do you keep the boxes of items you purchased?

Philippines
January 8, 2010 6:42pm CST
my wife everytime we clean the house she gets really mad on boxes that i keep.... specially under the bed. i keep boxes of items we purchased or items we bought. she said i dont need to keep it but for me it is important that we keep it. for if ever we need to dispose it already we can put it inside the box then dispose it. or we can sell it second hand and put it neatly on the box. its okay for her if its small boxes like ipods, cellphones and things like that. but some boxes i keep are from irons, hand blenders and the likes. though i dont keep boxes of tv, fridge and stove har har har that would really look like crazy. how about you do you keep boxes of item you bought? and is the reason you have is same as mine?
1 person likes this
19 responses
@jojorv (201)
• Philippines
9 Jan 10
i usually keep the box of an item i purchased if i have plans of selling it later on. but for item that i have no plans of selling, i just dispose of the box or use it on other things like storage.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
that is why i do keep those box, for that purpose. i do sell items when i gt tired of it or if i know that i wont be using it again. when PS2 was born i sold my PS in its original box on a good price. so the boxes are important for me for i will sell the item in the future. thanks a lot for the response
@BinaryKat (735)
• United States
9 Jan 10
For me, it really depends on the product. We try not to keep too many boxes in the house as it creates clutter. Also the cats like to tear the crap out of boxes and it gets all over the floor. If it is something small then yeah I will keep it. For example, for a wedding gift, someone gave me a small spa thing that goes in the tub. I tried it one time and didn't like it as much so I put it back in the original box. It is sitting in the closet collecting dust. I also kept a set of glasses that a relative gave in its box since we had no where to place the glasses out the box.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
thats exactly what my wife said, it is clutter. and our house is not that big for my clutter. when i got my first PS i kept the box, when i was getting tired of it i put it inside the box and sell it. thats the purpose of the boxes there. if i sell it without the box then it would be way more than the one with a box. thanks a lot for the response
@Hatley (163776)
• Garden Grove, California
9 Jan 10
se7enthbird I do tend to keep boxes from items Ihave bought or have been given to me as gifts, as at times you may need to store it or you,God forbid, may have to move, and the item that belongs in the box will fit perfectly and you can mark its name at once.also some things we store come in great storage type boxes so yes I do save a lot of those boxes.So my reasons may be a tad different than yours but if our ideas work why not?
@agv0419 (3022)
• Philippines
9 Jan 10
I'm also keeping the boxes from the items we bought because I may need them if ever I'm going to sell the item. My mother got angry with me because I keep the boxes and she said I should throw it away so we can use the space that the boxes stored. I don't want to throw them because I want to use them or sell it in the junkshop.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
hi there dear hatley, yes that is a good idea too. if we need to move then the things can be kept neatly in the box. but last september we are hit badly by a storm and flood rush into house so high. some of the boxes got soaked wet and it added a hard time to clean the house. my wife said if we give the boxes away for recycling the house will be neat. but i sell a few items already with the box. some items without the box are not same as the price without the box. me and agv0419 has the same reasons. for it is really nice to sell the item placed neatly in the box, but like your mother and my wife says, the boxes eats space, makes clutter and invites dirt. thanks a lot for the responses
@Roseo8 (2947)
• India
9 Jan 10
Hello se7enth,I am afraid I am more like your wife...I like to keep my home neat and clean and dont like to clutter it with old and useless items...My hubby meticulously keeps boxes and wrappings for future use...But very often these cardboard boxes get infested with cockroaches,so I prefer to throw them away and not to store them.....
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
now i guess that is what wife normally do, get rid of things that are no longer in use but we husband have a different thinking. it can be clutter for wives but it can be a future treasure for us husabnds. but i agree some of the boxes are infested with cockroaches and rats but i do keep it neatly.... i guess har har har. thanks a lot for the response
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@Roseo8 (2947)
• India
27 Jan 10
wow se7enth...thanks for the BR...This one is special becasue it is the first one after my return to mylot after a loooong interval...!!
