am i the only one with freecycle issues? - Page 2

[kbridi]

I've been pretty lucky with my local group. There are some people who just ask, ask, ask, and then of course there are the people who say they'll pick up, but never do. That's annoying. I think it's good to atleast give it a try though..

[clane]

I have had success with ours; I do not give out address in original post, just to the "winner" of the item(s) through private email. Even then, I arrange a pickup time when DH is around or a friend will be over, just to be safe.

[traixa2]

MY DH is our freecycle mod. He gets really frustrated with some peoples expectationn, and rudeness. We have had the best luck when looking for odd items, or things like 2 ft of chicken wire, or an old window frame. We usually donate things we are de-cluttering to St. Vinnies.

[Boobiemama]

I unsubbed from my freecycle because it was a pain in the butt. The things I posted for free, people would make an appt with me to pick up then never show up.
The stuff people posted was complete trash, I could find better things at the dump. I think most people were looking for a way to get their trash hauled for free.
I give to the local thrift stores, and some things I give away online.

[EricaLeigh]

I've been Freecycling for several months now! I absolutly love the concept! I have given & received great things. I have always found a thank you e-mail after pick up (& I always send a thank you). I think placing a "Wanted" for any item is ok. At one point our old Mod. sent out a message to our group, saying please ask for things you need, many people have things around that they havn't posted but if they know there is someone who wants it then they will give it away. I know that things like Ipod's are pretty silly, but most other requests are ok. I've asked for things that no one has responded to, & I have received things that I asked for. You just never know if someone has something hanging around.

When we change to hot water basebord heat, we ripped the old duct work out of our house & posted it, thinking no one would want it, maybe someone with a scrap yard. Well we had to choose from a few peole who really wanted it. We ended up giving it to a very thrilled couple who just put an addition on their house & needed to cut costs, because they went over budget. I felt kinda bad because the stuff was filthy. I appoligised for the dirty ducts, & they didn't care, he said he could clean it & it was, well worth it. They we're very thankful! So junk to us was very valuable to them. You just never know.
Our Mod. also sent out a message to our group stressing the importance of showing up when you say you will. Thanking the giver after you pick up. Not asking questions about the condition of the item. -She said that this is rude. Consider it a gift. Now this I don't really agree with. If the item was described accuratly in the original post than this wouldn't be an issue. I have had lots of questions, but never thought that it was rude. I'd rather have them ask & give it to the person who still wants the item even if it isn't perfect, or whatever. I have also drove an hour to find an item not what I expected. It was a cordless phone, it didn't have the power cord or the phone cord. So I took the phone to Radio Shack. They found all of the stuff I needed to make the phone work & it was going to cost me $25 but the helpful clerk reccomended I purchase the phone that they had on sale for $14.99 instead. That is what I did, & it was a better Ghz.

My best experience ever was when I asked for "The Tightwad Gazete Book" A kind women had it & I picked it up. When I was there she showed me her gardens. She told me that she was going to be thinning the overgrown gardens & wondered if I could use some of her periannial plants. We we're only in our house for a month at that point, I was so thrilled! Most of our gardens were weeds, so I was very grateful to get plants & be able to start gardening. She had me come a couple times, I helped her dig up the plants. She also gave me house plants & surplus veggies form her garden. Oh and my girls got to explore in her pond, actually it was a mud pit. My DD caught a frogs & got all muddy, it was a blast!

It is hit or miss like anything else. But if your family really needs something than it is worth the time & stress that it might take to get something that you need but don't have the $ for.

Hi mama2babybeans, I was just thinking of you the other day! I will never forget you for being so kind to me! Thank you

[root*children]

LOL! If you think it's so annoying to be a member, try being a mod!!!

I started a group and mod'd it for a year in Colorado. The things folks post that never go through you would be amazed at! There are even yahoo groups just for the mods where they can talk about how crazy some of the members are and to figure out how to deal with problems, etc.

