly amazed. If anything had been left, I would simply had placed it in the dumpster for legal removal. This was in Lancaster, PA.

 

[sciphi]

Small towns are always great for that type of "entertainment". I put some unwanted and pretty ratty furniture gifted by a roommate out on the curb once. It was gone inside of two hours.

 

[JustinH]

Around here junker pickup trucks prowl the streets looking for anything metal that is set to the curb.

I have even seen kids on bicycles ride by my house to pick up worn out brake rotors, alternators, and other parts.

Its kind of sad.

I had an old oil tank, a guy actually came running up the street to get it from another guy.

 

[Trav]

I have a couple of guys prowling here.I dont begrudge anyone trying to make a buck and do me a favor by taking the old metal.
Last week i put out a perfectly good Honda track snowblower i no longer wanted/needed,they were right on it.When i told them it ran okay it was like Christmas in sept for them.I hope they get a couple of hundred for it and buy a great meal for the family.

 

[scurvy]

In Chicago, anything placed in the alley would be swiftly disposed of - for better or worse. We had some junky old kitchen countertop sections that we placed out there which were taken away while we were still bringing them out. Sold the cabinets and the guy we sold them to accidentally left my hand truck out in the alley - gone within minutes.

 

[Rick in PA]

Originally Posted By: scurvy
...Sold the cabinets and the guy we sold them to accidentally left my hand truck out in the alley - gone within minutes.


Hope you got enough to pay for a new hand truck!

 

[onion]

About 7 years ago I was living in a small town in Western Kansas- they had a city cleanup every October. That was fun stuff... I was one of the alley-cruisers. I acquired several older bikes, well-made ones- and put together a good one... threw the rest away.

I also got a dishwasher. Required a fill solenoid to get it working... but we still use it.

 

[scurvy]

Originally Posted By: Rick in PA
Hope you got enough to pay for a new hand truck!

Actually the lady who bought the cabinets made good and replaced it, which was nice of her considering it cost $10 more than they paid us for the cabinets!

Life is too short to have a cheap hand truck, friends.