<Dumpster Divers>
- Thread starter AceGVSU11
- Start date
zeemang
Forum Supporter
Good eye!
sllingshot47
Elite Member
Some people make a living this way. Nowadays, discretion is important. Tools may be as simple as a broomstick with a hook on it, leather gloves, insect spray, and a flashlight. The trick is not to appear a threat. Great find.
matthias
Elite Member
Nice score! I must admit I always check out open trash dumpsters. Its amazing what some folks throw out. GL and HH. Matt
71Cuda
Junior Member
Cool find. In Puerto Rico there are guys that drive around all day and grab stuff like that to either fix up or sell for scrap.
When I was growing up you could go to the local dump and take stuff from there. My dad used to grab old tvs and make them into cabinets and old tables etc to fix up. It was the original recycling and it seemed to work pretty well until they decided it had to stop.
When I was growing up you could go to the local dump and take stuff from there. My dad used to grab old tvs and make them into cabinets and old tables etc to fix up. It was the original recycling and it seemed to work pretty well until they decided it had to stop.
Dirt Nuker
Elite Member
What king of moron would throw away a fine cage like that? My bird would have loved that cage. Hate to say it, but you could have commanded much more for that. I would have given you at least $100 even if I knew it came from a dumpster.
CopyTech99
Elite Member
Wonder how many metal detectors end up in the dumpster ??
...and yes, that is a very nice. Well built cage
...and yes, that is a very nice. Well built cage
351maverick
Elite Member
I dumpster dive & drive around in nice neighborhoods on their garbage days ALL the time
as they say "one man's trash in another man's treasure"
as they say "one man's trash in another man's treasure"
I know I could have gotten more... but I wanted a quick sell because I knew the GF wouldn't let it sit around for more than a day or two... So I'm happy with the 5 minutes I spent digging it out of there!
Dirt Nuker
Elite Member
I'm willing to go out on a limb (or perch in this case) and say that since most of the accessories were in there, the previous owner's bird died and he got rid of everything about that bird. Birds can live a loooooooong time and they have personalities just like dogs and cats do. My bird turns 20 this October. Not bad for a cockatiel. He's an ornery little b*stard but we'll still miss his speaking/chattering when he's gone.
Whenever I lug something heavy with any metal at all to the curb, we wager how long it will take until a "curb crawler" picks it up. They can have it if they can lift it. They probably didn't like my old water heater. I kinda intentionally left a lot of water in it when it hit the curb. The husband and wife team struggled pretty hard to get it in the truck but they got it in without draining it (probably so the scrap yard thought it would weigh more).
I always wonder how much gas these guys use to go on their rounds. Enough to make it worth it I guess.
Whenever I lug something heavy with any metal at all to the curb, we wager how long it will take until a "curb crawler" picks it up. They can have it if they can lift it. They probably didn't like my old water heater. I kinda intentionally left a lot of water in it when it hit the curb. The husband and wife team struggled pretty hard to get it in the truck but they got it in without draining it (probably so the scrap yard thought it would weigh more).
I always wonder how much gas these guys use to go on their rounds. Enough to make it worth it I guess.
Stevo
Forum Supporter
Cool cage! It reminds me of the discarded stuff people bring on Antiques Roadshow. Value, along with beauty, are in the eye of the beholder.
What is crazy is the very next morning a guy was at that same dumpster with a truck load of scrap he already picked... So lucky me for finding it the night before! Those scrapers are everywhere these days!
Great score! I once pulled a go kart out of a dumpster and sprayed it with some wd40 and traded it even to a guy who had a boat he'd swap for it. I sold the boat for $1200
I'd venture to say over the years I've probably made at least $20'000 from dumpster diving. I got a brand new set of polished stainless heater hoses still sealed someone threw away still in the pack i'll be selling at my yard sale
Silversmith45
Elite Member
I worked for a while for an apartment complex. You would be surprised what people throw away and leave in their apartments when they move. I've seen new unwrapped Christmas presents in dumpsters as well as all kinds of electronics, some like new. Here a woman was in a dumpster looking for cans when the truck picked it up. She had a friend with her and that was the only thing that kept her from getting crushed.
mws_1984
Elite Member
That's the way to do it. People throw away so many things that can be still used or sold to someone who could use them.
My father has the best hookup. He knows the guy at the local landfill so he always goes down there. We are from sort of a "rich" town, but we aren't rich by any means. It's a summer town basically so you get all the millionaires and stuff.
But he will find stuff thrown away still in the box, no problems or if anything a minor one. That is how he got a couple big screen tvs. Minor issue that needed to be fixed, but person tossing couldn't be bothered.
He's even given me stuff to try to sell and I've had luck with it.
It's just like myself here in the city. I toss something on the curb and within the rest of the day it's gone. People have a nature to just pick up what could still be good. If you can make $ off it, the better it is. Nice way to save some extra cash, rather than toss something straight out, see if you can Craigslist it or something.
My father has the best hookup. He knows the guy at the local landfill so he always goes down there. We are from sort of a "rich" town, but we aren't rich by any means. It's a summer town basically so you get all the millionaires and stuff.
But he will find stuff thrown away still in the box, no problems or if anything a minor one. That is how he got a couple big screen tvs. Minor issue that needed to be fixed, but person tossing couldn't be bothered.
He's even given me stuff to try to sell and I've had luck with it.
It's just like myself here in the city. I toss something on the curb and within the rest of the day it's gone. People have a nature to just pick up what could still be good. If you can make $ off it, the better it is. Nice way to save some extra cash, rather than toss something straight out, see if you can Craigslist it or something.
Freecycle is a good place to check too!
Silversmith45
Elite Member
I got my television out of the dumpster at work, complete with remote. A guy wanted to pawn it but couldn't get it to work. They won't take pawns unless they can see that they work alright. I took it home and figured it out and it works great.
IMShooter
Elite Member
nice find Ace...
Friend of mine on the bottle forums is the Fred Sanford of collecting/digging/md'ing...
he'll post that he "only found some milks, a few cobalts and sodas and 6$ in clad for the day"...
he probably has 200-300 milks and cobalts and a few hundred in clad...
and he probably has a few tons of copper and brass and other metals.
Oh..and silver plate dinnerware..everyday, 5-6pcs...the place he "scratches" is fruitful..
no idea where he hunts downstate, he lives outside of flint..but he finds cool stuff...
he once found 9 pair of Nike shoes, in the boxes, new...
Friend of mine on the bottle forums is the Fred Sanford of collecting/digging/md'ing...
he'll post that he "only found some milks, a few cobalts and sodas and 6$ in clad for the day"...
he probably has 200-300 milks and cobalts and a few hundred in clad...
and he probably has a few tons of copper and brass and other metals.
Oh..and silver plate dinnerware..everyday, 5-6pcs...the place he "scratches" is fruitful..
no idea where he hunts downstate, he lives outside of flint..but he finds cool stuff...
he once found 9 pair of Nike shoes, in the boxes, new...
ohiochris
Elite Member
Thats where my first metal detector came from. A whites coinmaster 5900 D.
