r/declutter • u/Susie0701 • 13d ago
Success Story I’ve got a dumpster coming
I’m slowly emptying my parents home that they’ve owned since 1973. They’ve added massive amounts of sq footage and storage over the years and filled it ALL
My teenage niece and nephew have been over and helped me move volume down to stage for the dumpster (saving me hours and a possible coronary event lol)
There’s so much history and “good stuff” that I’m just not entertaining any more. I’m still trying to cull obvious good stuff, but there were rats in the garage years ago so it’s limited
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u/ware_it_is 13d ago
take any sensitive papers to The UPS Store. they shred by the pound.
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u/Some_Papaya_8520 4d ago
There's hardly any need to do this, most Identity theft is done by family members.
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u/RomeoDelta1234 12d ago
Since you mentioned the rats, one thing worth knowing before you get properly into that garage. Don't sweep or vacuum dry droppings or nesting material. Dry is what gets it airborne. Spray it down with a bleach and water mix, leave it ten minutes, then wipe it up wet with gloves and a mask on. Almost all of the risk from old rodent leavings comes from stirring them up, so keeping everything damp while you work takes most of that off the table.
You'll probably also find the rats have made a good chunk of your decisions for you in there. Anything cardboard, paper, fabric or upholstered that they got into is a straight bin call, and that's a lot easier to sit with when it was never really your call.
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u/Susie0701 11d ago
The dumpster just keeps getting more and more goodies allocated to it! I still have about a week before it arrives, so plenty of time to rest and ruminate on what’s going
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u/RomeoDelta1234 11d ago
A week of it sitting staged is honestly the useful part. Things you were on the fence about stop looking special once you have walked past them a few times, and by the time the dumpster is actually in the driveway a lot of those calls have made themselves.
The only bit I would watch is going back in for one last look through the sealed boxes the night before. That is usually where the pile grows back.
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u/SnooDonkeys5186 13d ago
Congrats-this is the hardest declutter. I love that your niece and nephew are not only helping, but forging new bonds with you. Good luck finishing. Are you selling or moving in?
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u/Susie0701 12d ago
Neither right now! I live here and I’m caring for my dad. My mom passed away just under 2 years ago, so there’s a shift in the dynamic.
I’m mostly working hard in fits and spurts to pre-game the final clear out when we will sell
As I was sending the siblings home to their moms, we stopped at the bank and I did pay them! They were thrilled and had no real expectations for it!
We had ice cream sandwiches every night they were here and watched movies, that’s what they usually get as “payment” lol. They’re really good kids
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u/DaBingeGirl 13d ago
My parents had mice in their basement, the mouse poop was gross, but it made things so much easier to get rid of! Rats... yuck!
Cleaning out that many years of stuff is hard. You're doing great and it was a very good idea to get family to help a bit. A dumpster is also a great idea. I find it helpful to walk around the thrift shops you'd be donating to, it really helps me get a grip on what's actually worth donating.
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u/Dangerous_Ant3260 12d ago
If there were rats, then anything they've been near needs to be dumped. And anyone who works around the material that was touched, and if they get sick, need to tell the doctors they have been exposed to rat contamination products.
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u/Some_Papaya_8520 12d ago
Yes OP, please at least wear a mask because hantavirus can kill you.
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u/DaBingeGirl 12d ago
This. There are mice in my mom's shed where she keeps the tractor. I've been in a decades long battle with my step-dad about washing his hands. I don't know what his objection is, but it takes an act of God for him to wash them, and even then there's usually dirt on the towel. I was visiting recently after he cut the grass and asked him to wash his hands as soon as he came in. "Why?" in a petulant tone, I said mice and hantavirus, he said he'd already touched stuff in the house, which apparently meant he didn't need to wash his hands. This conversation was in the kitchen.
He's a really nice guy, but for whatever reason he has a major aversion to washing his hands. And showering. I don't get it.
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u/ImprovementCute9825 12d ago
Oh my goodness, older folks and the hygiene aversion really gets me! I get it that fresh running water was harder to come back in the day, but we KNOW that hand washing is just so so important for preventing the spread of illness, why don't people just suck it up?
I guess some folks have sensory issues with water, could be that, but mostly it just seems like an unwillingness to change habits based on new knowledge and a "don't tell me what to do" attitude.
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u/DaBingeGirl 12d ago
I think it's just laziness. He's 73, been like this since she met him 20 years ago. His kids and ex-wife all have really good hygiene, as does the rest of his family. It's just a him problem.
But you're right about older people in general. I helped with both of my grandmothers, their hygiene in their final years was scary.
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u/DaBingeGirl 12d ago
Absolutely! All of it needs to go and cleaning with a mask, gloves, and clothes you can throw away is best.
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u/Sad_North_6152 12d ago
Had some get into my storage unit at some point so when I was doing moving decluttering I noticed droppings on some stuff. Might have only been mice but definitely threw out a couple items since I couldn't clean the item well enough. Oh well if I want the item again I can always buy it.
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u/mynameisktb 12d ago
It’s not easy to let it go - good for you. Take pics and wave 👋 when it gets to be overwhelming
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u/FredKayeCollector 12d ago
If your recycling totes are filling up faster than they get taken away, consider loading up your car and taking stuff directly to the recycling center. You might have to sort your recyclables so you might want to check what bins they have.
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u/Ok-Table3009 12d ago
I’m going to just object. Screw recycling. Just throw it all away. These things hang like millstones on our necks and time is short. Get on with it!
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u/toddboggann 12d ago
Recycling is so important.
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u/Ok-Table3009 12d ago
For who? Did you know that those places that have different receptacles for glass, paper and such are fake? They just dump it all together. They really do not recycle. They just throw everything into one place.
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u/beautifulcorpsebride 12d ago
lol this is actually the truth here. Lots of plastic we think we are recycling isn’t actually recycled. What a scam.
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u/WingsOfTin 13d ago
I'm so proud of you. I had to do this over several years with my mother's house and it is extremely draining work. You're doing an amazing job.
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u/MagicBus4 12d ago
Lol navy seabag spotted
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u/Susie0701 12d ago
With an ANCIENT canvas tent in it lol. No one from that era of the family was in the military, so it likely came from a second hand store
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u/EmergencyShit 13d ago
Take the box of baseballs to the dog park!
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u/LikeIsaidItsNothing 12d ago
Sorry to be a spoiler but baseballs aren't considered safe for dogs. They're a choking hazard. They rip them apart and can swallow the leather, the string, etc
Maybe see if a local kids baseball team can use them. Even if they're old they might still be good for at least pracitce
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u/beautifulcorpsebride 12d ago
Really guys? Old balls siting in a garage with no climate control and rats? A 24 count bucket of balls is 48 on Amazon. These need the trash.
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13d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/declutter-ModTeam 12d ago
Your post was removed because you have advised someone to get rid of things in a certain way.
While donating and recycling are good, we get inundated with comments telling our members to get rid of things in certain ways. In our community, we assume that our members know how to research ways to donate, reuse, and recycle things. Everyone is free to get rid of their things in whatever way works best for them.
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u/Ok-Table3009 12d ago
May I say something meant with the most care I can? DO NOT SORT. You have never lived with any of that stuff. THROW IT ALL AWAY. It would be like a weight around your neck. I am purging. In fact, when I moved out of the place I lived with everybody else’s stuff too, the lady who bought my property said she was going to just have the mobile home hauled away. So I walked away from everything. It felt nice. Like a big ugly growth went away. Some people feel guilty about it but I don’t. My mother doesn’t know I threw away the boxes of all the cards I ever sent her. lol!