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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Freecycle requests: ATBU?

86 replies

mamamea · 21/09/2009 00:57

From the last few days:

"hi there i dont believe my luck this week but my telly has just broken down and
i am using my little portable one at the mo . i am skint till next pay day and
wondered if anyone had a spare 32 or bigger screen telly i could have .. maybe
if you upgrading to newer telly or had one lying about .. it would be very
appreciated .."

Plenty of TVs going, but 32" or bigger?

"WANTED - DISHWASHER

Our machine has just broken and is beyond repair - we have a new kitchen coming
but not until November could anyone save us in the interim as we don't want to
have to end up buying two."

Can't do washing up even for six weeks?

"WANTED please CAR or VAN

A friend of mine is out of work and would like to have a VEHICLE in good
condition, so that he could accept a job with a company that requires him to
have his own CAR or VAN..."

Lend him yours then....

"I want a Nintendo for my daughter but does not have the funds in these financial
times that we live in. Her birthday is in October, but I would like to get it
before that if possible.Thanks for anyone that can help in regards to that"

Nintendo what? Wii? You should be so lucky. 15 year old Super Nintendo ? Quite possibly.

OP posts:
MissM · 23/09/2009 12:23

Snorkie - have also met some lovely people and only had a couple of bad experiences. I don't mind the 'wanted' ads either, it's just when the bulletin is all wanted ads and it's all for large items, asked for as if it's a right that I feel a bit . Doesn't particularly raise my blood pressure, more makes me think 'cheeky b*ggers'. It's a brilliant idea, and people are bound to try and exploit it I suppose.

namechangeasimnervous · 23/09/2009 16:21

Someone wanting a piano on our local freecycle!!!

octopusinabox · 23/09/2009 19:41

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

curiositykilled · 23/09/2009 19:51

well, 32 inch TV might be greedy,

dishwasher - maybe the person is disabled and can't wash up? Who knows.

car or van - seems like a good idea. Someone wants a car to be able to take a job, perhaps they have been out of work and can't afford to buy one and will have to stay on benefits if they can't sort something out.

nintendo - seems a bit of a random greedy request.

Not sure what is wrong with saying 'must be able to deliver' large item. The person might not be able to drive/carry a bulky item and putting this in original post just saves time.

Not sure why anyone would care what other people are asking for much less worry about the requests being rude or greedy. If you don't have the item they want or you do but you don't want to give it to them then that's problem solved really.

alwayslookingforanswers · 23/09/2009 19:59

namechange - we've had loads of pianos go through our freecycle - I offered mine on there but there were no takers.

It's incredibly hard to get rid of pianos these days so people often give them away.

OldLadyKnowsNothing · 23/09/2009 21:05

So freecycle is now freegle or recycle? My local one has become Freeble. How odd.

alwayslookingforanswers · 23/09/2009 21:07

you know I don't know when it changed - but I've just been looking at the freecycle emails in my inbox - and realised ours is a freegle

winestein · 23/09/2009 21:36

I think it's pretty sad that we can't trust the "wanted" ads, but I realise it's a representation of our "something for nothing" society, rather than the original intention of keeping stuff out of landfill.

Admittedly, I have posted a couple of "wanted" ads - from cardboard boxes to a hedge trimmer so I could tidy the hedges for an impending visit of MIL - there was no way on earth I thought I was going to get one of those, but some kind soul offered to lend me one and someone I had had something from previously (when I picked it up he asked me if I could help him sort out his washing machine problems, which I did) gave me his that he no longer needed. He's about to receive a few jars of homemade damson jam and I made another home-produce friend when I gave away a cold frame I no longer needed. I have also asked for a compressor, working or not, because my partner would love one. Sadly no replies to that one, but I know they get taken to the tip so I'm hoping to catch someone before they go, or catch someone's eye that has one covered in dust in the garage.

You just have to pick and choose - and laugh at all the others. I think the last one I had a gut laugh at was the guy asking for an electric guitar and amp "sent from my Blackberry" at the bottom.

Don't let it get to you. It's just society.

Scotia · 23/09/2009 21:40

My local one is still Freecycle, but the Edinburgh one is Freegle

TheLadyEvenstar · 23/09/2009 22:21

It has been changing over the last few weeks...not an easy task i tell you with all the files that need changing!

