Northwood News ♦ October 2007

Do You Know About Freecycle?

By Jacquie Bokow

Have you items in your home which are perfectly useable, but just don’t suit you anymore? Maybe you’ve changed sizes and would like to get rid of the clothes that no longer fit. Perhaps someone gave you something but it turns out you aren’t able to use it, or just can’t stand it!! You have all these fine goods you’d like to get rid of, but don’t want to take the trouble to sell them on ebay.

Then you need to know about Freecycle. This is a list serve where people offer goods they no longer want for free to folks in their area. There are several Freecycle list serves, but our neighborhood is covered by the Silver Spring Freecycle Group.

This is how it works. You send an email to Freecycle-SilverSpringMD-subscribe@yahoogroups.com [Note: Freecycle is no longer hosted by Yahoo]; include your name and address so they can confirm you’re in this area (no one but the moderator will see this). You’ll receive an email welcoming you to the group and giving you “Guidelines and Etiquette” for participating.

You’ll begin getting emails (a lot!) from folks offering items they want to give away (or items they’re looking for). The subject line for each of these will state either OFFER, TAKEN, WANTED, or RECEIVED, followed by the item and, usually, the approximate location of the offerer. For instance, you may see a subject line which reads: “OFFER: loveseat (20901).” You are not allowed to include your address in your message; you give that info out only to the person to whom you are gifting your item.

In the body of the email will often be a further description of the item and, sometimes, a more specific location (i.e., “I’m in North Four Corners.”). You don’t need to open the email if you see by the subject line that you’re not interested. Just delete that email and look at the next one.

Posters are asked to be honest. If there’s a tear, stain, or it just doesn’t work, you are asked to disclose it. Someone may still want it!

The main rule is to keep it free, legal, and “appropriate for all ages” (i.e., no pornography, alcohol, tobacco, firearms, or drugs, legal or otherwise). Also not permitted: no politics, no religion, no spam, no money, no trading, no personal attacks/rudeness, no services, no advertisements, and no discussion. Those who break the rules twice are thrown out of the group.

Once you’ve offered an item, you’ll get emails directly from folks interested in it. You can choose to whom you wish to give it and arrange pick-up. Usually you put the item you’re offering outside your door and the person will come by and pick it up. You don’t need to be home or even see the individual. Then you post a “TAKEN” email. If the person doesn’t come and pick up the item within the timeframe you’ve both agreed on, you can contact another person who sent you an email and offer it to them. Easy! ■