Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 21

estate sale/ceiling fans

| Scrap Metal Tips and Advice
  1. #1
    mike1 started this thread.
    mike1's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Rochester indiana
    Posts
    634
    Thanks
    337
    Thanked 108 Times in 90 Posts

    estate sale/ceiling fans

    i saw that there is going to be a estate sale for 2 days and i dont have any money but i was going to go look around anyway to see what they have. i was thinking of giving the person my number and what i take since its close by. sometimes on the last day they just want to get rid of stuff instead of hauling it back in. has anyone had luck with estate sales getting stuff for free at the end? i was wandering how much brass is on a ceiling fan?

  2. The Following User Says Thank You to mike1 for This Post:



  3. #2
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Apr 2013
    Location
    western ny
    Posts
    83
    Thanks
    134
    Thanked 123 Times in 56 Posts
    I have not pursued any estate sales, so no reply to this item.

    Regarding brass on everyday type ceiling fans, generally speaking, none. Maybe on high end fans?????

  4. The Following User Says Thank You to btkr for This Post:


  5. #3
    hobo finds's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Nov 2010
    Location
    tucson, az
    Posts
    4,758
    Thanks
    6,037
    Thanked 5,910 Times in 2,556 Posts
    The pull chains normally are.

  6. The Following 4 Users say Thank You for This Post by hobo finds:


  7. #4
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Sep 2013
    Posts
    95
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 84 Times in 42 Posts
    98% of fans are the typical stuff, steel cover, fan motor, cast blade attachments. Every now and again though, you get lucky. I remember one fan that was almost all brass except the motor. Another was cast aluminum for the cover.

  8. The Following 3 Users say Thank You for This Post by ozarksewaste:


  9. #5
    HipoGear's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    May 2015
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    734
    Thanks
    2,048
    Thanked 945 Times in 409 Posts
    It really cannot hurt to stop in and offer that service. We are currently doing an estate sale for my Grandmother ... today and tomorrow. We had a great day today but there will always be stuff leftover.

    Keep in mind though that the estate sale usually precedes the sale of the house. Most fixtures will stay with the house.

    In our case, there isn't much scrap. Any thing left of value I will likely try to sell online. My Mom has already mentioned a few places to call to come haul stuff away so your chances are pretty good. However, they will really want someone that is ready to haul all kinds of stuff, not just the brass
    Copper, brass, and Leather. 3 of my favorite things.

  10. The Following 5 Users say Thank You for This Post by HipoGear:


  11. #6
    t00nces2's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Jul 2014
    Location
    Sarasota, FL
    Posts
    1,707
    Thanks
    1,191
    Thanked 2,350 Times in 964 Posts
    A ceiling fan is not much. Here they classify it as a light motor and it pays $0.07, so a 20# fan would get you $1.40. Ok, I am going to put this as nicely and delicately as I can and I don't mean to be insulting. If you do not have enough money to buy an old ceiling fan from an estate sale, you do not have enough money to buy Ramon noodles for dinner. I hunt garage sales with $100 in my pocket and another three in the truck. If you don't have $20 to burn... TO BURN, you need to learn to budget your money more effectively. There would be enough change under my floor mat to buy a ceiling fan I was getting to scrap.

    For me, garage sales MAKE ME MONEY. Take $20 and put it in an envelope.
    Only buy from a garage sale;
    TO BUY SOMETHING TO SERIOUSLY IMPROVE YOUR LIFE (and many times, I will replace the garage sale purse money used for personal use with money earned for living expenses)
    or SOMETHING YOU THINK YOU CAN FLIP TO MAKE MONEY.
    Take what you make and put it back into your garage sale purse. DO NOT USE GARAGE SALE PURSE MONEY TO BUY BEER AND CIGS! ONLY PULL MONEY OUT OF THE GARAGE SALE PURSE TO GET MORE MONEY TO PUT INTO YOUR GARAGE SALE PURSE.