Still more of the UK freecycle groups are coming over to Freegle.

dreamteamgirl · 23/09/2009 23:12

Another Freecycle group owner here. We havent gone Freegle yet, but we still might

Someone asked why not limit wanted to value

Its really hard actually. As an owner & mod, I have no idea about different game machines- I dont know my DS from my PSP, so a request maybe quite genuine or utterly preposterous and we really dont have time to go through things in fine detail

theladyevenstar I would have approved that wanted Personally. I may not approve of their life choices, but its not up to me to judge that, and under TFN rules you cant deny a request - to do with the charity rules. I know you arent FC UK anymore so arent bound by that, but it does make sense- to me anyway!

White goods are very expensive but can be total white elephants. I offered a fridge and got no requests so offered it to 3 wanteds and it wasnt taken. reposted the offer and had 10 people want it... Its all about timing and often people want things like that gone NOW, and not to have to pay their councilo to take it away
Forget what I was replying to now but you get the general idea!
BTW has anyone seen the British Heart Foundation appeal? here they will come and take stuff away for you if you live within 15 miles of a relevant shop.

OldLadyKnowsNothing · 23/09/2009 23:25

I just followed the link to the British Heart Foundation, and discovered that in the list of things they cannot accept are "Candles without instructions". Why do candles need instructions?

dreamteamgirl · 23/09/2009 23:33

LMAO !! OLKN hmmm

  1. light candle
  2. exstinguish candle

How funny- and silly!

VoluptuaGoodshag · 23/09/2009 23:34

Do you think it depends on the place?

I moved in the last year from a big city to a country town. I noticed that there was a lot more offers and wants in the spirit of freecycle in the city but the country town comes across as a load of tight freeloaders

OldLadyKnowsNothing · 23/09/2009 23:38

Ah, dreamteamgirl, you forgot you're supposed to place it on a fireproof plate or similar.

Do they remind you to keep them away from curtains too?

TheLadyEvenstar · 23/09/2009 23:42

DTG, the reason I never approved it is because it was not written correctly...well the subject line wasn't...no postcode etc.

No I certainly didn't agree with life choices but each to their own i guess.

elkiedee · 23/09/2009 23:53

I regard the wanted ads on my local freecycle as a bit of entertainment. I did offer one totally reasonable "wanted" poster a few baby magazines.

babybarrister · 24/09/2009 07:53

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

lottiejenkins · 25/09/2009 16:11

Theres someone now on mine wanting a massage couch!!

herjazz · 25/09/2009 16:20

My 1st and last freecycle offering was a 42" plasma telly. I clearly said that it had some bleeding screen stuff going on and I couldn't be bothered to sort it out. Obv not going to put up a 42" plasma that's working brilliantly on there, am I?

So I get LOADS of replies. Some of them just rabidly cheeky - like - I cum to your house and see if i can fix if i can i will take it. And plenty asking me if I would deliver it

clop · 25/09/2009 16:32

I love the Wanted ads (ours is now Freegle, btw). Always encouraging me to declutter!

Lexilicious · 25/09/2009 16:41

does the collective MN view on Free/g/ycle etiquette reckon I'll be ok asking for a standard width oven shelf and maybe a grill pan? Oven is old and a bit deficient. Haven't offered anything for years. Last time was some seed propagating trays, and the young woman thought we were now friends, kept emailing me about her parsnips' progress...

clop · 25/09/2009 17:51

People do replace ovens. Heck, the electric oven at our old place probably went straight into the skip after we sold. DH didn't like it, it wasn't 'modern', but it worked perfectly well.

Lexilicious · 25/09/2009 19:03

I only want the shelf, not ready to rip out the kitchen yet and put new oven in... maybe I should just loiter at the local civic amenity and pinch a shelf from someone's discarded oven. It won't be clean that way though, and tbh I would have wanted it delivered since I'm doing them a favour taking it off their hands... [lame humour as apology for hijacking thread]

chickbean · 25/09/2009 21:39

I had one woman come to collect something from me who could only come on a particular day because that was when she "collected in my area"

I have asked for the red rubber bands that the postmen drop, so I probably have the whole of my area thinking I'm mad

I did get lots of people saving them for me though!