Overwhelmed by Freecycle

trukdiver

I only get the daily email so most things have gone by the time I see them:rotfl:

Somebody was giving away a Canon EOS camera about a month ago. I didn't have a sob story - just wanted it to use with a borrowed lens. A few days ago, he emailed me asking if I still wanted it, as the person he originally offered it to hadn't collected it. Why waste people's time by saying you want something and then not bothering to collect?

He commented that most things he puts on there have been grabbed within an hour!

porto_bello

I've avoided freecycle, after hearing very similar impressions, from a several generous people, who thinking they were doing someone a favour, resulted in having white van man types come around and add to the their car bootsale stock. [In one case the guy even said he did house clearance for a living!]

Another concern I have is that in advertising things on freecycle, you are advertising that you have a home with an excess of valuable items and divulging over an email the address where they can be found! Without knowing anything about who you are divulging this information to... not even an eBay ID!

Rather than divulge your details to any local burglar looking for new opportunities, I would give anything you propose to freecycle to a local charity shop. If it's too large to be moved, or if you have lots of things, many charities will happily collect from you.

JimmyTheWig

torbrex wrote: »

I reduce the number of applicants (if required) to 6 going by how politely they have asked and roll a dice until one of the numbers comes up 3 times.

Do you realise that this gives each person on the shortlist a 1 in 6 chance of getting it? Exactly the same odds as if you rolled the die once and gave it to that person?

[Obviously your way is fine if you enjoy the suspense, are OCD about the number 3, like to let people know if they came second, etc.]

hermum

If I have lots of requests for items I'm giving away, I ditch the no manners ones, that always cuts down a lot.
I always ask people to let me know when they can collect., as I used to get desperate people who could collect in a couple of weeks time, I want it out asap or else I'd sell it if I didn't mind hanging on to it for a couple more weeks. The ones that don't say when they can collect also get ditched.
People asking me to phone or text them get ditched.
The real bad sob story gets ditched.
If there's more than 1 person left after all that, I'll have a look to see whether they've offered anything themselves.
That often only leaves a couple of people & then I'll pick the message that's the most polite or personal to the item I'm offering.

caeler

porto_bello wrote: »

Another concern I have is that in advertising things on freecycle, you are advertising that you have a home with an excess of valuable items and divulging over an email the address where they can be found!

Perhaps but I personally use an anon email address just for freecycle and only give me actual address to the person I've spoken to and agree to give the item to, sometimes I offer to meet them half way at a neutral place. Most of the stuff I offer on freecycle isn't valuable (otherwise I'd sell it) but ultimately it is to save it from landfill, the whole purpose of freecycle.

kathy206

I tend to weed out the text speak and impolite "I'll ave it where do you live?" emails straight away then choose after that. I am astounded by the amount of requests for greenhouses, laptops, a caravan awning (and the cheeky wotsit wanted it delivering!!):rotfl:

theoretica

porto_bello wrote: »

Another concern I have is that in advertising things on freecycle, you are advertising that you have a home with an excess of valuable items ...

I am not- I am advertising a home with an excess of nearly worthless cloth scraps/paperbacks/10 year old printers and I don't care how 'deserving' the taker is so long as they come when they said they would and are polite.

However, I do object to being lied to.

azzabazza

A bit of an update, me being new to Freecycle. Digest Friday had a plants wanted post for a community garden. I have replied, offering various excess permanent plant seedlings from the greenhouse plus some packets of poppy and callendula seeds. Out of date but I do know from experience they will germinate.

Heard nothing. I think I am getting rather disillusioned with Freecycle.

grannybroon

I gave up Freecycle because of the begging emails and the things folk were putting on as wanted. I know it costs me in petrol but I would rather take anything I feel could be resold to my local charity shop.

hermum

azzabazza wrote: »

A bit of an update, me being new to Freecycle. Digest Friday had a plants wanted post for a community garden. I have replied, offering various excess permanent plant seedlings from the greenhouse plus some packets of poppy and callendula seeds. Out of date but I do know from experience they will germinate.

Heard nothing. I think I am getting rather disillusioned with Freecycle.

Maybe they don't have access to a computer over the weekend.