Dumpster diving

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>>1082724
I love old EE equipment so I hit up university dumpsters whenever I'm nearby. A lot of them sort their E-waste into separate bins which makes it easy. I'm up to 19 oscilloscopes and a lot of other sexy items.

>>1082734
... You're not in ventura are you?

>>1082724
Sweet Jesus it used to be good in northern Delaware. We had a TastyKake dumpster, a Frito-Lay dumpster like you, and a Canada Dry dumpster. It's all gone to surveillance and locks in the past decade though. Our electronics recycling bins used to rock as well; now it's set hours at a Solid Waste Authority owned station.

>>1082734
I might try my local uni engineering department trash now. I tried my local student housing and I got a free crt tele and bicycle. Ive heard a tale of my freinds cousin finding a macbook pro in his local dumpster and it apparently works fine for him he just had to buy a charger for it

I really wish it were more lucrative in my area. I have to travel just to do it

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>>1082740
No. The V is for Vancouver not Ventura.

only during trash curb days

over the summer got a ton of CDs, some bullets, and some furniture meant for tool stuff

Recycling is efficient in my country, no curb days or such. There used to be a bin for collecting metal and its by the road I go home. Usually stopped there and picked ups useful stuff. From several buckets full of brass parts (almost all unused) through functioning appliances (pressure washers, microwaves and the shit) to metal pipes and such for projects. Sadly its gone now :(. I'd need a new vacuum cleaner so I could have a new motor for my cyclonic separator that burned its motor.
Those have TONS of suction, even small ones, when you strip off the sound dampening and other useless parts...

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I found this chest of drawers along the road. It fits perfectly in my closet, below hanging clothes. I welded threaded rod to make the wrench handles.

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>>1082870
This mirror was with the chest of drawers. Made the brackets myself to match the steel pipe legged vanity below.

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>>1082873
Here's the mirror above the vanity before I changed the screws holding it, and putting a curtain to hide the pipes below. And the wife complained about the seat being up.

Fucking MODS on fire all up in this bitch <3

>>1082724
9/10 comfy. Would be perfect except
>no piss jugs

>>1082724
I had a friend that used to scrap metal and we would go driving around in his truck all night smoking weed and stealing shit out of dumpsters. We'd get a lot of random metal components and scrap metal from machine shops. We'd fill the truck up, go dump it behind his barn and go back into town for more. It was a lot of fun. Then in the morning we'd fill up his dump truck and take it to various scrap yards in the county. We didn't make a lot of money but really we didn't need much. It was mostly a hobby.

>>1083006
Also you'd be amazed by how many kids leave their bikes out by the side of the road all night.

>>1082734
How often do you find oscilloscopes in good working order? Do you know if these schools sell stuff too? Unfortunately the schools near me sell their old equipment :(

>>1083038
just check ebay for older shit, you can get a decent osciloscope for like $50 plus $9999999 shipping and handling.

>>1083038
> in good working order
Very rarely, but old equipment is meant to be fixable. You even find spare components and tools taped inside them sometimes.

What dumpsters give good payloads, without being protected by cameras?

>>1083040
>plus $9999999
kek

>>1083056
every $50 oscilloscope
>$125 shipping and handling :^)

>>1083050
Seriously, all the stores I've checked are either have their dumpsters fortified or use compactors.

>>1082734
What the hell do you do with 19.

Cro shopping cart when?

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>>1082724
off course i dumpsterdive, i'm poor as fuck. But sometimes i find some cool shit.
Like this working Xerox. It has half cartridge, the only problem was a dirty roller.

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>>1083130
Or this working turntable/cassette player.
Is missing a pair of speakers

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>>1083131
Or this brad new dart board. i just buy additional darts

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>>1083132
this working electronic typewritter

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>>1082724
These insane Bozak speakers from 1953 is a decent recent score. They are pretty incredible.

>>1083062
What's a Cro shopping cart?

>>1083058
That still doesn't answer my question from >>1083050

Unless you're all going into dumpsters from second hand stores, or dupsters from retirement homes (which even then, might be fortified, recorded or compacted).

I recently got myself a copy of The Art & Science of Dumpster Diving & am ready to start, except I don't know where to find good payloads.

>>1082724
My mom used to work at a center that daysat?(baby sat) mentally disabled adults, a retarded couple would dumpster dive at gamestop before arriving at the center and exchange their findings to my mom for extra desserts

>>1083130
One of my best finds was a four bike rack, that simply slides into a 2" hitch. Those sell for over $100, and it was never even used. Brand new in the box, sitting on the side of the road.

