Dumpster Diving

HOLLISTER GUY · #1 09-25-2010, 09:39 PM

There needs to be a dumpster diving thread on zoklet and I thought this would be the appropriate forum because it can be illegal depending on what cop catches you.

So I only got back into dumpster diving a couple weeks ago and I feel like I will never need to buy groceries again. I have mostly just been hitting trader joes and getting a shitload of perfectly good food every time. I've been through a few other places too got a load of expensive booze from somewhere I won't mention, 24in boltcutters, and a bunch of hats.

So how many of you dumpster dive, What's your best find, What are the best stores that don't use compactors, etc?

Discuss...

DestroyedMatter · #2 09-25-2010, 09:46 PM

I use to do it for recycling cans... and this should be in makin ends meet.

The Phreak · #3 09-25-2010, 09:55 PM

i thought you were trolling when i read your name. i suggest book stores as they throw away the magazines that are expired and can throw away other higher prices merchandise. nothing crucial to survival however.

Vega · #4 09-25-2010, 09:56 PM

Why would a business throw away booze?

**Zanick** · #5 09-25-2010, 10:00 PM

Try outside the abortion clinic. Sure you could get a disease or something, but fuck it man, free goddamn food.

HOLLISTER GUY · #6 09-25-2010, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vega

Why would a business throw away booze?

I didn't get it, Swim did. He told me it wasn't in the dumpster. It was in a chain link and brick cage outside the business. He could've really loaded up but it would've taken a long time. so he just took a dozen of the bottles that he thought were most expensive ($300 total). Swim might hit it up in a few weeks if they don't fix their flaws. He doesn't drink so more for me.

CarpeNemo · #7 09-28-2010, 04:24 AM

I used to get lots of bread goods from a local "day old" bakery, until it closed. Now I just make the rounds and see what I can find.

It hasn't been much, but the best find I've ever gotten I'm looking at right now - my 17" LCD monitor. I found it in a Best Buy dumpster with a large crack in the back plastic. I just made the crack level and sealed it, and I've never had a problem with it.

**Mantikore** · #8 09-28-2010, 07:52 AM

university dumpsters are awesome. i found everything from laboratory glassware to lasers to scrap steel.

Pancake · #9 09-28-2010, 08:24 AM

I used to work for a company that shredded ALL documents because competitors would dumpster dive, looking for documents containing proprietary info

Midnight Sun · #10 09-28-2010, 08:27 AM

This thread makes me want to dumpster dive again.

I've got a few places to scope out. I really hope that the market provides, I could use some free food

TheExtract · #11 09-28-2010, 08:46 AM

Wait, so if Bill were to dumpster dive by a liquor store late at night (like 4am), he could find a few good amounts of booze?

**Mantikore** · #12 09-28-2010, 08:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheExtract

Wait, so if Bill were to dumpster dive by a liquor store late at night (like 4am), he could find a few good amounts of booze?

probably not. they would probably take it home if its a small business. however, if its part of a big chain store, then maybe. but then youll have to deal with those massive trash compactors that they have. so id aim for a medium-small chain store.

Asheville · #13 09-28-2010, 03:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HOLLISTER GUY

I didn't get it, Swim did. He told me it wasn't in the dumpster. It was in a chain link and brick cage outside the business. He could've really loaded up but it would've taken a long time. so he just took a dozen of the bottles that he thought were most expensive ($300 total). Swim might hit it up in a few weeks if they don't fix their flaws. He doesn't drink so more for me.

That doesn't sound like "dumpster diving", more like commercial burglary.

congrats

HOLLISTER GUY · #14 10-01-2010, 09:10 AM

Bump! Post your shit.

what am I going to do with all this citrus!?

2 Gallons of OJ? And I left at least a dozen behind. Top meat is new york strip pink and odorless breakfast tomorrow. 6 cartons of lamb, sell by Oct 5, what? 6 kiwis, 8 bell peppers, 4 things of peanut butter. some brassicas. I don't usually take meat, but this stuff is fine, earlier today it was valued at $75.

Not pictured is 50 free passes over all the San Francisco tolls. Earlier I was behind some shop trying to get to another place but was blocked by barbed wire fence. There were 5 tour buses all unlocked, nothing worth taking really though except the toll passes (or the buses if I knew how to drive that shit).

