# A solution to wood hoarders syndrome



## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

My name is Robert and I have a problem…......

So when you're about to toss a piece in the burn pile you're like me "hmmm…..that could be used for something better hang on to it" and you can't even think what (?) yeah,

So here's the idea: you have 3 bins: , "Potential", "Probable" and Definitely".

1. "Possibles". Check every month or two. Toss whatever is in there and start over. Of course if you HAVE to, you can move something to the other bins, but you must resist this urge or you will end up in a viscious cycle (see below).

2. "Probable" Anything not used in 6 months goes into the "Possibles" bin.

3. "Definitely": Anthing not used in 6 months goes into "Probable".

Sound like a good idea?

Feel free to make suggestions, but I think its a logical way to handle the phobia.


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## BroncoBrian (Jan 14, 2013)

What if a board is marked possible, does it go into the potential bin?

If it is in the Definitely bin and you have not used it in 6 months, was it not time yet, or does its status change. Were you wrong from the moment you put it into the definite bin?

I am so stressed thinking about this.

2 bins: Maybe / Probably

You are right either way.


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

If you have time to keep track of how long boards have been in one bin or another, go for it. I know I sure don't.


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## Rick Dennington (Aug 27, 2009)

I think you may be on to something here, but I need to investigate further…..!!!


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## sras (Oct 31, 2009)

My technique is I put my scraps into a box. If the box is full and I have a piece I want to save, something has to come out to make room for the new piece. Keeps the quality high and the quantity limited.


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## EarlS (Dec 21, 2011)

I follow the same technique as Steve. There is a limited amount of space for scraps. I have a stack of cherry, one for walnut, another for maple, and one for oak. When the space is full then I go through it and get rid of stuff that hasn't been used or is of lower quality. Happens every month or two. Unfortunately, I've expanded into separate storage for exotic scraps and those are a lot harder the get rid of because of what they cost. That's where LJ swaps come in and other small projects to use up the pieces rather than tossing them.


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## oldnovice (Mar 7, 2009)

For now, I will stick to hoarding …. !


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## Sigung (Nov 20, 2013)

I used to have that problem, but I realized one mans trash is another man's treasure. I now keep pieces of a given size and put the rest in my little covered trailer outside. When I get a sizeable amount of scraps I put it in the free section of Craigslist. Usually gone the same day.


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

> For now, I will stick to hoarding …. !
> 
> - oldnovice


Hoard responsibly. And remember, friends never let friends hoard and drive.


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## trsnider (Nov 23, 2012)

"It's such a nice piece of wood. I might be able to use it someday."


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## BurlyBob (Mar 13, 2012)

Hi. I'm Bob and I'm a wood hoarder!


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)

My hoard is more outside - scraps of cherry, oak, hickory, maple and apricot end up in a bucket to be used in the smoker. Definitely makes the woodworking mistakes more palatable.


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## pete724 (Mar 9, 2016)

> Hi. I m Bob and I m a wood hoarder!
> 
> - BurlyBob


Hi Bob!


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## DS (Oct 10, 2011)

Last time I moved (7 1/2 years ago), I threw out and/or gave away a truck load of expensive material.
It was heart-breaking, but I am gradually re-accumulating my wood hoard.

Even if he won't admit it to himself, or his family, Robert is a wood hoarder just like the rest of us - not that there's anything wrong with that.


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## AZWoody (Jan 18, 2015)

I'm a wood hoarder probably on a scale you guys can't even imagine lol.


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## PPK (Mar 8, 2016)

> I m a wood hoarder probably on a scale you guys can t even imagine lol.
> 
> - AZWoody


lol. you sure are.

I hoard.


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## AZWoody (Jan 18, 2015)

> I m a wood hoarder probably on a scale you guys can t even imagine lol.
> 
> - AZWoody
> 
> ...


Hahahaha


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## EarlS (Dec 21, 2011)

I keep forgetting that I can use the scraps in the Big Green Egg (at least the cherry, oak, walnut, and maple). Not sure I would want to try the exotics in the smoker.


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## splintergroup (Jan 20, 2015)

Yeah, I'm a hoarder 8^)

My technique involves three tiers of storage somewhat separated for each species. I have three 33 gallon trash cans for the larger sorted scraps (white oak, red oak, everything else), beer case sized boxes for the smaller sorted scraps, and slots on a wall shelf for the thin smallest pieces. As I work on projects the waste that I don't save gets tossed into a 55 pound dog food sack stuck to the end of the TS. This gets burned during the winter, but I find myself digging into it often when I need a scrap for a jig or other need (paint stir sticks are high on the list).

The cutoff stash grows to overflow then I'll usually make a bunch of cutting boards. It's difficult to part with a block of oak about 3/4" x 2" x 4" when I know someday I'll need that! Another problem is building a project where all the wood could be pulled from this stash, but inconsistent grain/color leads me to cut up some fresh stock and breed more cutoff fodder.


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

I have this problem too. I started throwing away anything less than 1 foot long unless it was a nicer wood. Previously I had a bunch of smaller scraps including MDF moldings etc. the smaller pieces were falling off of my wall rack. I may do this again with under 2'. My OCD and hoarding are fighting against each other, and then my penny pinching weighs in to further complicate matters.


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## pottz (Sep 15, 2015)

with the high cost of wood i save pretty much anything longer than 12" if its burl wood it goes to my pen turning pile,i sure dont spend much time thinking about it though if the supply gets too big ill thin it out.just used a bunch of scraps last weekend making a cutting board for the bbg so it all gets used eventually.i guess how big a hoarder you are depends on the space you have right.


