Thread: Went to an auction Saturday.

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Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

Man, I wouldn't be surprised if you woke up with a gerbil head in your bed......

Yeah, I'd send Uncle Clem to pay him a little visit, but Clem doesn't know how to drive.

Don

Don got your message.

so....................where is the million?????????

Don

I thought Dick said he'd send a check? From Haliburton corp, or some such company!

Oh oh!!!!!!! Just don't go skeet shooting with Dick!!!!!!!

Don

Don ... I think the cuckoo clock is apropos for your storage find!! I makes you complete.

Great finds Don. Don't feel bad ... someone would end up with it anyway.

REGS

The coocoo clock is now Steves, now that darned chiming bird can drive him nuts instead of me!

Yeah Paul, the human side of you has to feel bad digging through other people's stuff, but someone is going to get it anyway, so it might as well be me. I did leave a big bag of their personal stuff with the storage people, and they will try to get it back to them. The storage guys at this particular place are very good about trying to not have a unit come up for auction, they will work out any payment plan a person can make, but sometimes they have to just make the hard business decision to cut their losses.

BTW, if anyone is thinking about doing this themselves, I can offer some tips:

1) Have a firm price limit in mind before the bidding starts and don't go over that figure, unless you really want that unit.

2) If you win one, have your own padlock(s) so you can secure the unit when the bidding ends.

3) Take a flashlight with you so you can peer into the unit prior to bidding.

4) Say things like "Boy, there sure is a lot of junk in that one that I wouldn't want to haul to the dump" loud enough so the other bidders can hear.

5) Don't say things like "WOW, look at all the good stuff in this one."

6) Take garbage bags, some hand tools (screwdrivers, cresent wrenches, pliers, tape, a knife, etc) with you so you can cut open boxes and take apart any big stuff or shelves. It is best to sort through the stuff right there and put the trash in garbage bags right away. You can do the fine tuning when you get home, but at least the biggest part of the trash will be dealt with. Take gloves too, and a hand truck and small step ladder to reach the tall stuff. (The unit I just bought had a ladder and hand truck inside, and they came in handy.)

7) Take cash. Some places will take credit cards or checks, but most will not.

Oh, and take a broom and dust pan to sweep out the unit when done so you get your deposit back.

Don

What is the rule if there is hazardous materials inside? You could get stuck with something you can't get rid off or may be expensive.

Good point. I don't know. I guess since you bought it, you own it. Or maybe since you didn't know it was in there you can't be held liable. I'm sure the law has some firm ruling on that one, I just don't know what it is.

Best bet is to just flush it down the toilet, I guess. (Eh, just kidding )

They did say on the one Storage Wars show that one guy found a body in a unit he bid on one time! That would make me rethink if I ever wanted to bid on another one.

Don

I just saw the previews for that show, Don. I havent watched the show yet but I'll bet it's going to make the storage unit auction prices go through the roof.

Originally Posted by falconvan

I just saw the previews for that show, Don. I havent watched the show yet but I'll bet it's going to make the storage unit auction prices go through the roof.

I bet you are right..........at least for a while. People will see those shows and think every unit has a pot of gold inside, but when they do it a few times and realize those shows only focus on the units where good stuff is stashed, they will lose interest and stop going.

Make no mistake about it, cleaning out one of these units can be a lot of hard work, it is like moving, and no one likes moving. But it is also somewhat like being a kid on Xmas morning because you never know what that next box holds until you open it. Some units were rented by businesses, not individuals, so there can be some commercial items in there that are worth a few bucks.

I am catching a little heat because we just spent a weekend cleaning up the shop and now I have a lot of things spread out all over the place, making it a mess again. Today I am going to put up the shelf that came in the unit and get some of the items off of the floor and into some logical order. I am also going to put some of the larger items on CraigsList and maybe take some of the Xmas collectables to a flea market this coming weekend and sell those off. I don't know if I will recoup the $ 300 + $ 65 for the U Haul truck, but I just considered this like going to Vegas and putting it on one roll of the dice.......maybe I'll win and maybe I'll crap out.

Don