# I wouldn't buy this at the dollar store: **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 7, 2005, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304 "2005-04-07T23:46:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Klaatu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Klaatu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klaatu)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2005, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/41 "2005-04-10T05:40:55Z")
Reminds me of a tool outlet store here called Harbor Freight. (Night be a national chain, not sure) They sell cheapass tools, including power tools, air tools and pretty much everything. They suck badly. My buddies and I are all in the building trades, and we need real tools. When we see in their sales flyers things like “Eight Ton Hoist For $149.95” we say “Damned if I will trust my life using cheap shit like that.” We do go there for throwaway crap like cheap screwdriver sets, or files and stuff like that. ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2005, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/42 "2005-04-10T10:02:17Z")
Not a dollar store thing, a HPT thing. Last time I went to my mother’s local Supermarket, along with the sweets, gum and headache tablets by the cash registers, they had pregnancy tests. I don’t know about you, but I’m unlikely to do my weekly grocery shop, and then, at the last moment spy an HPT by the check-out and pop it in the basket, just in case. If I thought I was pregnant, I’d be down the pharmacy ASAP, never mind waiting to pick up that week’s groceries. Obviously some people feel otherwise, but I can’t really see a HPT as a last minute impulse buy. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2005, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/43 "2005-04-10T22:01:54Z")
> [@](#): > > If I thought I was pregnant, I’d be down the pharmacy ASAP, never mind waiting to pick up that week’s groceries. Obviously some people feel otherwise, but I can’t really see a HPT as a last minute impulse buy. I can, if you’re trying to get pregnant. You may go ahead and buy a few if you see them for a good price, because you know you’ll want them in a couple weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Essured](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Essured](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Essured)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2005, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/44 "2005-04-10T23:27:59Z")
> [@irishgirl](#): > > If I thought I was pregnant, I’d be down the pharmacy ASAP, never mind waiting to pick up that week’s groceries. Obviously some people feel otherwise, but I can’t really see a HPT as a last minute impulse buy. I can, if you’re paranoid about getting pregnant. I used to test regularly (and perhaps a little obsessively) and always had a couple of pregnancy tests on hand at home. If I saw one at the last minute, I’d probably think “Am I getting low? They’re cheap enough. I’ll just grab a couple now, they’ll come in handy later” ---
**Author:** ![nitroglycerine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c5a1d2/32.png) [@nitroglycerine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nitroglycerine)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/45 "2005-04-11T00:03:54Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I’ve seen 'em at the local “99cents Only” store. Some off-brand I’ve never heard of from Malaysia, and a whole bunch of really dusty Lifestyles. > > I’ve always been kind of afraid of the dollar store pharmaceuticals myself. There’s just something sketchy about getting a huge bottle of Ibuprofen for 99 cents when even house brand ibuprofen at Wal-Mart is more like 3-4 dollars. I can vouch for the Dollar General version of Ibuprofen. I get nasty headaches at least three times a week, and 4 or 5 hits of DG brand does me as good as 800MG of perscription Advil. The DG version of Afrin nasal spray works as good as the real thing too. As far as the dollar pregnancy tests go, my wife used them on both of our kids and they were right every time. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/46 "2005-04-11T02:26:05Z")
Of course I’d use a Dollar Store HPT. They can’t sell them unless they are FDA approved. Same with the drugs (excepting the herbal stuff). So, why not use them? I’ve never seen a dollar store with a meat section, but I’d probably avoid that. My new favorite dollar store item is dog toys. My dog burns through them so quickly that a toy lasts just a little bit longer than a milkbone. Now, everytime I’m in the dollar store I stock up. ---
**Author:** ![RumMunkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@RumMunkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RumMunkey)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/47 "2005-04-11T12:45:47Z")
> [@](#): > > …I’d use a Dollar Store HPT. They can’t sell them unless they are FDA approved…I’ve never seen a dollar store with a meat section, but I’d probably avoid that. But, aren’t meats approved by the USDA or some such organization? ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/48 "2005-04-11T13:07:20Z")
> [@continuity eror](#): > > I wouldn’t buy frozen fish either, the Dollar General in my old town had a little meat section and the fish just looked rancid. There used to be a store in my hometown called the “Fruit and Salvage.” Basically, they existed to resell expired meats and produce from local grocery stores at a steep, steep discount. I will by shampoo and soap from the dollar store, but only if I recognize the brand. I never buy candy there; it always looks very strange. I have purchased gift wrapping supplies there; they always seem to have an acceptable selection of things like gift bags. I’ve always wondered if the thick dust you see on some items arrived with the merchandise or just accumulated at the store. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/49 "2005-04-11T15:35:50Z")
**Klaatu** , we have Harbor Freight too - and as my husband is a contractor, he loves them for throwaways too - but you’re right, if you need a real tool, you don’t use these guys. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/50 "2005-04-11T16:08:23Z")
> [@RumMunkey](#): > > But, aren’t meats approved by the USDA or some such organization? Yes, I know it’s not totally logical. My thinking is that not much can happen to drugs once they are packaged, barring malicious tampering. Meats, on the other hand, can be damaged by improper handling. And I don’t trust that the food inspectors pay as much attention to Dollar Stores as they do to grocery stores, etc. ---
**Author:** ![xbuckeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9e8a1a/32.png) [@xbuckeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xbuckeye)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/51 "2005-04-11T16:38:38Z")
I veto any edibles or drug store type purchases (like HPT’s). The experation date assumes a certain amount of distribution control as far as temp, light, humidity, etc. go and I don’t trust the Dollar Stores to have said controls. I do like a good wander through a dollar store though…you never know what you might find, use once, and discard. $.50 decks of cards…take 'em to the beach, fill 'em up with grit, toss at the end of summer. plastic sheeting for disposable moisture protection. not-so-fluffy towels for wet dogs, muddy kids, padding truck beds, etc. ---
**Author:** ![sleepygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/da6949/32.png) [@sleepygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleepygirl)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2005, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/52 "2005-04-11T20:49:15Z")
> [@Shirley Ujest](#): > > I’ve bought them and have never had a problem. The two I used were right and it was money well spent. > I’ve never seen condoms at the dollar store. But I won’t buy the medicine there or the herbal supplements. i’ve bought pepcid type meds at a dollar store, and cold medicine. worked just the same, MUCH cheaper. ---
**Author:** ![Eureka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/74df32/32.png) [@Eureka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eureka)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2005, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304/53 "2005-04-13T20:14:53Z")
I’m not the type to shop a the dollar store. However, my aunt is, and so I was in one last summer. The item which I would not buy at a dollar store which I saw that day was cat toys. Cat toys that resemble the milk jug strip thingies. (I don’t know how to describe them, you know those little pieces of plastic at the top of a milk carton which you pull off so that you can open the carton? And when you do so and have a cat you drop the plastic on the floor secure in the knowlege that the cat will play with it?) I guess the price was reasonable, 30 or so for $1, but it seemed kind of silly to buy that many of a type of cat toy that the cat will just lose under every piece of furniture in the house, especially if they come free with a carton of milk. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wouldnt-buy-this-at-the-dollar-store/298304.md?page=2)