Refuse Disposal & Helping Others

Submitted by Stephen Winters on Tue, 09/18/2012 - 19:54

A very real part of the upholstery trade is taking off the old and putting on new. This leaves us with a need to dispose of: old covers, old foam and old cushion, scrap foam, etc.

Since we've bought and moved into a house in a small town, I've wondered what to do with the old stuff. Since I've had to get a new foam supplier who charges a huge difference in having to cut foam, I've been cutting the foam myself. As you know, that leaves a lot of foam scraps. My new foam supplier doesn't pick up and recycle the old and new foam scraps like the old foam supplier did.

Well, I've turned to giving away stuff on Craig's List. For instance, here are my latest two listings on Craig's list:
FREE - 3 Dining Chair seats (Independence)
Free Used foam pieces & some new scrap (Independence)

I've also attached a picture of those two ads below for when the listing will be canceled in a day or so.

 

I had just put the ad up for the free foam scraps when someone called me not ten minutes later. She came out tonight and took all my old foam and my foam scraps. Her daughter is making a large wearable teddy bear.

I also had someone call me about the dining seats. He said that he will come get them tomorrow morning.
Both of these came out from the large city of Salem to small Independence.

This isn't the first time I've gotten rid of stuff  on Craig's list.
I gave away an old chair frame that the client decided not to proceed with the reupholstery (she paid me for what I had done and I used the fabric on another chair.)

I also gave away an old wood shed that I was about to haul to the dump (and pay the disposal fee.) The person who picked up the old shed was very thankful to receive it.

I've given away other old cushions when I made all new replacement cushions. I've given away old foam when  I had just replace the foam in cushions.

It seems like there are people out there who are tickled to death to haul away our refuse.

Another good place to give away stuff is https://www.freecycle.org/

Best Wishes,
Stephen