Question about dump diggin..

[creskol]

I have the opportunity to scavenge an old family dump .. probably dates to the late teens -1920's on through the 1960's. Preliminary walk through shows lots of lawnmower parts, early appliances, tin cans, broken glass etc. My question is, do you think it is worth the time to pick through this junk? Part of me says go for it, but the majority of me says forget it! What's your thoughts?

 

[Jason in Enid]

You'll never know if you don't try. The 19 teens - twenties is getting to the latter period of collecting glass because is was mainly machine made by then. But you can still find early examples, or local bottling works that can still be worth $$$.

I say go dig that thing!

Here is my recommendation (and personal practice) for digging dumps. Find the the outer edge and dig down there in clean soil. then work your way sideways into the dump. Don't get going too fast because everything is connected like a puzzle, and it's easy to break things you don't want broken.

 

[creskol]

Thanks for the tips and the thoughts, Jason! I appreciate your reply.

 

[spartacus53]

Here is my recommendation (and personal practice) for digging dumps. Find the the outer edge and dig down there in clean soil. then work your way sideways into the dump. Don't get going too fast because everything is connected like a puzzle, and it's easy to break things you don't want broken.

I must respectfully disagree with the above method after reading your original thought, as you seem a bit hesitant for this project.

I don't know how high things are piled, nor the area it covers, but that doesn't matter in my method. You really need to jump into the thick of things and I mean that literally. Dive into the center, work your way down to the soil, then try and build a path out. Good thing is you may have little choice to do some work before you can get out

My way makes you make a commitment, unlike Jason's that you can walk away from

 

[creskol]

I must respectfully disagree with the above method after reading your original thought, as you seem a bit hesitant for this project.

I don't know how high things are piled, nor the area it covers, but that doesn't matter in my method. You really need to jump into the thick of things and I mean that literally. Dive into the center, work your way down to the soil, then try and build a path out. Good thing is you may have little choice to do some work before you can get out

My way makes you make a commitment, unlike Jason's that you can walk away from

I was actually thing of tunneling in from underneath under the assumption that all the oldest stuff would be on the bottom.

 

[Sandman]

I have the opportunity to scavenge an old family dump .. probably dates to the late teens -1920's on through the 1960's. Preliminary walk through shows lots of lawnmower parts, early appliances, tin cans, broken glass etc. My question is, do you think it is worth the time to pick through this junk? Part of me says go for it, but the majority of me says forget it! What's your thoughts?

I get the impression that you don't know if it would be worth it for any profit instead of just doing it for the fun and being rewarded with something that is collectable and maybe worth some $$$ to someone that collects. I'd start on the edge and work your way to the center and down to bare dirt. Have collection piles on the rim for what you think is interesting. Take pictures.

 

[spartacus53]

creskol. whichever way you decide to go, just have a blast with it. It sounds like it may be a goldmine in the process

 

[silversnacher]

Sounds like a great time to me go for it! Even if you don't find stuff worth thousands its fun to dig bromo selzers and old Pepsi bottles.

 

[NOLA_Ken]

If you can get a truck close to it, haul all that iron to the scrapyard while you're digging. That way even if there's nothing good under it, you'll have a few bucks for a beer when it's all over.

 

[fistfulladirt]

Don't forget to sift the soil for old coins and jewelry~

 

[generic username]

If you can get a truck close to it, haul all that iron to the scrapyard while you're digging. That way even if there's nothing good under it, you'll have a few bucks for a beer when it's all over.

about a year ago i cleaned up a old dump in the back yard at my dads place, took 3 truck loads of metal (in a small dodge dakota) to the salvage yard and got $360 for rusty iron.

 

[Dihren]

Who cares if you dont find anything valuable! It would be fun as heck to go through, and you might find something not worth any money, but that you like!

 

[Ibmike1655]

From past experience, I would say to start from the edge working in. Just because it is from the 20 - 30's, does not mean that they did not throw something out that had been sitting around for the last 50 or so years and just got tired of it, so out it went. I have found items that were over 100 years older than the dump I was digging in. Also a good idea to sift the bottom for coins and jewelry because they do turn up from time to time. Wear good gloves and enjoy.

 

[gleaner1]

A lot of the newer surface dumps, say twenties thru sixties have good chance of treasure other than strictly bottles. Many have old shingles from long ago roofing jobs that preserve beer cans and acl sodas nicely. Plus, if you are lucky, you will find clean-out goods like metal toys and crocks and cast iron bathroom scales, car parts, spittoons, chamber pots, all kinds of treasures. As far as actually digging the dump, just start poking around, try to find the deepest part. If you dig out big paint cans with lids on, open them up and check for beer cans. Sounds crazy but we have found plenty of very well preserved beer cans inside bigger cans. Pruning shears, shovels, hoes and potato rakes. Gloves are good to have. Beware of nails and sharp steel junk, not to mention broken glass. Wear heavy sole boots. I have to go with Spartacus on this one, I say jump right into the middle of it and see how good it is. If it is producing, then take some caution and dig with strategy, and throw all the tailings into a clean area adjacent to the dump so you can dig the whole dump if it's a good one. Keep digging until you hit bottom, sometimes the twenties dump is on top of a fifties dump. 1850's that is.