@Tallygirl09 (1380)
• United States
9 Jan 10
No I don't usually keep them but your reasons are good ones! Maybe if you broke them down so they were flat it wouldn't bother her so much. Or maybe find another place rather than under the bed to store them! I can recall a time when I wish I was like you and saved the box! It was for a Digital Camera that broke after 1 week! And I had to find a box, buy bubble wrap etc so I could ship it to them for repair. Would have been sooo much easier if I hadn't tossed the box out!! And tell your wife, if that is the worst thing you do, then she should count her lucky stars!!
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
congrats on reaching your 100th post tally. if i broke down the box it wont look presentable anymore if i will be selling the item together with the box. har har har telling her to count her lucky stars is a great idea. i guess she is lucky and i am lucky too. thanks a lot for the response and have a great weekend.
• United States
10 Jan 10
Hi - thank you!! I didn't even realize I was that close! What I meant by break them down is to cut the bottom open so you can lay the box flat. That shouldn't effect how it looks when it's taped back together as long as you use packing tape. We do it all the time! Hope you have a Wonderful Weekend too!
@BART78 (2927)
• Canada
9 Jan 10
hey! that's a nice practice in helping our mother earth, you can recycle those boxes or sell them, i also keep those boxes, canister and bottles and put them in a large box and recycle them...
1 person likes this
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
that was not on my mind for that purpose, but now that you told me that i have another reason to keep those boxes, and i have a good reason to tell my wife not to throw it away. har har har i can imagine the look on her face. thanks a lot for a good suggestion and the response as well.
• India
9 Jan 10
Actually i would like to throw away the boxes of the items that i purchased,escept the cellphone box.because in India if you need to sell a cellphone you need to have its box and its original accesories and moreover if you need to repair it under the warranty period you need to have the box as the box only contains the IMEI number and the date of the purchase and that makes me to have the box of the cellphone..other than that i would throw away all the other boxes of the items that i'm purchasing... Happy Mylotting..
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
wow, sure they are kinda strict there in india when it comes to selling and repairing cell phones. some of people here throw away the boxes for you can go to any technician no have your cellphone fix if you have a problem. if the cellphone is still new and you need to bring it back to where you purchased it you just need to bring the receipt. thanks for sharing that here on us and thanks for the response as well.
@youless (112482)
• Guangzhou, China
9 Jan 10
Most of the time I don't keep the boxes of the items I purchased. But now I start to keep the boxes of the shoes. If I don't wear the shoes, at least I can keep them well and they can be in good order. I love China
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
its okay if the boxes of shoes are kept for the shoes are kept inside of the boxes. the boxes i keep are boxes with nothing inside. its just for future use if i sell the items that goes with the box. its presentable to sell an item even it is used in a neat box. thanks a lot for the response
9 Jan 10
I do tend to keep boxes and often other things such as jars and containers if I can re-use them for something rather than throw them away. I find it a good way to recycle them by finding a use for them at home rather than throw them away for the sake of it. There is so much waste already and when most of the packaging is not required to protect the product it seems logical to me to try to reduce waste.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
welcome to the wonderful world of mylot, you are on your 97th post just three more and you will get your star already. goodluck. the big box that i can not keep i bring it on for recycling. there are places where we can bring that. but the small box i keep for a different reason but still my wife gets angry for it collects dust and invites spiders and other insects. thanks a lot for the response
@JenInTN (27514)
• United States
9 Jan 10
Hi se7enthbird! I do save my boxes. For most of the same reasons that you do. I also like to save my shoe boxes for my painting supplies. I keep them in the basement until I need them. You never know when you need a good box..lol..I don't have many that I'm not using but I do have a couple.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
lucky for you that you have a basement to keep things you wanted to keep. we are only renting a small apartment and we dont have a basement. we dont even have a garage so i just keep it under the bed. i am the one who cleans our bedroom but of course she checks whats under the bed evry once in a while. har har har and thats what she saw. thanks a lot for the response
• Boston, Massachusetts
9 Jan 10
Hi 7thbird, i am selective in the kind of box to keep. me and mom love collecting boxes and recycle them. but it's not healthy in a way because it will acumulate dust and later can be a place for dust mites and can trigger allergies. bigger ones are great choice for selling some we give away to those who want or ask for it.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
now you sound like my wife, she told me that the boxes collects dust that will trigger allergies. i dont keep big boxes just the small ones, but our house is not that big for my clutter thats what she said... har har har she sounds like a mom and i look like her child getting scoulded. thanks a lot for the response and enjoy your weekend
• Boston, Massachusetts
10 Jan 10
...because that's the real truth. dust accumulate easily and it's really not healthy especially if we have kids. no problem as long as she is not nagging you for that it's okay. it will be for the benefit or everyone. so better think twice for keeping small, medium or big boxes hehehehe.