    I have put thousands of dollars away that is there to use to put into anything I think I can flip to make money or to purchase investments I believe will be a store of wealth AND IT ALL STARTED WITH A $20 BILL.

  12. The Following 5 Users say Thank You for This Post by t00nces2:


  13. #7
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Apr 2013
    Location
    western ny
    Posts
    83
    Thanks
    134
    Thanked 123 Times in 56 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by t00nces2 View Post
    A ceiling fan is not much. Here they classify it as a light motor and it pays $0.07, so a 20# fan would get you $1.40. Ok, I am going to put this as nicely and delicately as I can and I don't mean to be insulting. If you do not have enough money to buy an old ceiling fan from an estate sale, you do not have enough money to buy Ramon noodles for dinner. I hunt garage sales with $100 in my pocket and another three in the truck. If you don't have $20 to burn... TO BURN, you need to learn to budget your money more effectively. There would be enough change under my floor mat to buy a ceiling fan I was getting to scrap.

    For me, garage sales MAKE ME MONEY. Take $20 and put it in an envelope.
    Only buy from a garage sale;
    TO BUY SOMETHING TO SERIOUSLY IMPROVE YOUR LIFE (and many times, I will replace the garage sale purse money used for personal use with money earned for living expenses)
    or SOMETHING YOU THINK YOU CAN FLIP TO MAKE MONEY.
    Take what you make and put it back into your garage sale purse. DO NOT USE GARAGE SALE PURSE MONEY TO BUY BEER AND CIGS! ONLY PULL MONEY OUT OF THE GARAGE SALE PURSE TO GET MORE MONEY TO PUT INTO YOUR GARAGE SALE PURSE.

    I have put thousands of dollars away that is there to use to put into anything I think I can flip to make money or to purchase investments I believe will be a store of wealth AND IT ALL STARTED WITH A $20 BILL.
    I don't do the garage sale thing(yet), but your advice is absolutely 100%. I work out of a "kitty" also. It can be referred as working capital. Put it back and you'll have the cash for (insert choice), instead of "f$$$, I don't have any money."

    Once you have a little surplus in your account, invest in some decent hand tools. Than power tools. Or vice versa, as needed. Make some more money and put it back. Money makes money.

  14. The Following User Says Thank You to btkr for This Post:


  15. #8
    HipoGear's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    May 2015
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    734
    Thanks
    2,048
    Thanked 945 Times in 409 Posts
    Excellent advice Toonces. It takes a certain level of commitment I have not yet developed myself. Seems there is always some more important need for that money.
    Usually food, heat, electric, car repairs, veterinarian, etc.

    I applaud your discipline and aspire to get there myself.

    Estate Sale update:

    We had a very good two days for this area. The house is on the lake, on a dirt lane, at least an hour from any real city. So we were sure that we wouldn't have much traffic.

    We got rid of about two thirds of the stuff. Didn't sell any of the bigger ticket items ($300 was the the most expensive items). But do have a woman coming on Monday to take the stackable washer and dryer for $100 each. Total sales for the two days was just over $1200.

    I have several items I will sell on Ebay or Craigslist over the next couple weeks. But all in, I think everyone was very happy to find great new homes for all of her memories.

  16. The Following 5 Users say Thank You for This Post by HipoGear:


  17. #9
    t00nces2's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Jul 2014
    Location
    Sarasota, FL
    Posts
    1,707
    Thanks
    1,191
    Thanked 2,350 Times in 964 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by HipoGear View Post
    Excellent advice Toonces. It takes a certain level of commitment I have not yet developed myself. Seems there is always some more important need for that money.
    Usually food, heat, electric, car repairs, veterinarian, etc.

    I applaud your discipline and aspire to get there myself.

    Estate Sale update:

    We had a very good two days for this area. The house is on the lake, on a dirt lane, at least an hour from any real city. So we were sure that we wouldn't have much traffic.

