AIBU just to chuck it all in the bin?

[fedupwithit8]

I have two kids under three, have been living in a pigsty for years and am desperate to declutter and live in a more orderly house. I finally got round to sorting out the babies stuff and have a huge pile of things we don’t need anymore - including clothes they’ve grown out of, toys they no longer use, random bits and pieces like car seat inserts, pram seat connectors and more.

I’m desperate to have a clearer, tidier house as we’re wallowing in crap we don’t use. But I simply don’t have time to sort it all out properly and take it to the appropriate places like the charity shop, the dump etc. I’ve been meaning to for months and it’s never happened because we’re just so busy.

AIBU to just shove it all in 5-6 bin bags and get rid? Or should I really try to sort it all properly and dispose of it in better ways so other could potentially make use of it?

I know how you feel, it’s overwhelming trying to do the right thing. I have a garage full of stuff that is too nice to go to the tip but I haven’t got the energy to get rid of.

All clothes can be bundled together, in bin bags and dropped off in a charity bin.

Don’t eBay things, it’s such a stress for very little return!

It is pure laziness to bag stuff up for the landfill rather than a clothes bank or recycling bin. There's really no excuse, PPs who think their crap just vanished when they look away and it's not your problem because other people do it.

Yes, we consume too much. How does adding more to the landfill help anything.

We get charities who put bags through the door and then give you a date for picking them up. Also charities will come and pick up from your house. Try phoning a few but don't give them rubbish.

Your local area will have a freebie / eco fb group. Mine is collecting for refugees at the moment.

Be kind to yourself . I go through stages of this and sometimes there is just nothing left in me to be able to sort. If you are able to pop one bag in a clothing bank or a pram to a baby bank or something that would be great. But it's ok if that is too much for now and you just need to be free of it.

Get a dry day and pop it out the front of your house with a post on a few local social media pages. Our local area is always doing this and the vultures descend and most is gone within an hour or two.

Bin this lot. Then make a fresh effort to sort out future stuff as you go. Best of both worlds.

@TheSquashyHatOfMrGnosspelius

It would be amazing if council tips had an area where you could leave good stuff for others to take. If it's still there after a month it could go in the skip sort of thing.

If the government were serious about saving the planet, there needs to be a huge barn at all recycling areas for people to browse and help themselves.

Doesn't work, in my area we have a charity thing called Too Good to Waste and they get so many donations of furniture etc. that they end up tipping a lot of it themselves as they don't have enough storage space. Joined up thinking would do things such as fully furnish care leavers properties or people with nothing that get a place to live with this freely donated stuff. It is so frustrating as the people donating are doing it with good intent although they'd be better off not buying new furniture every five minutes themselves

YABU to not sort the recycling!
I have a huge clear out of our children's things twice a year. I go right through their rooms and sort, recycle and chuck all the old stuff. Usually do it while they're at school so I can take my time and not have them behind be saying; "don't throw that! I love that toy (that I haven't even looked at in half a year!)"

@NewtoHolland

I do online resale, done people who do what I do will pay for a big lot of stuff in good condition. Others will take it away for free. For a little time they can usually make some money off of it, and what they can't sell they usually donate or recycle. I give to local food banks, charities, etc. What I get a big mixed lot and can't use it sell everything. It's always worth my time. Advertise it on FB marketplace for free and it will be gone in a few days if not sooner.

Put it up for free on facebook, free cycle, olio and places like that. Ask womens refuges if they want it.

Chuck it on Facebook for free and someone will take it or Chuck it in the bin. I've just cleared years of clutter from cupboards and under beds in every nook and cranny. I've binned a mountain but corporations do much worse than me every day. I'll do my bit by recycling and buying little from now on!

@fanjosaysi

It is pure laziness to bag stuff up for the landfill rather than a clothes bank or recycling bin. There's really no excuse, PPs who think their crap just vanished when they look away and it's not your problem because other people do it.

Yes, we consume too much. How does adding more to the landfill help anything.

Yep, this.

Also OP what you might want to do in future is keep a box or bag and put stuff in it as you go along then take it to charity when it's full. So every time I finish a book or my DD grows out of some clothes they go straight in the bag.

This might have already been suggested - put it all in your drive/front garden take pictures, put it on local Facebook group free at xx address come & take what you want.
I cleared out the garage & loft of all manner of crap - left it in the drive & the whole lot went in a day. Bin anything that’s left

Lavender I made this point earlier but are you absolutely sure the items you are donating to a charity shop are in good condition and can be sold? I manage a charity shop and over 50% of what we are given is just not fit to be sold. Every single day I have to get rid of stuff ... and frequently that just means shoving it in the bin - usually my own at home as charity shops aren't allowed to take stuff to the tip.

@Ragwort

Lavender I made this point earlier but are you absolutely sure the items you are donating to a charity shop are in good condition and can be sold? I manage a charity shop and over 50% of what we are given is just not fit to be sold. Every single day I have to get rid of stuff ... and frequently that just means shoving it in the bin - usually my own at home as charity shops aren't allowed to take stuff to the tip.

I really hope you aren't doing that with anything fabric, fabrics can be sold by weight to make up rugs, so you can get use and money for the charity. That's what a charity shop near us do.

there are certain companies that do collect stuff like this and then distribute to charities, tips etc not sure but Ive seen certain places. otherwise all clothes in one bag - all toys in another - brick/brack in another and just take to a charity shop - a bigger one that then redistributes within.

I would give the whole lot to the charity and not bin. Forget about eBay/marketplace because it's time wasted. Someone will be grateful for all that stuff

Do you have a niece or someone who can come over and help, during the summer I did a clear out, laid everything out on lawn took pics and posted to local free exchange on Facebook and everyone came and collected their bits and bobs from the front door. Got some nice chocolates and wine in return , for the sake of a tenner or something to a teenager you would feel better. As for the clothes, omg I nearly died trying to sort through them in an attempt to size etc ended up just chucking them in black sacks, the new owners will want to wash and go through them anyway

Someone will be really grateful for that stuff - that is just not true, if it was true charity shops would have a constant turn over of stock because people would want to buy everything we are given . And don't mention price, I frequently can't give things away for free!

Ask anyone who works or volunteers in a charity shop what their biggest issue is and I am sure it would be how to dispose of unsaleable donations.

The market for recycling is really dropping, it used to be the case that textiles etc could be responsibly recycled but this is really changing. Of course we try and recycle as much as we possibly can but there is a limit as to what can be recycled. I am going to have to spend time today (my day off) going into my shop to take a load of stuff (not textiles) to the tip to be dumped .

OP do you have a strategy of how to deal with this in the future? It sounds like you may have accepted too many second hand donations from your friends (who probably just wanted to get rid of stuff like you are now). Keeping on top of things like this should be manageable so it’s obviously piled up and you obviously have a lot on your plate. Do you have a partner as they should be helping as well/sorting the house as much as you.

Find your local Refugee centre and see if they will take it all in one go. They may even pick it up from you.

I didn’t realise this thread was still going! I haven’t RTFT but to update…

By sheer luck and good timing, a local charity popped some bags through my letterbox after I posted this thread, asking for clothes donations and then came to collect, so I gave away a lot of clothes via that. I also gave some away via Freecycle.

There were a few bits and bobs that nobody wanted on Freecycle or the local FB, so that stuff has gone in the bin. But I’d say 90% of the stuff went off to charity or a new home!

Bin the rubbish. Useable stuff put on your drive with a HELP YOURSELF sign. If it doesn't go, bin it too.