FREECYCLE YOUR WAY TO SAVING £1's

smarterbytheminute

I know it may seem odd to think of saving money by giving things away FREE, but in actual fact you do save money that you would otherwise give to a council or other collector to clear your junk!!!! (one man's meat etc) and it is great to think that your 'junk' hasn't ended up on an already bursting landfill site.

If you are planning a move and don't want to take a lot of older items - it can cost a small fortune for the council to collect just to dump, especially if your car is a bit too small as well to take the stuff to the dump yourself .

I came across Freecycle.org from a link in one of Martin's monthly emails several months ago and have already given away:

an older but useable 6ft dress rail (which I had long since lost the bottom bar to) - the lady who collected it had had a flood from the loft into her daughter's bedroom and needed a rail so that they could clear her wardrobe for the ceiling to be repaired. she had been looking for one for ages when I added my post!

a larder fridge (in good working order) having updated my kitchen, this had taken up space for ages alongside the new fridge so was glad to find a new home for it - and the young couple who collected it had just had one broken down on them so extra reward in helping someone out again! Would have cost a minimum of £11-15 to have collected by council

an old but still useable rotary washing line
a roll of carpet I meant to use when my son was still at home and taking up valuable space on my shed
a small but older style kitchen cabinet that was no longer required.
some old/used trellis that someone needed to stop their small dogs getting over the fence into their neighbours garden.
a large but used tarpaulin is about to be posted (complete with a few snails I expect) , also a large floor standing TV cabinet which takes up a lot of space,
and a few more items that I can't remember at the moment..

This lot would probably have filled a skip but they cost at least £30 plus for a small one if I remember, and you have to have everything ready within the time slot you book it for - at least on freecycle you can just post individual items on the website when you come across them and have made the decision to take the item(s) to the council tip. Save on petrol too!!!! if items were small enough to fit in your car in the first place

In return so far I have obtained a freeview box - brand new with remote - as the owner had switched to Sky so another saving for me of at least £17 - the cheapest I could find at the time.

Here is the link http://www.freecycle.org/

You can then search for a group near your home or start a new one if there isn't one near enough - the idea being that you choose one near your home to save on petrol when collecting items.. you can also join several groups in your area.

Great idea to hopefully do a little bit towards saving the planet too!

So have fun, de-clutter, think of the pennies you'll save on petrol/council/skip ect and the warm feeling that you get for helping someone out with just the very thing they were looking for!!

scorched_earth_erotica

I'm a great fan of freecycle. Have recieved and given out a variety of items on there and apart from a few bad experiences it's been fantastic.

SouthernSoftie

That's where I got my brand new breadmaker from yesterday.... plus I know plenty of people who get stuff off of there and then Ebay it!

(Land_of)_Maz

i love freecycle!! giving and recieving!

EmptyPockets

I am also a great fan of FreeCycle. I check the message board umpteen times a day. I have answered people's 'wanted' posts, and since I've been a member, I have literally given away HUNDREDS of things, I could not begin to count how many. And the same with things I've received too, so many I couldn't count. There are a few no-shows for collection now and then, but generally the people are reliable, you get to meet folk who live in your area, and make new friends

:j FREECYCLE :j YAY :j

continualdiamond

I love freecycle, has saved me loads of time with not having to take stuff to my local skip and everyone always seems so greatful to receive things.

The best item i gave away was an old micowave, it had started to get rusty inside for some reason. The women was so greatful as she'd just left her husband and was starting from scratch.

I've learn't a few things though and thats not to travel too far anymore. I travelled 30mins each way to collect a glass display cabinet, when i arrived it had gone to someone else, the women had the cheek to say i did leave you my number and of course when i replied 'yes i know you did, its me who rang and you said i could have it'.

She was moving house and getting rid of so much stuff she hadn't made a log of names of people she'd gifted things too. So i was kinda peed off as id wasted petrol. Also one time someone bagged things up and said if they weren't home they'd leave them outside, i turned up no one home, nothing outside. I then found out another person was coming for something else and had had the nerve to take both items, another wasted journey.

But all in all, its fantastic. Actually this week i just got a pop up table/chairs that go into a big bag, so your free to put it up in your garden or take it to the park or festival and its in perfect condition.

nightsky224

I love free cycle. Xmas before last I decided about a month or so before xmas that I wanted to make Jam & Marmalade for gifts. I posted on free cycle and asked for jars and got loads of responces! Some from mums with babyfood jars, and most from people who had some that they were due to recycle. I was very pleased!