    We got rid of about two thirds of the stuff. Didn't sell any of the bigger ticket items ($300 was the the most expensive items). But do have a woman coming on Monday to take the stackable washer and dryer for $100 each. Total sales for the two days was just over $1200.

    I have several items I will sell on Ebay or Craigslist over the next couple weeks. But all in, I think everyone was very happy to find great new homes for all of her memories.
    Got it. The way I look at garage sale and scrap money is that I cannot count on it at all. Every penny I get is found money and I cannot plan my life around finding money.

    Nice job on the sale.

  18. The Following 2 Users say Thank You for This Post by t00nces2:


  19. #10
    mike1 started this thread.
    mike1's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Rochester indiana
    Posts
    634
    Thanks
    337
    Thanked 108 Times in 90 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by HipoGear View Post
    Excellent advice Toonces. It takes a certain level of commitment I have not yet developed myself. Seems there is always some more important need for that money.
    Usually food, heat, electric, car repairs, veterinarian, etc.

    I applaud your discipline and aspire to get there myself.

    Estate Sale update:

    We had a very good two days for this area. The house is on the lake, on a dirt lane, at least an hour from any real city. So we were sure that we wouldn't have much traffic.

    We got rid of about two thirds of the stuff. Didn't sell any of the bigger ticket items ($300 was the the most expensive items). But do have a woman coming on Monday to take the stackable washer and dryer for $100 each. Total sales for the two days was just over $1200.

    I have several items I will sell on Ebay or Craigslist over the next couple weeks. But all in, I think everyone was very happy to find great new homes for all of her memories.
    agreed


  20. #11
    Breakage's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Aug 2016
    Posts
    297
    Thanks
    242
    Thanked 273 Times in 149 Posts
    Garage sale arbitrage is something I've looked at doing but never taken too seriously. I spent a lot of time at yard sales when I was younger and had time and disposable income. But as eBay and Craigslist have chewed up most of the decent secondhand market, I find it harder to get anything with resale value from front lawns and these thrifty yanks don't like to let anything go for below 75% of OEM pricing. No shortage of old Tupperware and Christmas decorations but I sure don't find old silverware like I once did. They also don't believe in taking stuff in out of the rain, apparently. I know there is good stuff, somewhere, but I don't have an entire morning to dig through wet Rubbermaid totes full of Cat Fancy and Runner's Digest to find it. Plus, population density in VT is pretty low so making a day of "garage shopping" might yield only a handful of stops. If time and fuel are factors in your considerations of your net costs, be mindful that, even though you are enjoying the drive on a sunny weekend morning, technically, you are at work and everything you do is at your own expense.

    I have had luck doing arb at the local charity thrift stores. It's hit and miss but if you pick things which you know generally escape the eye of discerning staff (board games, for example), it's not hard to triple your money, at least.

  21. The Following 2 Users say Thank You for This Post by Breakage:


  22. #12
    HipoGear's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    May 2015
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    734
    Thanks
    2,048
    Thanked 945 Times in 409 Posts
    I have done my fair share of resale. Occasionally I will buy if an item is unusually cool, without doing my due diligence. Most of the time I won't buy unless I can triple my money.

    You are right about the time and travel. Not too mention it can get pretty tiring on those hot days.

    Another avenue is auctions. But you have to get to know the venue or auctioneer. There is an auction house near me that does weekly auctions. When I first started going, you could get some great stuff reasonably. Then the audience of collectors grew. Now I will still go on occasion but hold my money until the end. When the crowd thins and the time is getting late, they begin selling boxes of stuff. I can often snag some great deals then.

  23. The Following User Says Thank You to HipoGear for This Post:


  24. #13
    SMF Badges of Honor



    Member since
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    2,168
    Thanks
    632
    Thanked 2,503 Times in 1,138 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by mike1 View Post
    i saw that there is going to be a estate sale for 2 days and i dont have any money but i was going to go look around anyway to see what they have. i was thinking of giving the person my number and what i take since its close by. sometimes on the last day they just want to get rid of stuff instead of hauling it back in. has anyone had luck with estate sales getting stuff for free at the end? i was wandering how much brass is on a ceiling fan?
    Some are converting the ceiling fan motor to wind generator.

