# Functional things you can't even give away **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 8, 2013, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504 "2013-01-08T17:43:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/41 "2013-01-09T14:05:22Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > TVs have toxic chemicals which require special handling, so it costs money to dispose of them. That doesn’t stop me from dumping broken monitors into the trash, though. > I was about to chime in with used toilet paper, but that’s not very functional. (Unless you fold it _just right_…) Used condoms (you can turn them inside-out). ---
**Author:** ![campp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@campp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/campp)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/42 "2013-01-09T14:14:45Z")
> [@jacobsta811](#): > > What doesn’t sell is the $150 walmart treadmills that are barely large enough to stand on, and can’t be run on, and the weird fad exercise equipment that you don’t find in a gym. Yes, I see the older ones quite often, along with those 200-lb antique exercycles. I guess the scrap metal guys would want those on big trash day. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/43 "2013-01-09T14:18:13Z")
> [@cwthree](#): > > CRT monitors. I have a 19" ViewSonic monitor that I haven’t been able to get anyone to take. I may have finally put it in the trash. How topical! _This week_ I couldn’t find anyone who wanted a perfectly operational 19" ViewSonic CRT, so I hauled the big boxy thing to an electronics recycling center late last night. ---
**Author:** ![bartleby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bartleby/32/10491_2.png) [@bartleby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bartleby)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/44 "2013-01-09T20:52:58Z")
Mattresses, Cribs, Children’s Car Seats, Strollers… ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/45 "2013-01-09T22:24:01Z")
> [@bartleby](#): > > Mattresses, Cribs, Children’s Car Seats, Strollers… Some of those aren’t functional - used car seats aren’t guaranteed to be safe, so might not be covered by insurance, and used mattresses are icky. CRT TVs and monitors also aren’t really usable any more. However, I was surprised when nobody wanted a working two-year-old 20" flatscreen monitor. We kept it as a spare in the end. I second the comment about sofas. We got delivered two identical ones by mistake and, when the company eventually said just to deal with it ourselves, nobody wanted it. Fake leather but looked nice, chocolate brown, no marks, practically unused, folded out in seconds to be a very comfortable sofabed. You’d need a van to transport it, but it wasn’t heavy and I live on the ground floor. I posted everywhere online (with photos) and in local shops and eventually had to dump it. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/46 "2013-01-10T16:05:35Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > CRT TVs and monitors also aren’t really usable any more. However, I was surprised when nobody wanted a working two-year-old 20" flatscreen monitor. We kept it as a spare in the end. There’s actually a very niche market for CRTs: competitive PC gamers who believe CRTs provide lower screen refresh latency than flat screen models. Whether or not it’s true (or significant enough to notice) I have no idea but I’ve heard it come up before. The issue is these people don’t want to game on your old 15" monitor and the sorts of CRTs they do want, people aren’t throwing away. Car seats are difficult because of all the government restrictions so no one wants to deal with used ones. I set mine on the curb and someone grabbed it but you couldn’t give it to Goodwill, Once Upon A Child, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/47 "2013-01-10T17:07:47Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > It’s getting damn hard to give away anything but a top of the line piano. Keyboards have pretty much destroyed the market for anything less than a baby grand. I read an interesting article on this recently. (I live with a Steinway B, so it was of particular interest). It seems that the huge days of every house having to have a piano peaked in the late 1920s and persisted through the start of the war. There were dozens of brands, most of which had actions good for about 60-70 years before wear would have forced a complete rebuild or major refurbishing. That huge glut of “grandma’s pianos” is now wearing out in ways that are not easy to fix, even if they’re a family treasure. Few are worth the cost of a full rebuild. So to the dump they go. Only the top-tier ones are being salvaged and rebuilt. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/48 "2013-01-10T17:45:47Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > Heh - we have a 13 inch tube-based TV that I tried to donate to Goodwill - they didn’t want it. They took two of mine… I unloaded them out by the back door and zoomed out of there before they could say anything. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/49 "2013-01-10T18:56:53Z")
> [@bartleby](#): > > Mattresses, Cribs, Children’s Car Seats, Strollers… Not only have I bought a used CRT TV in the past few years, I’ve bought a (gently) used mattress, too. :o ---
**Author:** ![wombattver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b77776/32.png) [@wombattver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombattver)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/50 "2013-01-11T05:10:12Z")
[Freecycle.org](http://Freecycle.org) is a great place to get rid of anything! I’ve used them for all my baby goods - crib, high chair, etc. as well as furniture and a working but old stove. You can only post things for free and they are arranged by area, so locals can respond and will pick up. You’ll get response from college students, needy single moms and everyone in between. Great resource. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/51 "2013-01-11T17:50:36Z")
> [@wombattver](#): > > [Freecycle.org](http://Freecycle.org) is a great place to get rid of anything! I’ve used them for all my baby goods - crib, high chair, etc. as well as furniture and a working but old stove. You can only post things for free and they are arranged by area, so locals can respond and will pick up. You’ll get response from college students, needy single moms and everyone in between. Great resource. I think that’s where this stuff is not being taken. Certainly I posted my sofa on freecycle. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/52 "2013-01-11T21:13:15Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > I had heard of people going to junkyards to find older high capacity toilets, since apparently they can’t be bought new any more due to low flow toilet restrictions. Is that just an urban myth? No myth. The first generation of low-flush toilets were, well, total crap. It frequently required multiple flushes to get rid of your business. Newer models are much better, but there are still plenty of people who are willing to pay for older toilets. My offering: old computer games. I have 2 boxes of PC games which I have periodically tried to sell. Only a tiny handful of people have any interest in them at all, and then only if they are in the original box (most of mine aren’t). A few have sold at garage sales, but most of them might eventually end up in the trash. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/53 "2013-01-11T21:18:05Z")
I can also testify about excercise machines. We have one of those skiing-motion-type machines. Postings on Craigslist and flyers posted in coffee shops & hardware stores haven’t brought a single peep of interest. We might eventually just put it on the curb and let the scrap metal scavengers take it. ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/54 "2013-01-11T21:24:43Z")
Are people getting old high-flow shower heads too? I’ve never used one a low-flow one I like, the one at my house is original to the 1960s and I love it. I have gas hot water heat so it’s not too expensive to use it. ---
**Author:** ![kjbrasda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/74df32/32.png) [@kjbrasda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kjbrasda)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/55 "2013-01-11T22:05:42Z")
I gave up on freecycle because it seemed that everyone wanted their free stuff delivered to their door. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2013, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/56 "2013-01-11T22:38:54Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I’ve seen them used as yard decorations with plants in the tank and/or bowl. West Virginia? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/57 "2013-01-12T11:07:14Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > West Virginia? Yes, other places as well. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504/58 "2013-01-12T12:06:52Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > How about used toilets that are still functional? I never heard of a market for those! There is one, but it’s pretty small. I knew a contractor who was renovating a finished attic that included a toilet room whose toilet had a busted tank. It was an usually small toilet of a sort that is apparently no longer made and he had a devil of a time finding a replacement to fit the space. A certain number of people want old toilet that use a volume approximately half that of Lake Erie for each flush, apparently loathing low-flow toilets. They aren’t making those anymore, either. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/functional-things-you-cant-even-give-away/646504.md?page=2)