I’m talking about the boxes the microwave or the new stereo came in. Big boxes, that can’t be folded flat because of all the molded styrofoam parts inside the box.
My husband says he has to keep the boxes, to return the equipment in, in case it gets broken. So that means we have to keep big, space consuming boxes for the entire warranty period, which may be up to four years.
Dopers, how long do *you *keep such boxes? Have you gotten any flack from a store clerk if you returned a broken piece of equipment without the box (but of course with the receipt?)
We generally keep the box a couple of weeks. If the purchase hasn’t broken by then, we call it good and dump the box. As long as we have the warranty card, we’re good. If we got it at Costco, we don’t even need that!
About a month. Except for these hyuuge freakin’ speaker boxes of my husband. They are for packing to sell on Ebay - someday. :rolleyes: At least they’re in the attic.
For appliances & electronics, I pretty much keep the boxes forever if possible. It’s not because I’m going to return them, it’s because I’ll eventually move and the box & styrofoam stuff comes in is custom designed for it.
We keep boxes for smaller electrics, like a telephone or toaster, for just a short period of time, but they usually get used for holiday gifts that year.
We did keep the boxes for the 42" plasma tv and the 32" LCD tv for when we move. The boxes are enormous, but they are stored in the loft in the garage and are completely out of the way. After we move, They will most likely get tossed.
Most boxes head for the recycle bin after a few months.
If you have any expectations of moving soon, keep the boxes until you move.
For stuff I buy, if the thing lives a week, it will probably live forever or until it’s hopelessley obsolete, and the boxes get flattened and/or diced up into recycling-acceptable size pieces. In my younger, more itinerant years, it was nice to have the boxes, even if they ate up a lot of space. The universe finally told me to get rid of them by opening up a leak in the backyard shed and having them all turn to mush.
One tip: Cut up those boxes the fancy things like plasma TVs and new computers came in, then tie up the pieces with no logos showing when you put them out for recycling. No sense advertising to the local criminals that you just bought a 58" plasma TV and a laptop.
We let the cat have a go at them for a week, and when everything is covered in little bites and he’s rolled in it enough to make the joints go all wobbly, we flatten them and put them in the recycling bin.
I toss the boxes after a day or two. To ship stuff would just require a new box and foam peanuts from the UPS store or the post office.
Anything returned to a store would just be given to them without a box.
I’ve returned computer stuff that way many months later, under warranty.
In my case, I kept the box from my hard drive until approximately one week before I needed it to mail the thing back for replacement. They wouldn’t accept it back without the original box or an expensive “clamshell” thingie.
I had the “160 gigs sees itself as 32 gigs” issue, & nothing worked. Nothing. So I posted a query on Major Geek’s, and was reminded to reset the CMOS battery. Quack! Didn’t need the box after all.
Until the next recycling day, so 7 days tops. Retaining the box is utterly pointless. IF I knew I was DIY moving within a couple weeks and the item was big enough to benefit from moving in its own box I’d probably postpone the purchase before I’d save the box.
I keep the box if I think I’ll need it for transporting the item in the future. If I bought the item somewhere other than a bricks-and-mortar store, I might keep it in case the item breaks and needs to be shipped for return. If I bought it in a physical store - I don’t bother - if it breaks down, I’m taking it back without the box (and I don’t see why that should be a problem - it’s the item itself that’s broken down, not the packaging).
Back when I was a renter, I used to keep the boxes for absolutely every single electronic and small appliance I owned, since it wasn’t uncommon for me to pack up and move every year or two. Moving is stressful enough… It’s simply easier to use the box that’s been custom designed for the item along with proper padding, rather than hunting around for a suitable replacement.
When we moved into our own home, all the boxes got put out for recycling as soon as the contents were unpacked. The only ones we’ve still got kicking around in the crawlspace are the ones that contained any expensive electronics still under warranty (ie. the XBox, which is notorious for needing frequent replacement) They’re all pretty small, so it’s not as much of a hassle as say… the box for a countertop oven.
Once the warranties are up, we’ll toss those as well.
'im indoors would keep them forever if he could. I just dump the styrofoam in a bag and flatten the boxes then the whole load goes in the back of the car and thence to the rubbish tip/recycling centre.
You’d have to ask my husband. I am no longer allowed in his garage (which is actually ok with me - it frightens me in there. It’s a SCARY place.) He probably keeps them for a couple months - or until he loses the receipt.