It is basically a rule that you shouldn't put any personal info in your post. Only give an address/phone # to someone who is going to pick up.

But on the otherhand, some of those outlandish posts actually produce! When I was a mod, someone posted they wanted a snowmobile... DH laughed and said YA RIGHT! Then they got 2 different responses (at least, this was in the beginning of our group when folks couldn't figure out how to respond directly to the person and our whole group got to see it) for working snowmobiles! So, maybe someone has an extra iPod and they were going to throw one in the trash cause the color didn't match their outfit or something and Freecycle would be a good place for it.

FC here in Ashe. has been more frustrating being in a city rather than rurally. The mods keep taking everyone on and off moderation for no reason (which has to be a PITB for them to moderate that many posts!). And then I just had to roll my eyes the other day when someone posted: "Wanted: Organic Unbleached Diapers ... my daughter is pregnant and we both only want the best for her baby - please give us your unbleached organic prefold or fitted diapers, please no stains for excessive wear" HA! Too funny! I'm sure there are loads of mamas who spent hundreds of dollars on their diaper stash, just to give it all away to some picky person!

[Wolfmeis]

I was really active in Frecycle and then I moved into a gated community. Now it's kind of hard for me to offer things because I don't want to give out the gate code. I feel that would be disrespectful to my neighbors

Given the amount of no shows, I sure don't want to make an appointment and sit at teh gate to wait for them!

[corwinegall]

I got a bunkbed on freecycle, then the guy kept on emailing me asking for my dh to help him with his motorcycle. Dh felt sort of obligated 'cause they guy did give us his bunkbed...but then he got sick and he never ended up getting over there to help. I gave the bunkbed away to get rid of the karma.

[rsps]

We've mostly had good luck, but I've only given things. I did post a wanted ad for a kids bike, not really expecting one -- later found one at a garage sale for $2.00.

I mostly donate to local thrift stores but some things I didn't want to haul (old screen door) or stick the charity with (broken computer) went very quickly and easily on freecycle. I've also repsonded to some wanted ads and the people were always very gracious, sending thank you e-mails after.

I always just leave things out on the porch for them, so it's no bother if we're going out. I also don't open the door to strangers as a general rule, so leaving things outside takes care of that.

[Amys1st]

Hi root children aka Dreadymama! I was wondering what happened to you- hope you like your new home since you moved.

My experience was just this week. I have never posted anything, just joined and I get about 15 emails weekly with some people I know from my town. Someone posted a wanted- rocking chair and/or recliner to rock her new baby to sleep. We have a rocker that DH hates and he wants to make me a new one anyway for the new baby. Well I responded I have one.

They responded that they need to come by and look at it first before deciding. I'm thinking no way! So I took a picture and eamiled it right back. She responded not what she was looking for. Like I would really let a stranger in my house to decide if the free thing she solicitated would work!!

I have better luck getting rid of stuff by asking other mamas around me, tp, or call St Vincent dePaul to come pick it up.

That lady posting for perfect prefolds makes me laugh out louder than I have in a long time!! I am currently building my stash for our spring baby and I have found such awesome stuff on our tp here and the mamas are so wonderful to deal with. I also see some of the same people on ebay (or as I say- my virtual garage sale) and I have gotten stuff there. But I have not spent that much money and my stash is growing!

But if freecycle works for you, great, but I can see some of the downfalls that is going to ruin a really good thing.

[supercrunch]

I actually have had great luck with our local freecycle. After 2 no-shows you get booted from the group, so that really cuts down on those.

I have gotten some great things at times that I really needed them and couldn't otherwise afford them. (like when someone posted a mattress set just when our bed was getting too crowded with squirmy ds in the middle...voila, a bed for him) And I have also given some things away to people who were eternally grateful. I haven't had a problem yet in the past 2 years.

I try to be cautious and if my dh isn't home when someone is picking something up, I always leave it on the porch so I don't have to open the door to a stranger. I hate to be anti-social, but I wouldn't want to put us in harms way.

