# I think someone just tried to scam me **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 1, 2007, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492 "2007-12-01T23:40:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/1 "2007-12-01T23:40:01Z")
Some guy just came to my door and offered to test my water for free. I told him to get off of my land or I would call the police. After he went to the house catycorner from me I decided to go get his license plate number. I’m not sure what scam they were pulling, but no one sends a guy out at 6:00 on a Saturday night uninvited to test my water for free. I guess I’ll have to start locking my doors… Maybe I’m wrong. I’m surprised at the surge of rage that went through me. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/2 "2007-12-01T23:42:16Z")
Test your water for what? \ “Yep, it’s water all right.” \ ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/3 "2007-12-01T23:46:46Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Test your water for what? \ “Yep, it’s water all right.” \ [/QUOTE] 😃 I dunno. I didn’t let him get very far. I told him immediately to get off my land. Actually the water here is not harmful for human consumption, but I wouldn’t drink it. It has a lot of iron and occasionally a sulfur taste. It was tested when I bought the house and I was told I could consume it. I use it for washing, but by a jug of water for drinking and cooking. ---
**Author:** ![Critical\_Mass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f1d935/32.png) [@Critical\_Mass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical_Mass)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/4 "2007-12-02T00:14:43Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] I told him immediately to get off my land. [/QUOTE] Did you call him a whippersnapper? [Jimmy Stewart]Now, you get off my land IMMEDIATELY, you hear? You whippersnapper. By gosh, by golly. testing my water… [/JS] ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/5 "2007-12-02T00:21:05Z")
He was probably selling water purification/filtration systems. I have charcoal filter on my house that makes our nasty water drinkable. His “test” would have been to have you taste regular tap water and compare it to the tap water run through the filter. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/6 "2007-12-02T00:23:18Z")
[QUOTE=hajario] He was probably selling water purification/filtration systems. I have charcoal filter on my house that makes our nasty water drinkable. His “test” would have been to have you taste regular tap water and compare it to the tap water run through the filter. [/QUOTE] [http://www.watertestscam.org.za/](http://www.watertestscam.org.za/) ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/7 "2007-12-02T00:53:52Z")
[QUOTE=hajario] He was probably selling water purification/filtration systems. I have charcoal filter on my house that makes our nasty water drinkable. … [/QUOTE] This was my thought as well. In a previous lifetime I dated a young lady who (very) briefly worked for a company like this. Even though she was supposedly hired for an office job they insisted that all their new hires spend at least a few weeks cold-calling at peoples houses and trying to sell them water purification systems. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/8 "2007-12-02T01:09:48Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] Some guy just came to my door and offered to test my water for free. I told him to get off of my land or I would call the police. [/QUOTE] As a door-to-door gynecologist, you’d be surprised how often I get this reaction. I think people need to be more trusting. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/9 "2007-12-02T01:14:36Z")
We had a water testing kit hung on our door. It looked like it was from our town government, but upon closer inspection of the note we figured it was an attempt to sell us a water purification system. My next door neighbor, who is pushing 80 if he’s not already there, was going to fill the sample tube with his urine and let them test that. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/10 "2007-12-02T01:19:30Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] Some guy just came to my door and offered to test my water for free. I told him to get off of my land or I would call the police. [/QUOTE] Some guy knocked on my door telling me his Kirby vacuum cleaner would improve my life. I shot him. Then these two old bitches came to my door telling me about God or some shit. I shot them too. I hate humans. ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/11 "2007-12-02T01:33:24Z")
I think you’re overreacting by a factor of 15 or so. The guy was almost certainly just a salesman. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/12 "2007-12-02T03:54:57Z")
[QUOTE=levdrakon] Some guy knocked on my door telling me his Kirby vacuum cleaner would improve my life. I shot him. Then these two old bitches came to my door telling me about God or some shit. I shot them too. I hate humans. [/QUOTE] If you need money for your defence fund, I’ll make a contribution. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/13 "2007-12-02T03:58:32Z")
Is your water running? Well, you’d better go catch it! ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/14 "2007-12-02T13:10:34Z")
[QUOTE=treis] I think you’re overreacting by a factor of 15 or so. The guy was almost certainly just a salesman. [/QUOTE] A salesman selling a product well known in scam circles, coming late enough so that you can’t contact anyone to see if he is legit. What you should do in a case like this is take any information he can give you and tell him to come back the next day, spend so time researching the company on the web, and contact any local regulatory agencies you might have in your area. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/15 "2007-12-02T15:02:47Z")
Be careful-many burglars pose as salesmen, in order to case houses. This guy may have been checking to see who is home-if nobody answers the door, he might take the chance of breaking in and robbing the house. Door-door sales are pretty rare today-as most people are not home during the day. I’d be suspicious. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2007, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/16 "2007-12-02T19:00:16Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Test your water for what? [/QUOTE] To see if it would benefit from Scientology. ---
**Author:** ![ladybug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@ladybug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladybug)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/17 "2007-12-03T01:13:14Z")
[QUOTE=hajario] He was probably selling water purification/filtration systems. I have charcoal filter on my house that makes our nasty water drinkable. His “test” would have been to have you taste regular tap water and compare it to the tap water run through the filter. [/QUOTE] That was my thought, too. My parents bought a water purification system a few years ago after someone dropped by unannounced and offered to test their water (their new house had well water instead of city water). I was concerned that it was a scam, but they’re perfectly happy with the system and the related maintenance services. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/18 "2007-12-03T01:45:30Z")
[QUOTE=ladybug] That was my thought, too. My parents bought a water purification system a few years ago after someone dropped by unannounced and offered to test their water (their new house had well water instead of city water). I was concerned that it was a scam, but they’re perfectly happy with the system and the related maintenance services. [/QUOTE] Doesn’t mean they weren’t scammed, of course. Why don’t you take a small sample of the pre-filtered water and have it analyzed, then compare that to the “analysis” done by the purification company? See if your parents are just as happy with their expensive system if turns out they were lied to. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/19 "2007-12-03T16:53:55Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] Doesn’t mean they weren’t scammed, of course. Why don’t you take a small sample of the pre-filtered water and have it analyzed, then compare that to the “analysis” done by the purification company? [/QUOTE] In my case it’s just a huge charcoal filter. Kind of like a supersized Brita. It gets the particulates and the chlorine out of the shitty tasting Santa Barbara water and makes it taste like bottled water. You can easily tasted the difference. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2007, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492/20 "2007-12-04T04:54:07Z")
[QUOTE=levdrakon] I hate humans. [/QUOTE] You are probably not cooking them correctly. Or it may be the water you are boiling them in. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-think-someone-just-tried-to-scam-me/428492.md?page=2)