Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Community Forklift

I'd heard of these people before. At a Co-op America shindig at a convention center in DC. Basically, if you're having major work done on your house you call these people in first. While the contractor will rip stuff out and throw it away, Community Forklift takes a bit more time and tries to preserve what you're taking out. Then they resell the decent quality stuff.

The warehouse has some sweet stuff. Need a new door? Or, at least a used door for some project? They have plenty. Some for free. Ok, so doors aren't generally considered sweet. Nor are the racks of windows terribly sweet. Some of the ovens are. They've got newish stuff as well as things that your great grandparents may have once used. And one that probably used to be used in a restaurant. There's plenty of moulding and lumber. A sizable collection of radiators. Lighting, power tools new and old, nails and screws of all kinds, light switches and face plates... And their antiques section is pretty awesome. I may do some Christmas shopping there. There's old air return grates, carriage lanterns, wind veins, door knockers, old signs, old lights, and a ton of great stuff. Outside there's kitchen and bathroom sinks, toilets, bathtubs, and stone counter tops.

Then there's the really strange stuff.
A neon light from the front of some Lions Club/Grainger building. It doesn't hang flat on the wall. It sticks out with the sign on both sides. It's yours for $2,400.

Yummy's pictures of a great old TV/Radio.

My picture of the same TV/Radio.

You might be wondering why you'd donate stuff from your house to these people. They're slower than construction people and sell stuff that you don't get a cut of. They're not doing this for profit. Most of the staff are volunteers. They do have to pay for warehouse space. They do it because it's an environmental issue. What's more environmentally friendly: building a new "green" house or moving into an old one? The answer is the old one because you don't have to use all the resources to make all those new materials. Similarly, why have new moulding made when someone else already has tossed some that's in perfectly good shape.

Find out more at http://www.communityforklift.com/.

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