Dumps not allowing you to take stuff? I like taking electronics!

  • Thread starter Thread starter C64Dude
  • Start date Start date
  • Replies Replies 21
  • Views Views 1455
C64Dude

C64Dude

New member
Joined
Oct 14, 2012
Posts
28
Country
Australia
Region
East Maitland NSW Australia
as you know I am a bit of a trash picker, i go to dumps, garage sales and markets to find new stuff, I found a commodore 1901 monitor at the dump I frequently go to that allows me to take stuff, it is a town away and my local dump doesn't allow me to take stuff but the next town's dump does, WTF is with the laws of my town? stupid dump managers! I like saving old TVs :D I love my old TV it still works unlike my crappy flat panel :D I once found a working windows 98 machine at the dump and it works fine :D so basically people throw some good stuff away! I still have the first old TV I found at the dump still in my collection of old TVs :D, maybe someone can hand me down an old console television? :D Stupid local dump isnt allowing pickers to go through it, but my next towns dump does, idk what is with dumps, but anyway i think there should be a special section for pickers at the dumps, bins filled with electronics that pickers have to go through to find the best things, i would take any old TV that i find ! :D so that is the end of my rant, and why don't people give away C= stuff anymore? i wish i could get that stuff for free too :double:
 
Well, I don't know the laws in Australia, but I guess they are similar to those here. Even waste has an owner, therefore they can do whatever they want with it (as long as it is not against the law).
As a matter of fact it is a theft to pick up waste, even if it was placed at the doorsteps to be picked up by the garbage collection. Because it is meant to be picked up by the garbage collection and not by anyone else. I read in the newspaper that a few students where charged of theft, because they took food out of the garbage of a supermarket. They where taken by suprise and the manager claims that the food is the markets property.

Be careful picking up other peoples garbage, even if it is tempting in case it is an retro item or it seems "noble" to save good food from going to waste...
 
AFAIK it's about safety - whatever powered from mains and dumped at scrap yard can not be sold due to possibility of electric shock or fire. However, usually, you can get guts "for parts" for a reasonable price.

Hint - go regular to the same place, to make staff recognise you as a weird geek.
Hint #2 - staff are humans, same as you, so treat them nice and you might get a bonus.
 
+ 1

Hint - go regular to the same place, to make staff recognise you as a weird geek.
Hint #2 - staff are humans, same as you, so treat them nice and you might get a bonus.
Click to expand...
 
i would advise you get to know the peaple working there as a regular.

remember there not allowed to let you go through the rubbish.
 
I think the law on it is,
Once the item(s) have left the owners hands and landed in the "dump/bin/skip" then it is the property of the respective authority that runs the dump..
Its not possible for the workers to legaly allow you to take it because its not their property But their employers property.

you can however ask the person that's throwing it away if you can have it before they throw it away. and then if they give it to you its your property and you can then leave with it.
I dont think its really the workers fault that you cant go take the stuff. its probably more than their job is worth to let you take the stuff.

recyceling parts can be quite lucrative in bulk. even if we are talking copper wires melted down in to lumps of copper and shiped off to china. the value is more than enough to offset the cost of doing that.
the PCB's are a more difficult task but they can be sent off to specialist recyceling services Instead of off site disposal..
these people systematically recover the coper/gold/platinum/lead and so on from the given PCB's, this however is a more costly procedure But still financially viable provided that you specialize in it and get as many PCB's as possible..
So dont be suprized if they are getting paid to send items off to be recycled.

so from that stand point its a bit easier to see why they may not want the workers just letting people take electronic things.

And from a legal view, you can see why you wouldnt really be allowed to take anything..
But you may find that they would let you take a old batterd dart board home with you before they let you take 100 yards of copper pipes..
 
80sFREAK is right. Once the goods have entered the dump, they take over ownership and also the liability for the items.

If they were to give you an electrical item and you electrocuted yourself, the dump would be liable (at least that's how it would work under UK laws) and your family could sue for damages. They would also be in deep doo-doo from the H&S law standpoint and could be prosecuted.

Face it, they aren't about to PAT test every single electrical appliance that they get handed in, so they just won't take the risk.

If you got friendly with the staff there and made it clear that anything they gave you carries no liability on their part for electrical risks, then they may cut you some slack and have some stuff. You may need to put that in writing though and there's no guarantee that they will say yes.
 
@ShamleS1980 your last sentence is Hint #3 - i don't mind to pay double today for some junk to get tomorrow something valuable for a half(or even less) price.

