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Hi all

can someone explain the etiquette on Freecycle please? The idea of asking comlpete strangers for something for nothing is a bit strange to me and I don't want to annoy anybody

I've fried the memory in my old computer and the only place i'll find antique RAM is on ebay, and then I thought of Freecycle

Cheers

RT, here in Birmingham, our 'rules' are that you must offer before you accept. Generally tho, it's your choice...if you've something superflous to your requirements which others may need, your choices seem to me to be a) dump it at your local tip b) deliver it to your local Charity shop...or offer it for freebie with Recycle. If the latter, of course, the article could be taken to be sold on at a car boot sale? so if you're not comfortable with this, praps a Charity shop might be the way to go..this is a two-way thing....it's not something for nothing if you want something someone else considers to be clutter?

Well worth signing up for, I'd say....chappie recently wanted to know how he could CHEAPLY get shut of abt 70 paving slabs, cos a skip was so expensive & he couldn't drive them to the tip.....each one made from gold dust, we told him....lots of happy lotmenteers now have fabbo pathways in my area 8) I usually scan the 'Wanted' ads in my daliy digest-----surprises that someone actually WANTS my junk ::)

Sign up! Costs you nowt...

yes AM i did sign up. Just checked my mail and there's 5 messages from them, so the rules must be in there somewhere  ;D

I only know ours, but we have a 'cafe' forum where general questions are asked, from advice to someone wanting a wedding cake made through to recommendations for a reliable honest etc. car mechanic, plus general queries on how to get through the perennials....hmmm...parking tickets from a jobsworth! or where to get legal advice...it jus goes on and on. So a great community.

Since I joined, tho, I notice that there seem to be peeps who do little else (apparently) but sit in front of their PCs snapping up 'offers' irregardless,  as they are posted. For this reason, if this seems to happen where you are, if you are offering, best to state that you'll be making your 1st decision on who you offer to, in 2 days time, say? Gives working peeps a chance to have a chance? Sometimes, I've thought, it's not quite always what it seems.. ???

thanks for that. I'll maybe offer come things first to see how it works. Funny how all the tat you've got suddenly looks useful tho (arrgh I'm turning into my Dad!)

You get some lovely WANTED!! ads tho....a laptop PC, specific make, specific COLOUR ???....my latest most fave was from a harrassed mum who urgently needed a) a sat-nav (cos otherwise her 16yr old daughter would have to map-read on a 4-hr trip.) and an in-car DVD player (to keep her little 4yr old amused on the journey) - bless him :o

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

I went on it at the end of last year specifically to look for paving slabs, and while I was waiting "wanted" posts popped up for stuff I had lurking in the backs of cupboards so I had given away quite a lot of stuff before picking up the slabs that I went onto freecycle for.

In the time I've been on freecycle I've only made three offers - all three of them were for "no shows".

FreeCycle is superb for getting rid of your junk (saves a trip to the tip, saves petrol etc)

I haven't "won" very much though ... a lot gets taking by full-time Freecyclers who then sell the stuff at carboots.  A lot of people have a problem with this, but good luck to them - I couldn't be bothered.

I would say - use a separate email address for your Freecycle emails... I get about 100 messages a day in my inbox.

 Just caught up with our wanteds in which was the request for 'Various' ie; any p/s 1&2 games for her caravan hols, a tv/dvd combi to amuse the daughter who is driving her mad, two tyres for said caravan and a wooden garden arch.!! Brass neck I call it! :o ::)
I don't bother much now as the last 2 things I offered I've still got due to people not collecting.

WELCOME TO A4A, Bean_Queen - it's a great site

i set the preferences not to get any mails, and I've already had 5

Alishka - your post made me laugh. I recently saw a 'wanted' post asking for a plasma TV at least 36". Don't know about anyone else but I don't have too many of them hanging around at the back of the garage!

Bean_Queen - completely agree. I had two leather sofas to get rid of after a friend very kindly gave me a much nicer pair. They hung around in my garage taking up space, finally put them on Freecycle after a few weeks. I have over 40 replies. The hard bit was deciding who to give them to. I did get quite a lot of sob stories but in the end gave them to a lady that offered to pick them up the same day. I don't drive so it's much easier then trying to get them to the tip and the council quoted £38 to remove them.

Rhubarb Thrasher - I belong to two different sites as I live slap bang in the middle of the two areas. One of them states you must post two 'offers' before you can post a 'wanted'. The other just limits the 'wanted' posts to two per person per month. Recently put on a 'wanted' post asking for a hostess trolley for my mum, was offered two that day! It does work but you may have to be patient.   :)

Emaggie - I had an email today requesting a TV/DVD combi too! Maybe we're in the same area.

(yeag hello! and without a designated 'Hello' forum, hello to everyone else, too.)

No-show for collection...here in B'ham seems to be a perennial tho I've not had that prob - so far :-\)

I'd agree with setting up a designated account - my Freecycle sends out x no. of 'Digests' per day, of variable lengths, & these soon mount up. Interestingly, this is the only account which regularly attracts SPAM....just checked and there were 7 Digests today - and 5 SPAMS....

Wouldn't like all these to be mixed in with my 'regular' mails....for convenience I use Hotmail for 'regulars' and Yahoo for Freecycle, so it's an easy option (particularly if I've been away) to hit the 'delete all' in Yahoo..

i'll just read them on the web. Someone offering prescription glasses for short-sightedness. I'll let you know if anyone's offering any false teeth

I love my local freecycle group (York). We get a remibder every now and then about the "rules", especially about giving your location, but generally it works well.

I'm in Essex Texas01, maybe she's doing the rounds 'cos she's getting no joy  ;D, but I'm scanning ebay for a trolley myself 'cos my door catches have broken, never thought about asking for one on freecycle ;D

Have had a few instant replies along the lines of "yes please, when can we collect! [+ phone number]"

Seems some people have set up their email to automatically reply to any Freecycle offers that contain particular words. Easy to do in Outlook, but equally easy to spot once you know their tactics!

She must be doing the rounds Emaggie! It's worth putting a post on for a hostess trolley. I said I wasn't worried about condition as long as it was safe. Got offered one that had been in a shed for a few years and needed a really good clean but soap, water and elbow grease was all that it took. I think it's the kind of thing that seems to be put in a shed/garage once the family have left home so I reckon there are a few out there that are no longer loved.  :)

Quote from: lewic on August 31, 2008, 20:43:09


Seems some people have set up their email to automatically reply to any Freecycle offers that contain particular words. Easy to do in Outlook, but equally easy to spot once you know their tactics!

ahhh.....so that's how it's done, eh?

Anyway, just remembered!....someone once posted for can't remember what on ours, I replied to her email addy, told her bout Lotties, told her that Shirl, too, had a lottie at her plot and.....hello!Loopy Lou, I'm talking 'bout you ;D

I've got an 'offered' on Freecycle at the moment, though wondering why I'm bothering, I have an answer already but when they realise I won't bring it to them as they're in the city and I'm not...I'm guessing it will be a no show like most of the others.
If someone sent me a phone number I wouldn't ring back; if you're doing the offering for free then they should do the running!