Another was 4 tool boxes, full of old tools. Told me someone's grandpa passed, and they didn't know how cool they were.

>>1083191
Actually the best dumpster diving isn't actually climbing into dumpsters. It's driving around subdivisions just before trash pick up. People put stuff to the road they're just tired of looking at. I've picked a lawn mower that only needed a little TLC, and it started right up. Sold it in my yard sale.

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>>1083174
Well this is the LED version.

>You must be new here

>>1083199
Doesn't really help much if you're in Canada, though. The only time people put their stuff outside is during the summer. Then, the only places where you can pick up anything good are all monitored or blocked off somehow.

I'm actually looking for stuff that I can use for everyday survival (including edible/uncontaminated food stuffs, electronics items that I can repair/resell &, hopefully, people chucking out their jewelry like the idiots they are).

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>>1083200
>You must be new here
No. Just didn't want to jump the gun and assume someone was talking about my old project. Here's one of the spare boards from that thing.

>>1083199
this is true, i dont dumpster dive but I occasionally poke around my apartment building's trash area and keep an eye out when I'm just walking about

I've picked up a few printers, some speakers, lots of stuff. an oddly high amount of foamcore, too, I had to actually stop taking it because I don't use enough of it to justfy keep picking it up but SOMEONE keeps throwing out like five sheets of the stuff at a time

>>1083191
The best way to get into dumpster diving is to just hop into every dumpster you find.

I live in a metro with a population of 300k and have been in roughly half of all of the commercial dumpsters in the city. You get to know what places throw out decent stuff. After a month or two you'll just drive straight to the honeypots out of instinct and fly by the ones you know are going to be empty.

Some of my local hotspots:
>tractor supply co
>big lots
>dollar stores
>barnes and nobles
>aldi
>gfs

Don't worry about cameras either. They don't care unless you are making a huge mess.

>>1083223
Yeah; in Canada, book stores have their dumpsters monitored because they still insist their garbage books are their property.

And I don't live in a metropolitan place; I'm in an suburban area.

In any case, there are still dollar stores I can rummage through

>>1083228
>they still insist their garbage books are their property.
That's a shame. Book stores regularly throw out current issue copies of magazines, sometimes for the upcoming month before it's even hit. You can sell them online for decent return if you can get to the ones that haven't had coffee leaked onto them. I even have even retrieved a few porno mags from Barnes.

>>1083230
I'm more concerned about those dumpsters with electronics, since I can repair them (especially if I can get my hands on laptops, printers, speakers & all that stuff).

It would be great to find a few books, though. Stationery's also good; people always seem to need it. But the one thing I'd be most interested in is food stuffs.

I mean there are stores that throw out perfectly good stock, just because a fruit is bruised or something as artificial as chewing gum has an expiry date when it doesn't rot.

>>1083206
>You're such a newfag you don't even know about your own project
Welcome to 4chan, everybody is a faggot.
>Da Funk
I can say with 95% certainty that you own a replica of one of their helmets, lights and all.

>>1083233
You can always call places and ask (many businesses pay to have their old hardware recycled). Also check schools for asset sales. Fish from the e-waste recycling center if there is one nearby; they will sometimes have a drop-off area where people leave old computers and other electronics.

>>1083240
Nice! There's an e-waste drop-off close by my house, actually. Thanks, man.

Now, to have my survival skills in check, I just need to find a place where they dispose of slightly unpresentable food without contaminating it.

>>1083242
Don't be afraid of picking meat as long as its still frozen. :)

>>1083245
Yup, as long as its frozen & the packaging unopened. Same goes for frozen foods (still in a cold state without damaged inner packaging) &, as for fruits, lightly bruised, non-moldy & still edible.

And of course, reduced bakery that's still in unopened packaging & hasn't become rife with mold.

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>>1083234
You're half right. I've built some LED helmets, but not trying to replicate daft punk.

>>1082734
University engineering dept. dumpsters are literal goldmines, can confirm

>>1083247
Any pics or links? LED helmets always give me a boner. Also, I remember seeing your cart project documented somewhere, what is your go to site for showing off?

Heres what I found so far.
5 Security systems (no alarms or anything, just the metal lock boxes with hardware still insides) along with the keypads, and spare boards new in box.

A Dual-Core AMD Lenovo desktop computer, has keys on it for Vista Business and 7 Pro. Power supply and one stick of ram was bad, replaced both and now it works.

An old ass Dell Dimension. P2 3XXMHz. If I every get time Im going to set it up as a retro gaming machine.