Food Product · #15 10-01-2010, 09:17 AM

That you kept the bell peppers has me laughing man. Nothing wrong with that, but, fucking bell peppers? "Oh dude, I totally Scored last night. yeah man, safeway closed early and they just threw these fuckers away man. 8 WHOLE fucking bell peppers. Let's make some Fajitas with the meat I got from Lucky's."

Zeus · #16 10-01-2010, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheExtract

Wait, so if Bill were to dumpster dive by a liquor store late at night (like 4am), he could find a few good amounts of booze?

No. None. Liquor doesn't have an expiration date; why would they throw it out?

Mor3BL7 · #17 10-01-2010, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Food Product

That you kept the bell peppers has me laughing man. Nothing wrong with that, but, fucking bell peppers? "Oh dude, I totally Scored last night. yeah man, safeway closed early and they just threw these fuckers away man. 8 WHOLE fucking bell peppers. Let's make some Fajitas with the meat I got from Lucky's."

bell peppers are tasty you curly headed fuck!
And that would b a good idea to make fajitas.

**ArmsMerchant** · #18 10-01-2010, 06:29 PM

I could go on for hours about all the great stuff I have gotten from the dumpster in my neighborhood.

Biggies--a really nice Countess Mara suit that fits me perfectly (it was still in the dry-cleaners bag when I got it); brand-new deck shoes; collectable coins (in a ziploc at the bottom of an old tackle box); various drugs, including about a quarter-ounce of bud still on the stems, Viagra, Cialis, lots of OTC stuff; two frozen turkeys; about two dozen pairs of fifties earrings, which I sold for between $10 and $20 a pair; a big supply of outdated Albuterol (which has been helping my asthma-ridden wife breathe; a microwave oven; and porno on DVDs (got $20 so far selling them).

ayingerbrau · #19 10-02-2010, 11:55 AM

I'm going to start dumpster diving again.

ratfrink · #20 10-02-2010, 12:49 PM

I do this regularly when I come home from the pub. Usually fresh bread, cakes and pastries from the Co-op near my house. Because their stuff is fresh they throw it out the day after making it, so there's always a good supply.

We used to take stuff from Sainsbury's and give it to the homeless shelter where my friend volunteered - the store manager turned a blind eye and commended us. But after a year doing it someone found out and now they compact everything and spray it with this weird acrid smelling stuff so it's completely inedible. Pretty disgusting really.

I've also pulled old bicycles out of skips and sold them. Yesterday I found a 1950s or 60s Motorola car radio in a skip and I'm gonna sell that too.

F.U.B.A.R · #21 10-02-2010, 08:31 PM

You could find some nice stuff in the dumpster of your local goodwill. There is one goodwill store around here that way over prices things and at the end of the week they usually just throw out all the things that don't sell. So, instead of spending like $10 on a used printer I can just fish it out of the dumpster for free.

Also, I believe in August of September, leases are up and people are moving out. It's a great time to go diving around university campuses and apartment buildings. People tend to throw out stuff that they just don't want to haul around with them.

TheExtract · #22 10-03-2010, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zeus

No. None. Liquor doesn't have an expiration date; why would they throw it out?

Yeah I didn't think about that until just now.

CarpeNemo · #23 10-03-2010, 03:47 PM

Well, I've found the occasional bottle of booze, but you're more likely to get it from a college or house dumpster, because businesses sometimes break the bottles to keep people from getting them, unless they drink it themselves. Once in a while you could score something at a liquor store bin, but it's unlikely.

I've found half-empty bottles of whiskey and gin and stuff. Just clean the bottles up good and sell it to idiots. And, I don't know about anyone else but I've found cartons and packs of cigarettes (well, it's not happened as much lately due to the price of the shit) before - couple packs missing from the carton, or a couple cigarettes missing from the pack. I guess it was people trying to quit and "make a statement" to themselves about it.

If nothing else, I've found old busted CRT monitors and TVs. There is quite a bit of copper in them, so after you accumulate a few of them you should have at least a few dollars of legal copper to scrap.

HeWhoNeverSleeps · #24 10-04-2010, 08:43 PM

Ah, dumpster diving. I recommend all to try this at least once. If you take a couple of minutes browsing through some by your house, who knows what you could find.

Back in April, I was going through some dumpsters out behind an apartment complex and found a T.V. A perfectly good 19 inch flatscreen tv, just laying in between some cardboard boxes.

The things people get rid of these days...