[root*children]

Like I would really let a stranger in my house to decide if the free thing she solicitated would work!!

For real! That's just rude ... and weird! I'm SURE the Chicago FC is WAY huger than Asheville's. But even a few months ago I put a wooden kitchen table on FC, and (since I'm an eBayer) I tend to be very over-descriptive . It was a good table, and with 3000 FC members here, there were a bajillion responses. But I actually had people writing saying "This sounds nice, but what kind of wood is it?" "Exactly how old is it?" "My kitchen is like this, do you think it would work?" HA! As if I have the time (or desire) to sit at the computer and respond to 50 or so people and try to find it would work for them when it's a free table! sheesh.

Sometimes my fingers just can't hit the delete button quick enough!

[jannan]

my issue with freecycle was that on more than one occassion , the address didn't exsist, or i went and the people at the address i was given had no idea what i was talking about. it is a good idea but difficult to put into practice. and is it really free? i mean, one time i drove across town , it took my half an hour and the address was wrong. so i believe nothing is truly free.

[earthmama369]

I love the concept of freecycle and in general I've had a lot of fun with it. But I've also had some really obnoxious no-shows/changed minds, like the guy who didn't believe me when I said the desk we were offering was *huge* and would require a pickup truck and two strong backs to move it because his wife can never get sizes right, and I'm a woman too, so I must have been exaggerating. : He showed up by himself in a Volvo and got mad he couldn't handle it himself. I just looked at him. He left. But by this time dh and I had hauled the thing through the house and outside and moved our new desks in. We ended up having to get a trailer and, me pregnant, haul the thing up onto the trailer and over to Goodwill across town. I was so ticked!

On the other hand, I've actually made a couple good friends through freecycle too -- it's been a great way to meet other mamas in town! And I love being able to "recycle" the things that Goodwill won't take (toys with small parts, etc.).

[pjlioness]

Originally Posted by sapphire_chan

Try sticking the item on your curb, around here it'd be gone before my next trash pickup.

That's what we used to do when we lived in the NYC area. Old shoes that aren't totally trashed? Put 'em on the curb (or near the trash room). We got a couple of nice recycling bins, some books, and some great records that way - someone just put them outside the garbage room (we were across the hall)! Even here in IL we occasionally see items that are placed out on the curb well before trash day, but it's usually big stuff we don't need (and I doubt dh would stop to look at something in front of someone's house!).

My inlaws found a Cozy Coupe out on someone's lawn with a "Free" sign. They grabbed it for use at their house. I like it because it is an older model, without all the annoying electronics. We'll do the same with it when our dc's outgrow it in a few years.

My dad was a garbageman for a few years when I was a kid. He brought home toys, electronics, a humidifier, and several other things. (My mom's mom was mortified, but then she was mortified that her college-educated SIL was a garbageman. It was the early 70's, and that was the only thing he could find at the time, but she never really got over it. )

Now that's my kind of freecycle!

[sabrinat]

I feel sort of ambivalent about freecycle. I do think people make greedy outrageous request, but when it works and people show up when they say they will it's great. I also got some really nice thank yous I don't care if someone resales the stuff, I was just going to throw it out or donate to GW (who would then resale it). I don't mind about the address thing either, if your phone # is listed people can get your address easily and I can't imagine someone going to all the trouble to stalk freecycle just to come over to my house becuz I have a broken chair to give away. That's just too weird.

[srain]

Originally Posted by sabrinat

I don't mind about the address thing either, if your phone # is listed people can get your address easily and I can't imagine someone going to all the trouble to stalk freecycle just to come over to my house becuz I have a broken chair to give away. That's just too weird.

Yeah; people can find out your address through whitepages.com, the phone book, or by walking down your street for that matter. I just don't get why it's a concern, unless you're telling folks when you're going to be out of town, whch doors you leave unlocked, etc.