A wooden box that hold an empty bottle of wine that costed over $100.

A ferw days ago I found 3 network phones by NEC, only took 3 out of 6 of them. From the 1999s but still sell online from $30 to $40 each.

There are times That I find something but some guy has been hitting up the dumpsters I go to and cuts off the wiring for the copper. Just the power, speaker, and etc wiring. Once in a wire a crt tv will be busted in the dumpster and he will take any copper wiring he sees.

I tossed out 2 dead drills, 3 chargers, and 5 (2 different types) of batteries. One drill, all the batteries, and one charger was gone in a few hours. And the other charger was still in their, missing its cord. I hope that person enjoys their dead drill and batteries.

>>1083191
Schools.
My High School had this room full of computers and electronics they would put next to the dumpster about twice a year. In four years, I scored countless computers, monitors, and components.

I got a fully working Makita 8390D with two batteries once. The only thing it needed were latches for the box, which I replaced with nice zinc ones.

>>1083198
That's cool
i'd love to find a vintage tool box, i have some made of wood, but i will like one made of sheetmetal.

>>1083394
I hate scrappers.

I also hate the fags that bust pc towers just for a fucking DDR RAM stick.
Why thae fuck they take just the ram stick? why a DDR? is not useful anymore. Just take the entire tower.

>>1082875
>And the wife complained about the seat being up.
Did you inform here its "the lid should be down" and not "the seat should be down"

>>1083462
They might be doing a warranty scam.

Seagate used to have a 10 year warranty on all their drives, which meant you could pull a broken 1GB HD from most dumpster PCs, then get them to replace it with a new 100GB drive because they don't make 1GB ones anymore, then sell it.

>>1083462
what do you mean?

>>1083462
Sometimes, I take a stick if it's a less common speed, since I have a few computers that only accept certain speeds. I always make sure to leave everything else intact though.

>>1083050
Generally dumpster around the auto and wielding strip malls where the store is like a tiny office and a garage for the workers. Some around here use the same dumpster so you would have to go through less

>>1083513
Warranties doesn't work like that here

>>1083519
why you take a DDR stick if only old computers take them?

Most computers are at least DDR3 now.
So they are taking obsole hardware that only works with the obsolete hardware that they left behind.

So, take all the computer or leave it.

>>1083531
That might be a reason, but most computers that i find are regular pcs.

>>1083007
Nigger confirmed.

This is diy not steal shit.

All shitposting goes on /b

>>1083200
Im pretty new but not him. Still thanks tho. Ravecart os fucking sick

>>1083369
>Any pics or links? LED helmets always give me a boner.
https://rkproject.net/portfolio/led-helmet-i/
https://rkproject.net/portfolio/led-helmet-iii/


>Also, I remember seeing your cart project documented somewhere, what is your go to site for showing off?

http://www.instructables.com/id/LED-Rave-Solar-Shopping-Cart-Tricycle/
I don't like instructables, but I thought I could win a laser cutter by documenting there.

>>1083756
until recently I used a computer that used ddr2 ram as a server for nothing important.
One of the sticks was bad, and leaving me with a single stick of ddr2. it was still 256-500mb of ram which is plenty, but having more would be nice because reasons.
If I was still using that setup, and I saw a computer sitting on the side of the road that likely had ddr2 in it, id probably pop it open an take it. Although I would be more inclined to take the whole computer to see the full specs, and ideally I would rediscard it after the ram was salvaged but at that point it would side in the desktop pile of my electronics hoard.

>>1082740
I'm in Ventura. Dumpster diving in the Oxnard industrial is where it's at

>>1084715
Exactly, you don't see 20 computers and only take ram sticks. But there are people that only take that. And a working computer becomes trash because some bastard only took the ram.
Taking one ram or two or three, I can understand. But people here smash pcs solely for the ram. And no a ddr2 or ddr3. A fucking DDR. And they see 20pcs and destroy all of them just for the ram. They tear apart the sheet metal of the tower because they don't have screwdrivers. I've seen that a lot, and I can't understand why

>>1085510
yea.. that makes no damn sense. At first I thought scrapping gold, but if they wanted gold theyd take the whole thing.
Whats your interest in the old computers?
They blew though electric like a 70s ford goes though gas, except they get next to nothing done.
No disrespect if its your just your interest.

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>>1083161

>Bozak Speakers

Nice. They might need new capacitors though

>>1085697
some i repair and take them to my old school so they can have a few more computers to use.
Other i use just for experiment, now i was try to run LinuxCNC in one and try to make it work with the Steppers that i took from a busted xerox. Most of that computers has parallel ports that make a little bit easyer to conect them to external motor drivers.
So basically, i try to make them work again, and then try to do something useful.

