I hate being a packrat...

Even when I have something squirreled away that I later find I needed...

For instance, I needed to clean the front sunroof drains on my Jetta. (At least I figure thats the problem.) So first I run a section of of string trimmer line down the tube. A bit of poking around and it finally goes through both sides. So thinks I, "I need to blow some air through there to make sure it's clear." I dig out a big hand pump for air mattresses or small boats and have at it. Push the pump and I can feel air come out the bottom drain. Whoopee. But wait. That is not enough. I should run some warm soapy water down the tubes to clean out any other dirt that the string and air did not loosen. So I dig around again and come up with this hand pump that I saved from who knows what and it has a nozzle that fits in the top of the sunroof drain just fine. So as I am pumping soapy through the sunroof drains and watching it squirt out the a pillar I am asking myself why do I have all this junk anyway? Even if eventually I do need some of it...

Scott

Ah, yes. Being a pack rat - such a bad habit, but I've been justified by hanging on to things so many times that I can't argue with my instinct to do so. I do occasionally take a hard look around the garage/basement and get rid of a few things though.

I have a long list of items that I've kept when my girlfriend (of 11 years) said "you'll never need that" only to have it save the day a few months later.

I am dealing with the pack rat thing with my dad, the Mexican Sanford, who never met a free tool he didn't like.

The man has a six pack of Billy Beer in his garage fridge...

If I ever got a tool or something I thought I could use as a tool for something, I still have it.

The amount of time/space/money that being a packrat absorbs FAR outweighs (after a couple of hours of searching) having the right thing already available. Basically, it's a crutch for people who don't plan. Seriously, chuck most of the E36 M3 out.

My 2 cents.

My biggest problem with packratting is that I have two big double drawer Matco toolboxes packed to the gills since its always easier to justify buying the tools than paying for the repair, especially with a Corvette and a diesel truck. I am going to need a third soon. I have a weird obsession with truck brand tools that come in blow-molded cases.

I've been trying to get rid of stuff, too. Anyone need a Honda header?

Ojala wrote: I am dealing with the pack rat thing with my dad, the Mexican Sanford, who never met a free tool he didn't like. The man has a six pack of Billy Beer in his garage fridge...

Though I'm not Latino, I somehow feel we may be related. And your Dad may be my new hero for having Billy Beer on ice....

I am a big packrat the trouble i have is i forget what i have and end up saving 3 or 4 of the same things and having multiple garages and storage areas doesnt help. I tell everyone when i retire i am going to go thru everything and put it all on the computer.....that will never happen but its a nice dream

Some day someone will ask if I have a rear quarter window for a '90 Lincoln Mark VII and I will reply "yes, which side do you want?" Nevermind that I haven't owned a Lincoln in eight years.

I have had my stash of parts come in handy WAY too many times. A mentally unbalanced coworker kicked in the grille of my car. No sweat, I had two spares in the garage and the car was back to normal the next day. The next week the insane coworkers got punted off the road by someone in a Town Car that he brake checked. Karma!

I have hauled over 2 tons of crap to the recyclers and the dump as I'm getting ready to make my long distance move, and I still have more crap than I care to admit. I try to go off the 4 year rule. If I haven't used it in 4 years. it gets sold/thrown away/recycled, but somehow I still manage to accumulate stuffs at an alarming rate.

It's turning out to be a real PITA for me during my short notice move. Too much stuff no one wants but me.

JohnyHachi6 wrote: I have a long list of items that I've kept when my girlfriend (of 11 years) said "you'll never need that" only to have it save the day a few months later.

My wife use to complain about the stuff I keep but after a couple of times me pulling something out of storage to fix something she leaves me alone.

The best was the 8 ford coil packs I got off ebay for something like $19.00 (they were miss categorized so I was the only bidder) My wife nagged me about why I got 8 when all I needed was one to fix the car. 5 years later and 4 coil packs used in the Expedition she does not say a thing. (The first coil pack was replaced at the 100K service at the cost of something like $250 for parts and labor)

Now my wife is always asking me when I get things for the cars if I should by 2. LOL

I spent all last summer unpackratting my 28x38 shop building. I remember this building being packed pretty full in 1980 and it became a dumping ground for the next 30 years with 2 brothers, parents, business ventures and relatives.

Some of the stuff that was left over from the beauty shop is confusing, the X-ray machine might be best gone, 55 gallon drum of...rocks, yes rocks, 11 hacksaws, 30 years of Popular Mechanics and Popular Science I can understand, but not a 5 drawer dresser filled with blocks of candle wax!

Tin building, Texas, summertime heat for years and wax do NOT lead to a pleasing result.

It is nice to know that you have 22 telescoping magnetic pickup tools or enough Godzilla cup holders to supply every running car you own, but I need to find the stash of Good car batteries, not dried out tape, markers, paint cans and WD-40.

If you should ever get the stash down to items that you can honestly say will fulfill your needs, your needs will change.

Bruce

We're moving, and de-packratting ourselves. We've sold over a dozen cars, or things which might be or might once have been legally construed as cars, and hauled uncountable full-sized pickup loads of stuff to the dump or goodwill. We've posted dozens of CL ads, too.

And yet...I find in packing and consolidating that I own no fewer than six, 6 caulking guns. Who the heck needs to do that much caulking? I can only hold, at best, two at a time, and I suspect my aim wouldn't be all that great while weilding the pair.

volvoclearinghouse wrote: I can only hold, at best, two at a time, and I suspect my aim wouldn't be all that great while weilding the pair.

Lol

my wife thinks im a pack rat. At least I throw stuff out. occasionally.

For some reason I almost always hang on to fasteners if there is nothing wrong with them. (nuts, bolts, screws, etc.). Ill hang on to used fasteners, or extra fasteners that come with furniture or some other item that required assembly.

2 years later ill be digging through them and find one that is the right size and thread pitch for my need at the time and im glad I kept it.

failboat wrote: my wife thinks im a pack rat. At least I throw stuff out. occasionally. For some reason I almost always hang on to fasteners if there is nothing wrong with them. (nuts, bolts, screws, etc.). Ill hang on to used fasteners, or extra fasteners that come with furniture or some other item that required assembly. 2 years later ill be digging through them and find one that is the right size and thread pitch for my need at the time and im glad I kept it.

I think that is a liiiitttttttlllllle bit different. If you need nuts and bolts, you usual buy assortments of them. Used, free assortments (and they take up no space) is hardly being packratish, it is being efficient and cost effective.

6 caulking guns though? Packrat.

HiTempguy wrote: 6 caulking guns though? Packrat.

I'll show you. I'm going to have 5 friends over and we're going to go nuts on my upstairs bathroom.