The Dumpster Diving Cheat Sheet

Image courtesy of Travis Hornung

by Ryan Vagabundo

(Ed. note: There's a ton of dumpster diving advice out there, but it's generally kinda on the rambling side, a mixture of stuff that's actually useful and stuff that's really not, written by people for whom writing is not really their thing, and also hosted at sites that may disappear very suddenly.

This "living list" is meant to condense useful dumpster diving info into a quick-to-read format that's easy to print or load onto a phone / mobile device, and will be added to and refined over time. Feel free to leave suggestions for additions or changes in the comments.

All information included has been run by and approved by our Council of Hobo Elders. Advice is U.S.-centric since that's what we know, we're open to adding updates for other countries however. Enjoy your trash!)

What To Wear

• Reasonably thick footwear that covers at least the ankle and has a proper sole. Something that covers the shins is better. There's broken glass in every type of dumpster, even recycling bins meant only for paper.

• Either disposable vinyl/latex gloves, or the thicker Rubbermaid-style custodial / dishwashing kind that can be cleaned off and re-used.

• Some jeans or cargo pants / BDU bottoms and a dark-colored hoodie you don't mind getting stained.

• A baseball cap or something with a similar long brim in the front can be used to prop lids on while you look inside if the lid won't stay all the way up, needless to say only do this with LIGHT plastic lids on smaller dumpsters.

What To Bring

• A good box cutter. Blades will get gunked up and its cheap and easy to change them, usually you can store some spares in the handle. Plus cops/security will react less to these than a knife.

• Small flashlight with a set of backup batteries (in a sandwich or freezer bag). Those little cylindrical LED ones they sell at dollar stores are fine, though you might want a backup in case you drop one somewhere you can't get to it. If you want to get really advanced, you can bring a flashlight with a magnet to stick to the dumpster wall, or a headlamp.

• Poking/grabbing stick. A removable collapsible antenna from an old radio (check thrift stores, Radio Shack or buy online) with a large fishing hook secured to the end of it (ample duct tape works fine here) is a great ultra-portable solution.

• Good quality black trash bags to tie up your haul in. The goods may have bugs you don't notice inside them and this keeps them from infesting regular bags / vehicles.

• If you're using a vehicle you might add a small folding stepladder or milk crate for convenience.

The Dangers Of Bins

• Broken glass. It's everywhere, even where you don't expect it to be. People chuck bottles everywhere.

• Biohazards. Piss (in and out of bottles), poo, diapers, puke, used condoms, bloody stuff, used needles. As with glass, this can be anywhere and everywhere, people will just chuck stuff where they're not supposed to.

• Powdered rodent poisons.

• Big heavy lids that are held up by a stand. Wind or impact can knock these down at any time, like when you're hanging over the lip of the bin.

• Objects with lead-based paint.

• Fiberglass.

• Cats and raccoons.

• Feral homebums who regard it as their "territory." If they're high on meth or schizophrenic and hearing voices, they may very well be willing to get physical / pull weapons over something this stupid.

• BED BUGS. This is an issue that a lot of divers overlook. Is there furniture in the bin that is in suspiciously good condition? Yeah, it might be because it's infested. That means not only should the furniture be avoided, but anything else in there as they likely crawled around and infested other items. This is mostly an issue with residential dumpsters but it can happen with stuff thrown out of offices too (people track them in from home). Probably best to only take furniture from a store that sells it.

Where To Look For Prime Divable Dumpsters

• Away from concentrations of homebums (think midwest suburb or remote semi-rural area rather than downtown coastal city). Aside from reduced competition, homebums have likely poisoned the well already and caused dumpsters to be locked off or "salted" with some unpleasant/dangerous substance, which is usually technically illegal, but real difficult to prove intent in court. The more homebums around the greater the likelihood of used needles and broken liquor bottles in and around it too.

• Types of businesses that tend to have the best stuff: bakeries, bookstores, computer / electronics retailers, conventions / expos (after they end), grocery stores, hardware stores, office supply stores, sporting goods stores, storage facilities (dumpsters will usually be behind secured gates but may be accessible to customers & worth paying for a small unit for just to have access), swap meets (after they end).

• Probably self-evident, but people in wealthy neighborhoods like to just throw out great stuff rather than deal with disposing of it.

• Stores that are moving or going out of business will chuck lots of perfectly good stuff just because it's not economical for them to move it.

• Stores that are remodeling will have a longer-than-usual temporary dumpster (a "yarder") parked somewhere out back. There will often be a lot of construction detritus in it but there's also a fair chance of good stuff being deposited there as they clean out stockrooms and etc.

• Likewise, students moving out of dorms and apartment complexes near universities also tend to chuck a lot of stuff at the end of school semesters rather than deal with selling or moving it. Just be extra wary of food garbage and biohazards here.

When Are The Best Times To Dive?

• Businesses tend to put trash out after closing time and major shift changes.

• Dumpsters will be at their fullest just prior to scheduled trash pickup, which is usually at the same time each week, sometime in the early morning hours.

Proper Technique

• Stand outside the dumpster and use your poking/grabbing stick to bring stuff to you as much as possible.

• If there's something juicy that you absolutely need down at the bottom and can't grab with the stick, carefully get in all the way and try to keep a hand on the lid. Be prepared for any and all of the dangers listed above. Try to find something to stand on (like cardboard) to throw in first as Dumpster Gunk may coat the bottom of your shoes and be really hard to get off.

• Don't hang over or sit on the lip if the lid is suspended above you. Only do this with the type where you can fold the lid all the way back (or slide it to the side) so there's no chance of wind pushing it forward again.

• If someone approaches the dumpster while you're fishing, collapse your stick and pocket it, and just walk away. Don't reply or respond unless they clearly identify themselves as police or security (private security may have the right to forcibly detain you depending on where you are, though even in these jurisdictions stores / contracting companies usually instruct them to not pursue due to liability issues, but guards also tend to not be the brightest bulbs and you never know who is gonna go cowboy).

• Police you run into have likely seen dumpster divers before and know all about it. Unless they're really the power-tripping petty asshole type, they're going to let you off once they establish you're not a criminal, on drugs or a feral homebum terrorizing the normies. That's why it's best to calmly talk with them if they approach rather than trying to hide or run.

• You can salvage edible fruits and veggies by cleaning them with a mix of 1/3 white vinegar and 2/3 water.

Stuff That Is Likely To Set Security / Police Off

• Camos / military gear. They may feel it's "disrespectful" to the military or may jump to the conclusion you're some sort of armed revolutionary / "sovereign citizen" / dangerous wackadoo.

• A lighter or matches. They may jump to the conclusion you're an arsonist or disgruntled employee.

• Knives. It's more and more common for states, counties and cities to have inane rules about blade length, like no longer than two inches or you're committing a crime that police can take you to jail for. Bring a box cutter instead.

• Leaving a mess while diving. Quickest way to ensure you or other divers get a hostile reception / run into security measures next time.

• Bringing stuff back into the store from the dumpster and trying to return it for cash. This is a druggie move. It's also a form of fraud and illegal. Also one of the quickest ways to poison the well for everybody, if a store finds out it's happening they'll instantly go hostile and lock down.

• Going over fences/walls to get to a dumpster. While you're technically trespassing on private property anytime you go in a business dumpster, police almost always overlook this if it's a dumpster you can walk right up to, but will NOT overlook this if you had to evade some security measures to get to it.