posted on July 5, 2001 08:32:03 PM
I have an aluminum pole with a twist joint that locks how much extension you want and a stiff wire hook on the end where it should have a paint roller. I keep that in the, trunk. I won't actually go in.
Most of the heavy stuff gets put on the ground outside. I found a 3 axis desktop CNC mill on the ground but I had to hook and pull up the box with all the collets and tooling and the ring binder that was the instruction manual with the floppies that had the software to run it. at the very least a $2500.00 package - maybe more. Runs nice in all three axis but I need better software - this is g-code for machine shop work and I want engraving software.
posted on July 5, 2001 09:26:09 PM
I own a large duplex but I have so much stuff that I can't rent out the other half of the house and there is is a 4 car garage packed to the rafters.
posted on July 5, 2001 10:37:52 PM
My mom used to be an expert dumpster diver but then she started going to the city dump instead. Boy, you talk about some major trash digging. That's where you can do it!
posted on July 6, 2001 12:32:17 AM
I live in a "large" two bedroom apartment (according to the landlords) plus I have a space in an antique mall and a storage unit.
I've been reselling for 10 years now, and I've found that there is no good way to cut down on the clutter. Everytime I manage to clear out an area in the living room and dining room, I go out and make a huge buy and the place is packed again.
One thing I have found that helps is this: Don't look at every item as a potential money maker. I throw out a lot of things now (or I give them to Goodwill). I'm sure people dig them out of the trash and probably make a few bucks, but it's not worth it to me. I also do flea markets from time to time and I try to sell everything off really cheap. Plenty of eBayer's buy from me -- but it doesn't bother me. I sell them something for 25 cents that they think will bring $3 or more. When I list on eBay, I'm looking for something that I can get at least $10 for. I always figure my time has a price on it too -- so I don't sweat the small $$$ things.
My dream is to rent a warehouse and cart all this junk (or "stuff" however you look at it) out of my house!!! I'd like to be able to see the carpet once again... I still haven't filed my 2000 taxes since my records are buried under all of this STUFF!!!!
P.S. I also have areas for items that are listed, sold, photographed but not listed. On sold items, I will not tell the buyer the amount to send me or where to send payment until they reveal their mailing address. This means I can tell them the amount to send, plus box and address the item at the same time. (Items ready to ship have their own area -- when the payments come in, I find those items and ship them out the next day.)
Personally, I think this type of business was designed to make life difficult. I don't know any dealer who has a totally neat house. Some only have paths to walk down to get from room to room... It's really awful in this respect.
posted on July 6, 2001 01:03:35 AM
We started storing our eBay stuff in a spare bedroom, we already had an office at the house and soon it grew from the spare bedroom to the guest bedroom and guest bath, the hall, the living room the garage and stuff was being stacked in the master bedroom, bathroom and closet. Also the travel trailer and my cargo/toybox trailer was full.
One day my wife said "you know that my sister is coming next week and is staying a week with us, with her 3 kids, where are they going to stay? We can't even put them in the trailer let alone the house!!"
So we had to lease a warehouse, this was the best move we ever made!! We were able to get organized and it is awesome to know were everything is. Our shelves are a little over 8' to the top shelf on the tallest sets. I bought out a store that was going out of business and got all their shelving, older that what you would find in say K-Mart but basically the same stuff(gondola shelving they call it). I also scrounged a bunch of shelving when a auto parts company changed their shelving in there warehouse, all free they are a bit narrow but heavy duty. The warehouse is about 70 x 24 and it has a 720 sqft mezzanine over the offices so combined we have 2400 sqft. The mezzanine is use for packing supplies, boxes and pellets mostly, stuff we need but don't need to get to everyday we only have to stock the shipping room every few days. The offices are used to stock the stuff that sells the quickest, also shipping & receiving, and a place to meet with sales reps. I am still trying to find a deal on some pallet shelving.