@monkeylong (3139)
• Guangzhou, China
9 Jan 10
As far as I am concerned, I think I have keep the boxes of items I have purchased. Sometimes, I just put them away at the place which has not done some disturb to people around.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
lucky for you if you have a big space. me and my wife lives in a small apartment so we dont have a big space, so i keep it under the bed that of course gets dust every now and then. i am the one who cleans our room so she wont see the boxes, but of course every once and a while she checks whats under the bed. har har har.thanks a lot for the response
@maria1081 (1251)
• Philippines
9 Jan 10
As much as possible I dont want to keep boxes. Mosquitoes, coackroaches and rats will likely hide on those boxes, so I dispose most of them. Some boxes were also use for starting a fire for charcoal grilling purposes. I keep beautiful boxes for storage purposes.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
thats the reason why my wife does not like keeping boxes under the bed, it invites insects and collects dust. and since i place it under the bed we will all be breathing the dust while we are sleeping. but i do keep it neatly.... i guess har har har. thanks a lot for the response
@stand87 (664)
• Bulgaria
10 Jan 10
Oh, I keep these boxes too! This is making me lot of garbage and sometimes I just have no chance and put them in the trash. But if I have enough space to collect them somehow, I'm gonna make huge collection of boxes. They keep memories sometimes :) The box of my first video game, cellphone, DVD and so many others . . . You check the box and you say " Oh, that's from my first phone! I almost forgot about it " Just a little things of my life :)
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
welcome to the wonderful world of mylot. reading your response i can say THAT IS CLUTTER har har har. i dont keep boxes for memories for sure that will fill the whole house. we only havea small apartment. no basement and no garage that is why i keep the boxes under the bed. i keep boxes of video games and consoles for if i sell these items it would be presentable inside the box. thanks a lot for the response and hope to se you more.
@vandana7 (100148)
• India
9 Jan 10
That is nice but here we have another issue. We get lizards, ants, cockroaches, spiders, and termites. But my father loves to collect such things, and he keeps them empty, which is annoying. :) Ah! well, what is a small inconvenience in front of love, isn't it? :)
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
there again, one of my wife's reason. it invites not just insects but dust as well that triggers allergies. we dont have a big space and we dont even have a garage for we are just renting a small apartment so the boxes (as she was complaining) eats space. but it does help a lot on selling the items when you sell it with the box. thanks a lot for the response
• Philippines
9 Jan 10
Hi there, very well said...I like how you help in preserving our mother earth. You can actually recycled those boxes. Well, I also do keep some boxes of items I purchased. With small boxes, I used it for gift wrapping. For medium or large boxes, I either use it for a garbage can or a box for old stuff.
• Philippines
10 Jan 10
the big boxes i bring it somewhere for recycling, but the boxes of cellphones, ipod and gadgets like that i keep it for if i want to sell the item it would be presentable with the box. thanks for the response and have a great weekend
@umabharti (3972)
• India
9 Jan 10
Recycling is a very good habit.i too try in many ways to use such things.But not to keep them for a long time because this causes a dust and large space occuping.We can definetly sale them or use to keep some things in them so to avoid dust.
• United States
9 Jan 10
I keep all of my boxes.They come in handy when moving. Its more of a habit for me.I like to keep the instruction manuals in the original boxes the item came in, or just in case i may need to return the item. I don't see anything wrong with it.
9 Jan 10
Even I do the same. And it actually paid off when some of the stuff I bought and wanted to return back. I normally keep all the stuff till the guarantee expires. Anyways, that's my excuse to be a mess.