People often dispose of their unwanted items by leaving them on the curb for others to find, making curb-mining or curb shopping a great way to find free stuff.
The practice can be so rewarding that there is even a subreddit dedicated to it, where people post some of the amazing things they have found. Take, for example, one woman who recently posted about a Simplehuman trash can she had found on the subreddit r/Curbfind.
"My boyfriend and I were driving somewhere yesterday and he hit the brakes, pointed, and yelled, 'SIMPLEHUMAN TRASH CAN!' and sure enough, there it was," wrote the woman, after explaining that she had just moved and had been looking for an affordable trash can but had been holding out for a better deal. Lucky for her, she got this high-quality trash can for free just by curb shopping.
Lots of people give away old furniture and other household items for free by leaving them on the curb or posting them on buy nothing groups on social media. Searching these groups or keeping an eye on what people locally are throwing out can help people save money on everyday necessities by finding what they need at no cost to themselves. Sometimes, you might get lucky and even find a rare and valuable gem.
Not only is this a great way to save money, but it's also much more sustainable than buying new. People already produce a considerable amount of stuff, and a lot of it ends up in a landfill. For example, in 2018, Americans threw out over 12 million tons of furniture and furnishings, compared to just 2.2 million tons in 1960, and over 80% of it ended up in a landfill, per CNN.
Shopping at thrift stores or finding ways to reuse or repurpose items people are giving away for free can help reduce this waste, keep raw materials in the ground, and contribute to a circular economy.
And you never know, you might find something valuable for free.
"Score!!' Those are like $150 minimum," wrote one commenter on the woman's post.
"You did good!!!" added another.
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