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

Never met a board I didn't like. And that's not a problem for me!


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## Ripper70 (Nov 30, 2015)

I built this shed out of scrap wood and use it to store my scrap wood.


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## Peteybadboy (Jan 23, 2013)

Hi, I'm Petey and there is no such thing as scrap. I'm a wood hoarder too. I make a little box 2 1/2 by 2 1/2 and turn it into a wine pour holder. Thus there is little to no scrap, there is the burn pile however.


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## Planeman40 (Nov 3, 2010)

I'm a cut-off wood hoarder! I keep most all cut-offs of any size sorted by general size and lengths in Lowe's blue plastic buckets. I look there for a piece to use before looking for a full board. By now I have buckets and buckets! Its a sickness!


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## oldnovice (Mar 7, 2009)

*Planeman40*, I thought I was the only bucket wood hoarder, now I know I am not alone!

About your tag line, I really wonder if that is true today?
Did you happen to see the skit done on the Jay Leno late show where they set up a street kiosk hoking 3D glasses? People were surprised, when trying these glasses, by saying actually saw things in 3D for the first time!


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## Planeman40 (Nov 3, 2010)

Actually, if you added up the I.Q. scores of everyone in the USA and divided by two you would have the median. If you added up the I.Q. scores of everyone in the USA and divided by the number of people in the USA you would have the average. But most people don't quite understand the difference so I just use what I said to make a point. If I said median, most would draw a blank.


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## jamsomito (Mar 26, 2017)

I also have this problem. My solution started as similar to OP's idea, 2 bins. One for ply scraps and one for solid wood. I quickly realized I wanted another bin to separate out hardwoods and softwoods, so I did that. Then each bin filled up and it became a game of Tetris to fit more inside the bins. When that exhausted itself it became a balancing game as each bin slowly climbed up the wall. Then I stopped trying and scraps started accumulating around the bins on the floor, and now I have a small talus slope of comingled scraps in the corner of my shop. I still go in there for something every time I'm in the shop and I always have something that'll work. It's a great system!

(Never mind the fact that inflow is greater than outflow. I'm in denial. Don't ruin it!)


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

> Actually, if you added up the I.Q. scores of everyone in the USA and divided by two you would have the median. If you added up the I.Q. scores of everyone in the USA and divided by the number of people in the USA you would have the average. But most people don t quite understand the difference so I just use what I said to make a point. If I said median, most would draw a blank.
> 
> - Planeman40


Your heart is in the right place, but your method is off for the median. It's the number that half of the population's IQ is above and the other half is below. Generally it's a much better indicator of the "average" for skewed distributions like income than the calculated mean which you accurately described.

However, since IQ tests are designed so that a given population has a mean of 100 and a certain standard deviation (we were taught it was 10, but some tests use 15 now), its distribution in a given population will closely resemble the bell curve, for which the mean, median and mode are all equal.

In other words, 100 is the mean (average) IQ, 50% of the population's IQ is higher and 50% is lower, and, it is the IQ of the largest number of people (the mode).

So, your tag line still stands true and always will.


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## Planeman40 (Nov 3, 2010)

Cut me some slack. I'm an old man now and despite having passed integral and differential calculus and differential equations at Ga Tech in the early1960s, I now have trouble adding a column of figures. Lately I am considering sewing name tags with my address and phone number in case I forget who and where I am. ;-)


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

> Cut me some slack. I m an old man now and despite having passed integral and differential calculus and differential equations at Ga Tech in the early1960s, I now have trouble adding a column of figures. Lately I am considering sewing name tags with my address and phone number in case I forget who and where I am. ;-)
> 
> - Planeman40


I can relate. What ever happened to Garanimals now that we need them?


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## 000 (Dec 9, 2015)

> I can relate. What ever happened to Garanimals now that we need them?
> - Rich


Alive and well, I'm wearing some now….....I think?


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## lumbering_on (Jan 21, 2017)

I keep hearing about this thing called 'scrap' wood, and it confuses me. I thought there was just wood you've used, wood waiting for a the 'perfect' project, and sawdust.

Now my wife, she thinks that there is something called scrap.


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## lumbering_on (Jan 21, 2017)

> Cut me some slack. I m an old man now and despite having passed integral and differential calculus and differential equations at Ga Tech in the early1960s, I now have trouble adding a column of figures. Lately I am considering sewing name tags with my address and phone number in case I forget who and where I am. ;-)
> 
> - Planeman40


My father got a card on his 75th birthday that said 'If lost, please return to the nearest bar." I think that's more useful.


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## Knockonit (Nov 5, 2017)

> I m a wood hoarder probably on a scale you guys can t even imagine lol.
> 
> - AZWoody


boy howdy i can vouch for that statement, but its all so nice hoarded goodies.

and i though i had it bad, i have to have my wood working buddy come over and throw stuff out, then i find i'm having to assist him in actually getting it done, i hate throwing anything away, even the dust, ugh, definetly something wrong with me. 
Rj in Az


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## sras (Oct 31, 2009)

Even when I have demoted some of my scraps to the burn bucket I still get a little more use out of them.

I pull one piece at a time out and then tell everyone around the campfire which project that scrap came from and how long I have held onto it.

In some cases I can even tell which part of the project resulted in that scrap.


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