Keith Lemon · #25 10-04-2010, 08:46 PM

fucking lulz

Nerd Fangs · #26 10-06-2010, 03:44 AM

you're eating food out of the garbage

HOLLISTER GUY · #27 10-06-2010, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeppelinRules

you're eating food out of the garbage

When you think about it all food comes from the dirt, sunlight, and rainwater.

OmmEGGA · #28 10-06-2010, 06:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HOLLISTER GUY

When you think about it all food comes from the dirt, sunlight, and rainwater.

admit it , you're a hobo.

**ArmsMerchant** · #29 10-06-2010, 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeppelinRules

you're eating food out of the garbage

You say that like it's a bad thing.

Use some discretion and you'll be fine--besides, if you would bother following the news, you would know that people are getting sick from various foods--eggs, most recently--that they buy in stores.

OmmEGGA · #30 10-06-2010, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArmsMerchant

If you would bother following the news, you would know that people are getting sick from various foods--eggs, most recently--that they buy in stores.

Indeed. So dumpster diving should be last thing on your list! All the food you find in the dumpsters comes from grocery stores + some extra bacteria.

Mor3BL7 · #31 10-06-2010, 07:15 PM

i once found some used condoms, I took them home and washed them in the washer and dryer and reused them. Dumpster diving 4 life brah's!

OmmEGGA · #32 10-07-2010, 03:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mor3BL7

i once found some used condoms, I took them home and washed them in the washer and dryer and reused them. Dumpster diving 4 life brah's!

lol

Cheeze Wizz · #33 10-07-2010, 03:33 AM

Most of my scores were from neighborhood garbage day. ( Suburban Life)

Computer tower that my mom uses
Countless amounts of old TV's ( Smashed most)
Countless amount of bikes
A motherfuckin super nintendo
Lawnmowers, Weedwhips, Snowblowers and a metric shit ton of random bullshit

As for dumpsters, I have gotten countless amounts of useful random shit.

Best dumpster score for me was a brand new mini fridge. Slut fridge still had the fuckin' manual and ice trays inside of it

Jack · #34 10-07-2010, 03:48 AM

Man where do you guys get all this good shit? I go to the health food store but the garbage dumpster is always just bags of nasty, mixed up shit, never any usable food thrown out. There is some cool stuff in the plastics and steel recycling dumpsters, though. I've found an old music box that plays What Is A Youth and has a sticker hand-dated Christmas of '74, and last night I found a case of 8-track tapes but left them because what the hell would I do with them anyway? Weird stuff really.

CarpeNemo · #35 10-08-2010, 02:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmmEGGA

Indeed. So dumpster diving should be last thing on your list! All the food you find in the dumpsters comes from grocery stores + some extra bacteria.

If you ever "apprenticed" to another diver, you learn a lot of "rules" and tricks of the trade. Canned goods are almost always safe, unless the can can be squeezed and you can hear a "SHHHH-shhhh" sound.

I don't usually take anything but canned goods, because I don't want to get sick. With cans you just clean the cans themselves REAL good, and you're set. I've gotten shit-tons of soups, vegetables, and other stuff like that.

On a side note, I found a Squier Strat (the $100 types, nothing fancy) with a point broken off the body behind a tiny music store. ...Still plays okay.

Corey · #36 10-10-2010, 08:15 PM

lol @ HOLLISTER GUY wearing hats in the dumpster

anyways when im older im definately going to dumpster dive, grocery stores that have bags of fruits, if one is rotten or looks bad they toss them all.

OP whered you get all the OJ?

HOLLISTER GUY · #37 10-10-2010, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aKidNamedCorey

lol @ HOLLISTER GUY wearing hats in the dumpster

anyways when im older im definately going to dumpster dive, grocery stores that have bags of fruits, if one is rotten or looks bad they toss them all.

OP whered you get all the OJ?

I get most of my shit always at trader joe's but the last couple times I've gone some bums have beaten me to all the good stuff so I'm going to start branching out to some other places. And when did I say I was wearing hats when I dumpster dive?

HOLLISTER GUY · #38 10-27-2010, 09:26 AM

Thought I should post an update to show some more dumpster loot.

First a "6 gallon" crate full of avacados.

Next at least a hundred more limes. There are more not pictured and I left so much.

And last for desert I took a few pies. There were bags and bags of pies so I just grabbed a few. I'm going to a bbq tomorrow so I might go back and grab more.

Not pictured I got about 20 cloves of garlic, a bunch of "fake" tea, 8 onions, and some candy. I'm about to make a damn 5 gallon pale of guacamole so I might have to go back and grab more onions or some shit.