We still have the office at the house. 3 networked computers in the spare bedroom that was the first "stockroom" when we started this crazy ride. I hate having it at the house I would rather have it so when I am at home I don't have to think about any of it. We sell under 3 ebay names and soon we may be adding a few more.
I am almost done with turning my horse barn into a warehouse as well, 1350 sqft it will house the offices so I can reclaim the house, also there is room to put a office trailer on slab next to it should we have to. The barn has room for 8-45x8x11 cargo containers to line up behind the barn connected to a 12 foot wide "hallway" that will run the length of the barn, so I'll have room for 5022 sqft at the house when it is all done and i can give up the warehouse. Sounds like a lot of room, anyone want to take bets on how long it takes us to fill it up? When it is time to pack everything in the cargo containers and move it out.
RichieRich I still use a dot matrix printer to print some reports and some mailing forms, if you get the label 228C from the post office and you can make that work for you it will save you lots of time and they are made for a dot matrix, or a tractor fed printer. I also have a laser printer, a color bubble jet, and a line printer on the network.
posted on July 6, 2001 03:41:17 AM
Organization, what's that? I have two extra bedrooms that no one could sleep in because the beds and floor are piled up with ebay stuff, boxes and packing material. Other stuff spills out over the house, in the kitchen and the den. Rainbow Brite sits on my mantle waiting to be photod and listed. She's cute so I'm not in any hurry, obviously, as she's been there 2 months!! My mom comes over and thinks I've lost my mind. I used to be a neat person, but now no room to be neat!! I'm so glad to see I"m not alone. candibates1, I'm impressed by your neatness! You're our star!
posted on July 6, 2001 06:41:00 AM
This thread should never go away! It should just grow and grow. People need to come back to it and read when you just can't make it another day in the middle of the mess you call your Ebay stuff! I've got stuff on shelves, in a storage shed, in rubbermaid totes all over the house. Also in those storage boxes you buy at tax time. I sell mostly books and magazines so they are easy to store but I tend to have them all over my 3 bedroom house and spilling into my storage shed. Everytime I get just a bit organized I find a great deal on more stuff and then have to work it into the current mess. Right now in my office I have piles of auctions waiting for buyer's address, packed up items waiting for payment, paid items waiting to ship, oh, there's the bra I took off last night and flung across the room because I couldn't stand it anymore! LOL. Ballpoint pens everywhere (I think I have OCD about ballpoint pens; I can never have enough). Oh, there are all those drinking glasses - now I know why there were none in the dishwasher last night. Closets are packed with mailing boxes, bubblewrap, bubble envelopes and leftovers from a prior business (I used to do personalized stuff like mousepads, t-shirts, coasters, license plates until I discovered Ebay. Now that business is dead in the water). Every so often I have to take what I call an Ebay holiday, not list anything, get everything paid and shipped and then reorganize. I've never not been able to find something after it sold, but I've come close and that is a heartstopper!
[ edited by paintpower on Jul 6, 2001 06:42 AM ]
posted on July 6, 2001 07:07:16 AM
Paintpower - you should put your customized item stuff on Ebay - it might sell well. Just be sure not to list any of the options available within the listing. Say something like "T-shirt will be customized per winning bidders specifications" - might be a way to clear some more stuff out of there.
posted on July 6, 2001 07:41:11 AM
We have a 4000 square foot 19 room house and a 1500 square foot workshop. Guess what? It's all FULL.
The dining room is an assembly line packing area with shelves for about 1000 books listed on amazon around the walls.
The formal living room has a small passable pathway through it between glass display cases. The rest of the room is piled chest high. The landings at the top of the stairs on both stairways have stuff leaning against the wall. One stairway is impassable. The attic has stuff we haven't even considered yet. In the workshop....well hubby brought home 18 truck loads of vintage electronics a few months back. The kitchen. One side is reserved for cooking, the other for listing.
The outgoing UPS boxes are in the breakfast room or on the deck weather permiting. The front porch has all the "culled" items and today my daughter is having a garage sale.
