freecycle- reuse dont bin

Michele37

dobbiesloan wrote: »

The moderators on freecyle have first choice of all offers. anything they dont want they post for the members to see. If you post an offer you get lots of people saying there a charity and asking for it. Lots of people apply for offers and sell them on. But you might get lucky.

I run the Retford and Worksop group and I can ASSURE you I do not get first dibs on anything, I moderate and post every single correctly written post and If I want it then I apply just as all the others.

I think you are being very cynical where Freecycle is concerned, It is all about saving the planet, some people do apply for items to sell on this is true, but not everyone, most on freecycle are good honest people, it helps alot of single parents and families on low income furnish their homes, Freecycle is a wonderful idea.

End of the day, so what if people are collecting your stuff to sell on, you don't want it at the end of the day, if you gave it to your local charity shop they would sell it too.

Regards

steveeeee

sparrer wrote: »

Run following the few simple rules, as all the groups I know of are, freecycle is one of the best inventions since sliced bread.

(Wonder what was the best invention before sliced bread? :rotfl: )

The bread slicer? :rotfl:

louisa_ridsdale

i have posted many 'offers' on freecycle and 'taken' nothing. but i seem to get an awful lot of peple asking for things, arranging to collect then not turning up OR asking for stuff then expecting me to deliver....
FREE MEANS FREE NOT TAKE THE XXXX

jamesbecker.uk

cricks wrote: »

I know this has been posted before, but I wanted to efresh old and new members memories.

Freecycle is a yahoo based recycling forum, you post anything you want or anything you have to offer.

I've found this invaluable as I'm currently sorting out my house before I hopefully move.

Have a look for local groups in your area.

https://www.freecycle.org/groups/unitedkingdom/

Thanks

This is a freebie how?

judderman62

Michele37 wrote: »

I think you are being very cynical where Freecycle is concerned, It is all about saving the planet, some people do apply for items to sell on this is true, but not everyone, most on freecycle are good honest people, it helps alot of single parents and families on low income furnish their homes, Freecycle is a wonderful idea.


Regards

If only this were still the case in my local area I'd be a lot happier about freecycle. Indeed when I 1st joined (and btw not that long ago - I'd say somewhere between 5-8 months ago) it was a good place - wanteds weren't too copious and in the main for reasonable items.

However recently several of my local groups have become saturated with out and out scroungers taking the p**s.

Freecycles own rules/guidlines have limits on number of wanteds posted within a month and also state that one should not ask for high value items. Yet despite this I have seen:

4 wanteds posted by someone within 3 minutes

Several requests for cars :eek:

A request for a caravan

A request for a Nikon SLR camera (for those not au fait Nikon are the Rolls Royce of cameras)

A digital SLR - value of this would be minimum £300 - more likely £400-500 or more.

as it happens I would desperately like a digital SLR but cannot currently afford one so I am putting a little money a month aside (might take me 12-24 months but I hope to get there) so I can buy one. I would consider asking for such a value item on freecycle to be taking, taking the p**s to new levels so don't intend doing so.

In one group another disgruntled member voiced his feeling that there were too many wanteds and that people were beginning to take the mickey.

he was then slapped down by the moderator at which point he posted that he was going to withdraw from freecycle as a consequence. He then received several emails of support (myself included) , which he made the group aware and thanked us all for the support.

At this point the moderator back tracked and sent a message advising no more than x amount of wanteds to be posted per month due to complaints received.

Sadly other groups in my area are the same and one was featured in the local freebie paper and the whole article came from the angle of don't bother buying stuff you can get it for free - the whole tone made my blood boil as I felt it would encourage the situation and atmosphere of the other group I mentioned above - but the moderator thought the article in the paper was good :eek: :eek:

All this has left me very disillusioned with freecycle and makes me a little reticent about offering stuff up on it (I have several items I have been meaning to offer up on there for a while).

Glad to see the above links about alternatives - might check these out and see the level of coverage and get a feeling for the atmosphere on them.

and with impeccable timing this post (slightly edited) appears on two of my local groups:


"hi wanted sofa , bedroom stuff computer desk , hoover , lamps can
anyone help my xxxxx is in need of household items can pick up anyday "

So they want their whole home furnished for free - which reminds me I have seen two posts like this before - one of whom asked for a similar amount of items as above and for a relative of theirs as well as for themselves !!

cricks

jamesbecker.uk wrote: »

This is a freebie how?

FREEcycle
Do I have to explain more.

Items are available to you free of charge.

Mum_on_a_mission_2

I am a list owner and moderator of a Freecycle Group.

I certainly along with my fellow mods, do not get first dibs on anything, if anything we are more reticent about replying, and often only respond to offers on a neighbouring group.

Each group is able to operate in its own way within the Freecycle framework. So some have wanteds on one day a week, some only so many per week/month etc. It very much depends on your group. Responsible mods try to monitor and weed out excessive postings, or those which may be people wanting goods only to sell on.

The whole idea of wanted or offer or received is so that you can filter the messages received, and you do not have to read them if you do not want to.

The offerring person can choose who to give the item to - some will choose the first response, some will wait and choose later, and some do a combination of the two - it is their choice. Personally I try to wait at least a day, but that is because I know how many of our group are on daily digest and not individual emails.

And as to people being rude, not replying, not collecting - we can only remind people to be "nice" - but human nature is not always so!

But overall Freecycle is giving a service and a free one at that,

Moam

madhouseof4

This is exactly why I give anything that I may have to offer to either the British Heart Foundation or to either of the 2 hospitals my son is treated at. If people on freecycle are going to snap up any item and sell it on anyway, I would rather the money made from my item goes to a good cause.

Unfortunately, with 2 young boys, we don't have alot in the house that isn't broken, scratched or hasn't been used as a race track for their toy cars, lol, so I honestly don't have much to offer unless it is for spares/repairs!

dobbiesloan

Michele37 wrote: »

End of the day, so what if people are collecting your stuff to sell on, you don't want it at the end of the day, if you gave it to your local charity shop they would sell it too.Regards

Yes but if I give it to a charity shop the money goes to a good cause not to the fat lazy **********

16011996

i use freecycle, but too am becomming disillusioned with it. one person who collected from both me and a friend i discovered selling our stuff on freecycle. using the same username fgs. annoying as i always like to feel what i'm passing on will go to someone who can use it.
so many wanted ads are posted now, we've had them for satnav as they were moving house???? camera, video cameras, a karaoke machine? all sorts of things. i just now delete them, but feel guilty sometimes that honest wanteds i don't read anymore when i may be able to help, but i can't be bothered with getting annoyed at peoples greed. i've had some great things off freecycle, a lot of the people are honest and good. i guess its like everything in life theres some good and some bad.
most annoying are the rude people who email and say i'm having that when i ofer something, no manners at all. or people who say i'll come and collect, and never turn up, when i've waited in.
i now wait when offering and read all requests and offer to who i think is the most needy, rather than first come first served, found people tend to be more grateful for the chance at something when they can't be online all the time,

freecycle is to me a use with care, a great idea, just sadly abused by a few.