How to Clean Your House and Donate Using Freecycle

Let’s face it, we all have junk we don’t use. Some of us are better at cleaning than others. Some people can just go through their house every few months and throw stuff away. Other people donate what they can’t use. And then there are those of us who have stuff that gathers and we can’t seem to throw it away. We can’t find an organization that takes everything we need to get rid of. And let’s face it, sometimes you wonder if your donations will actually be used (especially if what you’re donating is something most people would never have bought in the first place).

You don’t want to live like a slob. But you aren’t going to play that old keyboard again, ever put a battery in that songbird clock, or ever fit into a size 2 again. Why clutter your house with all this stuff you aren’t going to use? Because you don’t want to throw it away.

I hate throwing stuff away. I’ll donate anything I have that would be useful, but I won’t throw anything away until it is broken, dead, and has no chance of ever being repaired. So when I found Freecycle, I knew it was for me.

Let’s say you saw a “wanted” post asking for business clothes to help women who just got off welfare get clothes for work. You would probably gladly give up those size 2 business suits that don’t fit. And if you offered your songbird clock and a young songbird enthusiast wanted it, you would give it away without a second thought. You haven’t played that old keyboard in years, but there is a college student who can only practice at school because they can’t afford a keyboard. There goes something else you don’t use.

Now you are probably thinking that some of these items you will give away, you can probably sell. While this is true, think about all the hassle involved in selling your junk. You have to put an ad somewhere, often at your expense. You need to talk to people extensively about what you are selling. You have to negotiate what price you will accept for this item. Let’s face it, if selling your junk was easy, you wouldn’t have a messy house. Besides, while you can clean your house with Freecycle, you can also pick up new items that you will actually use. You get free items and give away free items. You only pick up what would be useful to you and you get a cleaner house by giving away items you have no use for. It’s a win-win situation.

In the past year I have given away all sorts of things from clothes, to collectibles, to toys, to books, to a desk. My house is looking a lot cleaner now. If I find things I don’t use, they go on Freecycle. If I need something, I will check Freecycle to see if it’s something someone is giving away. Freecycle has now replaced thrift stores for me. I was out of a job for quite a few months and ended up getting quite a few clothes on Freecycle as my clothes wore out. While I give away at least 10 times as much as I receive, I find Freecycle very beneficial.

Signing up is easy. You go to Freecycle.org and find the Freecycle community in your area. Sometimes if you live between two or three cities, you’ll be able to sign up for more than one Freecycle community. You generally start off by offering something before you ask for something. But the more stuff you offer, the cleaner your house gets. Once you become an active member, you’ll start to meet more of your neighbors, make new friends, get a cleaner house, and find items that are useful for you. All of this for free!

So if you need to clean up your house and get rid of some stuff, join Freecycle. It’s fun, it’s easy, and it’s free.