    I previously brought a couple of them home from the dump, neither were permanent magnet motors, magnets are part of the modifications. One I brought home this afternoon of you turn the shaft you can feel it cogging,so I know its a permanent magnet motor and will need very few mods.

    Don;t let the brass fool ya, it's only anodized over cheap metal, probably non magnetic but the weight of those parts would be a dead give away.

  25. The Following User Says Thank You to alloy2 for This Post:


  26. #14
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Apr 2013
    Location
    western ny
    Posts
    83
    Thanks
    134
    Thanked 123 Times in 56 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by mike1 View Post
    i saw that there is going to be a estate sale for 2 days and i dont have any money but i was going to go look around anyway to see what they have. i was thinking of giving the person my number and what i take since its close by. sometimes on the last day they just want to get rid of stuff instead of hauling it back in. has anyone had luck with estate sales getting stuff for free at the end? i was wandering how much brass is on a ceiling fan?

    What is the outcome?

  27. #15
    HipoGear's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    May 2015
    Location
    Rochester, NY
    Posts
    734
    Thanks
    2,048
    Thanked 945 Times in 409 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by alloy2 View Post
    Some are converting the ceiling fan motor to wind generator.
    My understanding was that for wind generation it needs to be a DC motor. Using an AC motor would limit your ability to correct or store the energy. I know that treadmill motors are often used.

  28. #16
    SMF Badges of Honor



    Member since
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    2,168
    Thanks
    632
    Thanked 2,503 Times in 1,138 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by HipoGear View Post
    My understanding was that for wind generation it needs to be a DC motor. Using an AC motor would limit your ability to correct or store the energy. I know that treadmill motors are often used.
    Can use either DC or AC the latter is more preferred as its possible to transmit power over further distances using less expensive wire while DC current has much loss over distance and requires much heavier cables to distribute the power.

    Thomas Edison promoted DC power, George Westinghouse with his AC current prevailed.

    The most efficient wind generators used for small off grid operations produce AC current, the AC current is rectified to DC near the battery bank.

    Automotive alternators in fact produce 3 phase AC current which for charging a battery is converted to DC before reaching the battery.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ames_H...nerating_Plant


  29. The Following 2 Users say Thank You for This Post by alloy2:


  30. #17
    mike1 started this thread.
    mike1's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Rochester indiana
    Posts
    634
    Thanks
    337
    Thanked 108 Times in 90 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by t00nces2 View Post
    A ceiling fan is not much. Here they classify it as a light motor and it pays $0.07, so a 20# fan would get you $1.40. Ok, I am going to put this as nicely and delicately as I can and I don't mean to be insulting. If you do not have enough money to buy an old ceiling fan from an estate sale, you do not have enough money to buy Ramon noodles for dinner. I hunt garage sales with $100 in my pocket and another three in the truck. If you don't have $20 to burn... TO BURN, you need to learn to budget your money more effectively. There would be enough change under my floor mat to buy a ceiling fan I was getting to scrap.

    For me, garage sales MAKE ME MONEY. Take $20 and put it in an envelope.
    Only buy from a garage sale;
    TO BUY SOMETHING TO SERIOUSLY IMPROVE YOUR LIFE (and many times, I will replace the garage sale purse money used for personal use with money earned for living expenses)
    or SOMETHING YOU THINK YOU CAN FLIP TO MAKE MONEY.
    Take what you make and put it back into your garage sale purse. DO NOT USE GARAGE SALE PURSE MONEY TO BUY BEER AND CIGS! ONLY PULL MONEY OUT OF THE GARAGE SALE PURSE TO GET MORE MONEY TO PUT INTO YOUR GARAGE SALE PURSE.