>>1085814
I completely understand that.
I didn't mean to bash them, I use to do the same thing. even though I do a lot of heavy vm work I still refused to upgrade from my shit 2008 prebuilt for years. Various parts of the motherboard started to fail and I just bared though it, when the pci ports went, I started using two computers, one dedicated just for the pci cards to handle the networking.
usb smoothing caps blew -> still got 4 mbps transfer speed
hdmi went out -> used vga instead
wanted to watch a movie on my tv in high def,
>transfer it to usb
>put it in xbox
>unrecognized format
>rencode on ancient wolfdale
>8 hours later
>start transfer again
>finally finish
>format not recognized
>didnt watch anything
few days later trying to watch something else, hit and miss with what xbox will play (it doesnt like x265, and .mkv with subtitled tracks or some shit)
>eventually remember laptop has an hdmi port, use that on tv for next 6 months

at one point I was using my main computer to run a file server (samba), then mounted that to the second computer, second computer was running a media server (minidlna) and pointed it to the remotely mounted media directory on the first computer, then I could play shit on my tv, from my first computer, though my second computer, using my xbox connected to the tv..
Im still not sure if it had any lag or not. The video was choppy as fuck(unnoticeable to the untrained eye(read pleb)), thinking back I dont think it was lagging, but due to the videos rip quality, I thought it was lagging which is unacceptable so I quit it and just stopped watching things.

I dealt with shit like this for way too long with way too many things, I eventually snapped and just bought all new shit.

got a new charger
>mfw my AA batteries had a capacity of 264 mah
got Eneloops now.

>>1085814
>>1085842
>use linux
>nvidia blacklists my igpu from running on its specified drivers for a year
>dont figure out whats going on until 8 months in and trying to compile last years drivers, and last years dependencies, and last years libraries, and last years kernel, and last years fucking everything and nothing will fucking work fuck
>give up again

>stuck in noveau hell
>shit quality performance

>nvidia finally gets their shit together on a random reinstall, tried it again and it works this time
>two. fucking. weeks later
>hdmi went out (as said id first story)

---

some other time, within the this last year
>computer wont turn on some times
>turns into computer wont turn on most times
>press power button, first 2 seconds of boot, then system off
>eventually find out if I just hold the power button then fans spin up real fucking fast and it'll eventually come on
>mfw random chirps
>mfw random hissing noise
>think more bad caps
>only usb caps visibly fucked
>tired or drunk
>in next to no lighting
>decide to test where hissing is coming from
>pull hdds while running, nope
>pull hdd fan
>nope
>go to plug it back in
>wont go
>try again
>somehow headers bent
>mfw computer is on and the fan is unplugged with bent headers
>mfw for whatever reason thermal shutoff is disabled
>mfw the computer just shuts off
>think time for a new computer (relief and dread)

couple days later

>decide to use parts
>go to test psu to use as power source for random shit
>green to black
>that
>fucking
>hissing
>start testing shit
>mfw 12v tests @ 6v
>pull second computers psu, put plug into first
>it turns on
>boots like nothing happened

>>1085814
>>1085842 (You)
>>1085854 (You)
>go to other computer junk pile
>pull last spare psu
>put the second computer all the way back together
>hook it up and everything
>install the last spare psu (form the fucking 1990s into a 2008 computer, THANKS STANDADS)
>go to hook it up
>mfw its a 20 pin

>pull second computer apart again (20+4 pin, only needed a 20 though)
>remove psu
>put old as fuck psu in it, plug it al in
>its got my only ddr2 ram
>my pci gigabit networking card (fucking need it)
>install of linux on usb with god knows what the fuck I did to make it all work right settings
>hook it up
>press power
>mfw explosion

>go without second computer for few weeks
>order new psu
>new psu in first, second gets its original psu back
>somehow things are running smooth again

>q hdmi port dying
>q rage quite using old stuff and built something that isnt going to make me hate life

>>1083228
A FUCKING LEAF

>>1082740
>>1085486
oh shit there are other venturans on /diy/?

When you say oxnard industrial area, which do you mean? that kind of describes most of the nard.

>>1085510

They sell it for the $0.25 gold on the contacts.

>>1085798
>the creature all men feared became one man's obsession

>>1082724
oooOH this thread is my shit

Uni dumpsters are indeed literal goldmine
I've gotten a shit ton of free components, and most of my chemistry equipment (vials, beakers, other glassware) is from the trash as well.