But, guess what? We know exactly where everything is. We get while we can because this is our fulltime job and you never know if tomorrow will bring a dry spell. Our two main suppliers are elderly people who buy and sell junk for a living and are not in excellent health.
(This to say....moving to a bigger place will not help. It just grows.)
I'm posting to this thread as this seems to be where its at.
My garage is a nightmare(see pics), my small home is equally a nightmare. You all can't see your dining room table..HA! We can't see our kitchen table, we eat with our food in our laps.
Every, yes EVERY room in my house is INFECTED with e-bay trash. I have some property down the street I bought just for the shed & small building to store MORE e-bay trash...they are full.
Seeing those pictures of the garage in the above thread gave me the incentive to get in gear.
I went to town yesterday and bought me 2 HUGE metal racks(just to get started) I figure I'll need about 10.
Gosh, I've about had enough, I can't find anything, I can't remember where anything is. When my daughter comes home from collage everything gets heaped up in a corner just so she has a place to sleep then I can't find or remember what is in that heap.
Yup, I'm on my way to the garage shortly, this is not going to happen in an hour or 2(getting it organized that is). But I figure if I can bring order out there then I can move some of my more important things out there and be able to find it.
Makes sense right?
Wish me luck!
Here is what I'm up against.
1 question?
What do you all do with your different size boxes need for packing?
posted on July 6, 2001 08:02:36 AM
Since I don't have anywhere NEAR the volume some of the people here do, I go buy about 20 boxes at a time from Office Depot when I'm running low - they are folded down to lie flat and sit on the bottom shelf of my little storage unit in the closet. My collection of USPS Priority mail boxes (all waiting to be assembled as needed) are in a plastic bag in a small space in the closet - I restock when each size is getting low.
Boxes that are NOT assembled are pretty easy to store - its best not to assemble until needed to save space.
posted on July 6, 2001 08:09:56 AM
The boxes I'm talking about are the odd size ones that I collect from different palces or that people save for me.
I was collasping them, but then I found that I don't readily use them and just try to find one that is not collasped because its easier to see if its the right size.
I have people save me boxes and they call and say come and get them.
Even though I may not need them I go get them anyway because I don't want them to quit saving for me.
And yes, I've driven around in my van for days with empty boxes in it because I just don't know where to put them.
I have a huge burn pile out back...lord, you outa see all the boxes on that ready to be burned.
posted on July 7, 2001 05:07:02 PM
I went to the recycling center this morning -- they have a shed where they keep books that have been turned in for recycling -- no one in this town likes to throw away books ...
Anyway, someone must have been on a reorganization jag, because I found a whole stack of books about "How to reorganize your life and your house". Either the person was successful and didn't need the books anymore, or she failed and didn't have room for the books anymore!
I'll read them and let you know if I find any good tips.
El
"The customer may not always be right, but she is always the customer."
posted on July 7, 2001 05:23:12 PM
I threw away a storage locker that was 12x12 stacked with books to the roof, just about 2 weeks before I saw ebay for the first time. I realizes what I had done about 2 weeks after I started selling on ebay, It still brings a tear to my eye :~(
posted on July 7, 2001 05:39:13 PM
Love this thread- still giggling.
I have the same problem but outside: where do I grow all those hostas- no closets out there. And how do I keep the raccoons from depotting them, the ducks from upsetting the pots and the rabbits from using them as a salad bar!
In the spring, it was so rainy that I thought the hostas would float away and I would have to start growing water lilies!
Thanks for a good case of the giggles even if we aren't going to solve our storage problems!
posted on July 7, 2001 06:18:37 PM
OK this thread inspired me, I thought that I had to be the worst offender of the bunch, stuff everywhere can't find a thing so I decided to put a end to that today. Yes it is time to build the shed that I have said I would months ago. so I went and got the building materials today. With any luck I will start work on the shed tomorrow.