    I have put thousands of dollars away that is there to use to put into anything I think I can flip to make money or to purchase investments I believe will be a store of wealth AND IT ALL STARTED WITH A $20 BILL.
    i dont like ramen i do like the chow mein teryaki beef its more but i think it does not taste like salt like ramen does icky. i also dont drink beer or smoke nasty habbits i do have a donut addiction i think lol and the iced coffee quarts you get at walmart are good to=)

  31. #18
    mike1 started this thread.
    mike1's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Rochester indiana
    Posts
    634
    Thanks
    337
    Thanked 108 Times in 90 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by Breakage View Post
    Garage sale arbitrage is something I've looked at doing but never taken too seriously. I spent a lot of time at yard sales when I was younger and had time and disposable income. But as eBay and Craigslist have chewed up most of the decent secondhand market, I find it harder to get anything with resale value from front lawns and these thrifty yanks don't like to let anything go for below 75% of OEM pricing. No shortage of old Tupperware and Christmas decorations but I sure don't find old silverware like I once did. They also don't believe in taking stuff in out of the rain, apparently. I know there is good stuff, somewhere, but I don't have an entire morning to dig through wet Rubbermaid totes full of Cat Fancy and Runner's Digest to find it. Plus, population density in VT is pretty low so making a day of "garage shopping" might yield only a handful of stops. If time and fuel are factors in your considerations of your net costs, be mindful that, even though you are enjoying the drive on a sunny weekend morning, technically, you are at work and everything you do is at your own expense.

    I have had luck doing arb at the local charity thrift stores. It's hit and miss but if you pick things which you know generally escape the eye of discerning staff (board games, for example), it's not hard to triple your money, at least.
    yeah some board games are worth a ton and they are making a comeback i saw on the news so that i would think would make them worth even more since people are playing them again=)

  32. #19
    mike1 started this thread.
    mike1's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Rochester indiana
    Posts
    634
    Thanks
    337
    Thanked 108 Times in 90 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by alloy2 View Post
    Some are converting the ceiling fan motor to wind generator.

    I previously brought a couple of them home from the dump, neither were permanent magnet motors, magnets are part of the modifications. One I brought home this afternoon of you turn the shaft you can feel it cogging,so I know its a permanent magnet motor and will need very few mods.

    Don;t let the brass fool ya, it's only anodized over cheap metal, probably non magnetic but the weight of those parts would be a dead give away.
    yes since brass is heavy

  33. #20
    hobo finds's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Nov 2010
    Location
    tucson, az
    Posts
    4,758
    Thanks
    6,037
    Thanked 5,910 Times in 2,556 Posts
    neighbor was having a yard sale so we put some stuff out sold a ceiling fan I replaced for $5 much more than scrap


  34. Similar threads on the Scrap Metal Forum

    1. Hardware from ceiling fans
      By wayne1956 in forum Scrap Metal Questions and Answers
      Replies: 13
      Last Post: 11-28-2018, 08:25 PM
    2. Ceiling lights
      By pawpaw in forum Made From Scrap
      Replies: 2
      Last Post: 07-02-2014, 10:27 AM
    3. First Estate Sale of 2014
      By Sabby in forum A Day in the Life of a Scrapper
      Replies: 4
      Last Post: 03-16-2014, 05:44 PM
    4. estate sale
      By Jonniebrass in forum General Electronics Recycling
      Replies: 1
      Last Post: 10-31-2012, 04:12 PM
    5. My estate sale pickup today and a HUGE positive Karma hit
      By PartTimeScrapper in forum A Day in the Life of a Scrapper
      Replies: 9
      Last Post: 12-01-2011, 09:49 PM

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 5 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 5 guests)

 
Browse the Most Recent Threads
On SMF In THIS CATEGORY.





OR

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

The Scrap Metal Forum

    The Scrap Metal Forum is the #1 scrap metal recycling community in the world. Here we talk about the scrap metal business, making money, where we connect with other scrappers, scrap yards and more.

SMF on Facebook and Twitter

Twitter Facebook