@Merlin the way i get fridges not as fridge, but storage unit :whistle:
 
BTW guys Cessnock dump allows me to take stuff, its probably the only dump that doesn't care about their electronics enough to care about whos taking the waste, i found a perfectly good working TV and VCR today so now to get a nintendo and play SMB/Duck Hunt :D
 
In Denmark you're also not allowed to take stuff from the dumps. However, my local place has a small 'shop' where they bring various items which are in good condition and you can buy it for a very reasonable amount. Problem is, I would also like some broken electronics/computers, but they are probably not going to pick them out if they are not working or look busted. :(
 
I wish our dump (also in Denmark), would just set aside the good things, and let people buy them, the money could go to charity.

I know from a friend that most cities lease the eletronic waste disposal out to a company who then earn a ton of money of the old electronics. That is why some dumps are instructed not to allow people to take stuff. He even mentioned that some of these external companies pay the city or the dump workers a little to ensure that they get as much as possible. Luckilly some dump sites allow you to buy stuff.
And if you know some of the workers they can be pursuaded to let you take a little or even keep a lookout for something in particular.

Too bad not all dumps are alike
 
One of the yelly jacket men threatened to call the police last year because I took a BBC Master out of the skip.

Irritatingly one of his fellow yelly jacket toters had already told me that I could :nuts:
 
The Romsey (Hampshire) dump used to have a large shed where they put the best stuff anyone could take if you made a charity donation. I found a few old computers and other electronics in there over the years and they all worked.

But a couple of years ago the whole site was cleared and redesigned with a new workers office, more car parking space and a much better layout. However they did the most dangerous thing possible.. they trained the dump workers! So they now stand there with their unwashed complexions and last few remaining teeth, in their new uniforms with their bright yellow reflective jackets and walkie walkies, and they think they are the most important people in the world. You cannot take anything any more and my dad even got into an argument with them because he had taken his Mitsubishi L200 Warrior pick-up there with his garden waste and they told him he wasn't allowed to use the dump because he was driving a commercial vehicle!!

My local dump in Chichester is really huge compared to most and is very cutting edge/high tech. All general waste is tipped through shoots into a large collection bay below where vehicles constantly scoop it up for processing. The same for metal and garden waste. They also have a separate area in sections for things like cardboard, plasterboard etc... and they have a huge cage for monitors and TVs and another for computers. I've spotted a few things on my visits that I would love to grab but there have always been workers hanging around.
 
In my home city we have a company called Tramel that accepts electronic waste for recycling. You practically can drop your stuff there free of charge. It is a social enterprise, meaning they offer work for people that might otherwise have difficulties to settle in the job market.

The sweet part is that they have a small store where they sell the stuff that may be of interest to someone and the prices are reasonable to say the least. I've found a very nice Commodore 128D and a Mac Classic from there. Only downside is that they're open only a few hours a day so you have to sacrifice your lunchbreak for it. Another downside is that they only accept cash so you have to go by an ATM.
 
You can't take anything from dumps/recycling points here. Which can be a shame sometimes, I've seen some TVs in fairly good condition.
 
I consider myself lucky as I can pick through the electronic waste container and take whatever I want. I'm on good terms with the staff ;)

Once found an Athlon II X4 640 sitting in an AM2 motherboard... that other time I picked up a working IBM Selectric... amazing what people throw away these days.
 
Wow. Times have changed a lot.

I remember my parents having to do house clearance in 1999 when my uncle died. They took loads of stuff to the tip, and Dad found an Amiga 500 with GVP hard drive and a monitor just sitting there. He asked the worker if it was free or for sale and they said they "sell" them for charity (which basically meant donate what you like).

Dad gave him £20 and walked off with it. The monitor didn't work, but the A500 and Hard Drive did! :D
 
Yeah Australia seems particularly screwed up, the reason is OH&S but it's not just electrical safety. Say you fish something out of a skip and injure yourself. End result is most scrap yards won't let you scrounge, as they have tons of metal in unstable piles, and the tips wont as they have other issues.

Some areas have hard rubbish collection, which despite the media stories, it's still legal to take. If possible ask the owner of the house, as that solves any possible issues.

My local tip (transfer station) is operated by the local council, and is only open at times that suit itself and not so much anyone else. I never go there, the same council also refuse point blank to do hard rubbish collection.

Suffice to say the only stuff I've gotten in the past 5 years was a VCR my mum saw on the curb and brought home, as we needed a new one. And yes I got it working again, sadly the DVD half of it has another fault I haven't fixed yet.
 
A "friend of a friend" recently took some excess computer junk to the local e-waste centre. This "friend of a friend" spotted lots of potential useful junk while there. So this "friend of a friend" strategically removed a 1.4ghz laptop and a PlayStation2 :ninja: This "friend of a friend" tested these two items which worked 100% and decided to be a friend to me and let me have them. :lol:

PS. This friend was really I :lol:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom