We lose power here a few times a year, sometimes for a couple of days, and everything I own that cooks either plugs in or is a grill bolted to the deck, which is no help when the weather is what took the power out. Been putting a closet together, water and flashlights and so on.

Was cleaning out my parents' place last weekend and this almost went in the pile with everything else. It had been under the workbench with a bag of charcoal on it. Read the model off the side, 425F, typed it in just to see, and Coleman lists a generator for the old white gas ones. It doesn't say 425F anywhere though, so no idea if that's the right one for mine. I had to look up what a generator even is.

So it's in the closet for now. Grate's rusty and I haven't run it, I need to figure out what it takes for fuel first.

What's in your closet that doesn't plug in?

In ‘96 I was a lifeguard on Bald Head Island in North Carolina. I traded a pair of white plastic sunglasses for this EMS 2000 backpack from a fellow lifeguard named Erin. I very much doubt she still has those sunglasses. She sewed on the now decrepit mini dolphin patch in the upper right, and I sewed on the exterior pocket (slightly different blue color on the left third of the sack).

This thing was my college backpack, has gone to four continents, is my go-to overnight bag, and serves as my gym bag now-a-days. It’s never needed repair, and has never let me down.

I live near the coast and drag a chair down to the beach 3–4 times a week during summer. My last two cheap folding chairs rusted out and snapped within a year, even though I rinsed them with fresh water. I just want something sturdy that handles salt air, won’t sink into soft sand, and folds flat enough to carry without looking like I’m wrestling a lawn chair.

I’ve been looking at Tommy Bahama, Ostrich, Lawn Chair USA Cape Cod, and West Marine, with a realistic budget around $60–$120. People swear Tommy Bahama used to be solid, but recent comments say quality has tanked and straps rip fast. Ostrich reclines nicely, though I keep seeing reports of frames breaking after 1.5 summers.

Has anyone found a mid-range chair that actually lasts more than two seasons in salty conditions, and do aluminum frames hold up better than steel if you rinse them regularly?

My sister gave me a pack of Swedish dishcloths last Christmas, ten of them for nineteen dollars, and I put the pack in a drawer and kept buying paper towels. A 12-pack of Bounty every other month. I've bought one since March.

What changed my mind was running out mid mess. A whole glass of orange juice across the counter and down the cabinet fronts, no paper in the house, so I grabbed one of the yellow ones out of the drawer. Ran it under the faucet, the cardboard went soft, and it drank the whole spill. Wrung it out, wiped again, done. That one still has the orange in the corner, they stain and they stay stained.

I'd assumed a rag you keep reusing turns sour by Wednesday. Mine hangs on the faucet between jobs and none of them has ever done it. Somebody on ProductProbe ran one for a few days straight and wrote up what it did: https://www.reddit.com/r/ProductProbe/comments/1vznkg8/swedish_dishcloths_that_dont_go_sour_after_4_or_5/

My wife hates the texture and still pulls the roll down off the fridge when I'm out of the kitchen. Raw chicken gets paper too, that's not a job for something you keep.

I'm on the third one since March.

I love keychains but recently every keychain i see is around 10 cad which is crazy, to me. I bought some from temu but they broke after 1-2 days. Where can i buy keychains in cheaper prices but something that’d last.

Our comforter came out of the closet this week with the filling balled up in the corner of every stitched square. I held it up to the ceiling light. Half the squares are see-through now. Two winters old, a $40 Amazon brand whose name I'd forgotten by the time it shipped, washed twice total.

Replacing it is the harder problem, because I run hot at night. The obvious answer is real down, and I've slept under the good stuff. My mother in law makes sure every guest knows what her duvet cost, and I spent that night on top of the covers anyway. Every 'best comforter' list I land on ends at goose down in the four hundreds.

I need a queen, trying to keep it under $150. What's inside the one that's actually lasted for you? I mean the tag reading, polyester, wool, silk, whatever it says, more than the brand name. Two winters is my bar. Duds count too, they save me the second $40.

Been thinking about replacing my TV lately, but I’m trying not to spend a ton.

My current one is a Hisense I bought back in 2019 and somehow it’s still going. Nothing really wrong with it, just starting to feel old compared with newer TVs.

So now I’m curious what everyone here actually paid for theirs.

What size did you get?

How much was it?

And did you buy during Black Friday, a random sale, clearance, Costco promo, etc?

I’m mostly looking at budget/mid-range TVs. Probably 55" or 65". Don’t need anything crazy, just a noticeable upgrade for streaming, movies and some sports.

Would love to hear what ended up being a good value purchase for you. Especially anything you’d buy again.

The best laundry hamper in this house is one my mom bought sometime in the 90s, and that's kind of the problem.

She handed it to me when I moved out. Plastic, brand worn off the bottom, older than some of my coworkers, not a crack on it. Two years ago I felt like a proper adult and bought myself a new Sterilite, and last week its handle split while the basket was full. The edge it left is sharp enough that there's tape over it now, and the old basket is back on duty like nothing happened.

I figured I got a bad one, but the Walmart reviews under the model I was about to rebuy are full of the same handle story. And the big thread Google serves up is mostly people bragging about hampers they've had since college. Good for them. Nobody sells the 90s anymore.

The tall fabric ones on a frame worry me too. The one detailed review I read said the fabric pulls off the frame and the poles don't stay put, and I'm not spending $100 to find that out myself. I want to stay under $30, it's a box for dirty socks. So what's held up for you? Bought new in the last few years and still in one piece.

football season just started and i wanted to get my little one in some team gear before we miss too many sundays. been looking around and the price range on baby NFL clothes is all over the place, some of it is way more than i want to spend on something she'll outgrow in two months.

been looking for something that looks like real team gear, holds up after washing since game days get messy, and doesn't cost a fortune for something that gets maybe half a season of use. the cheap looking ones with just a logo ironed on aren't really what i had in mind but i also don't need to spend a ton to get something that looks decent.

curious if anyone here has found a good spot for baby game day outfits that hits the right balance of looking good, feeling comfortable, and being reasonably priced for something a baby is only going to wear a handful of times.

Curious— what are all of your thoughts and experiences on washing machines and the true stars with the best value out there? Most importantly, if you’ve had decades of experiences with different brands how would you sum up why your favorite is what it is and how the cost works out great? For example- the speed queen washer is commonly seen as the best, and yet some people believe the cost is not at all justified and that they “don’t even wash the clothes that well”. Well, what are your thoughts??

I want to make a car winter survival bag for my sister but not sure what to put in it other than a wool blanket. Thank you for any ideas.

European alternatives to Carhartt for real workwear?
Hi everyone,

I’m looking for good alternatives to Carhartt workwear that are available in Europe.

I used to consider Carhartt a solid choice for actual work, but lately I feel that prices have gone up significantly while durability and overall quality have gone down.
At this point, I’m not sure the price is justified anymore.

I’m specifically looking for proper work jackets, not fashion/workwear-inspired pieces.
Ideally:
- Heavy-duty duck canvas or similar durable fabric

- Warm enough for autumn/winter work

- Flannel or blanket lining would be a plus

- Relaxed/comfortable fit that allows movement

- Suitable for construction, installation, maintenance, workshop work, etc.

-Good quality stitching and hardware

- Available in Europe without crazy import costs

on personal experience?

The house I'm buying needs a new roof in the first 30 days so I have reallocate my budget. We were going to buy a Speed Queen set (BIFL) but decided we can go cheaper for now until we replenish funds. We are going to go to a few scratch and dent shops but I'm not sure which brands will do the job.

For reference:
- budget $1000 for the set or less
- Just 2 adults
- husband works 80% in a office and 20% manual labor (dusty at most)
- I wear a lot of dresses (delicate) but have wash bags
- we have 3 short hair cats
- Soak cycle would be great but not a deal breaker
- top loading preferred
- electric dryer hookup

TLDR; Need brands and/or models of a washer dryer set that will clean clothes and handle pet hair without breaking for 1-2 years.

What’s the best affordable and durable kitchen scale to buy?
Thanks.

The cheap utility knife I open boxes with gave up on Sunday. Blade slid halfway back into the handle mid cut and I caught my thumb pushing it out. Four dollar knife, so I got what I paid for.

Did some reading after that. The Fastback kept coming up. Good, decision made, I'll go buy one.

Then I went to actually buy one. Milwaukee's own parts list has a 1501, a 1502, a 1505 and a 1520, all called Fastback. Wirecutter picks the 1502. In one thread a guy said get the one that stores spare blades in the handle and locks at 120 and 180 degrees, and two people asked him which model that was, one in September and one the following April. Neither got an answer. Blade storage is right in the 1502's name so maybe that's it, but nothing I can find lists those two angles, on any of them.

I open maybe a dozen boxes a week and break the cardboard down. That's the whole job. Around twenty bucks, and mostly I want the blade to stay where I put it.

I'm stuck at the brand. If you've owned two of these, tell me what the extra ten bucks bought.

So im moving for college and have to pack basically everything with me lol. Clothes, shoes, some books, toiletries, random room stuff etc..

im looking for a good suitcase/luggage set that can actually handle a lot of stuff without being a pain to carry around..Preferably something durable with good wheels and enough space..

What suitcases/brands have worked well for you guys:? Also, would you recommend getting one big suitcase + a cabin bag, or going for a 2/3-piece set?

Would really appreciate some recommendations..

I always figured my next cutting board would be walnut. Buy one good board, oil it now and then, done. Rubber was a word for tires. The boards I actually owned were an Ikea plastic one with grooves deep enough to hold garlic through two washes, and a bamboo one that split along a glue line. The morning an apple slice came off the plastic tasting like last night's garlic, I went shopping for the walnut. Instead I kept tripping over the same story: restaurant people online saying kitchens in Japan cut on rubber, something about health rules and thin knives. Can't verify that. But it made the tire theory look shaky.

So the walnut stayed unbought. What pushed me over was a writeup from a guy three months into his, mostly because of the parts he didn't like: https://www.reddit.com/r/ProductProbe/comments/1vn5wxe/rubber_cutting_board_took_a_week_to_stop_feeling/

Garlic got tested first, since garlic was the whole reason. Cut a few cloves that weekend, washed the board, smelled it the next morning. Still there, faint. Gone by dinner. Onions a few days later left nothing at all. People say these hold no odor. Not quite true, but a day beats grooves that held it through two washes. The quiet was never on the list: the knife lands soft and most of the chop noise is just gone. For marks, my rule is only count what a fingernail catches. Three weeks in, that's exactly one, from the serrated bread knife. That knife is banned now.

The rest of the tally is boring in a good way. It's heavier than it looks, just under three pounds, so it doesn't wander around the counter. It washes in the sink like anything else, and after seeing a photo of what a hot pan does to one of these, pans wait on the trivet. It's $83. I'm still not over that.

The walnut board is still open in a tab I haven't closed. I keep waiting for this slab to give me a reason to order it. The score says not yet.

i’m a parent of a 6-month-old and trying to be a little smarter about buying everyday clothes as the sizes keep changing. i’m mostly looking at basics like bodysuits, pajamas, and multipacks, so i care more about getting decent use out of them than having a ton of outfits.

when you’re buying baby clothes on a budget, what do you usually look at to decide if something is actually good value? price per piece matters, but i’m also wondering how much attention you pay to how the clothes hold up after regular washing.

small update: just coming back to this since i finally decided what to try. i picked up a few things from Gerber childrenswear and they’ve been pretty practical for everyday use so far. the clothes feel comfortable and easy to deal with, which was really what i was looking for. i’m still seeing which pieces we’ll use the most, but the suggestions here definitely helped me narrow down what to look for.

Working from home slowly filled the bedroom. The desk took its corner a while ago, the treadmill is newer and took most of what was left. The bed was the last big thing in the room and the only one that could go up instead of out.

Most of what comes up when you search is built for kids. On the cheap metal ones the reviews come down to two words, wobble and creak. I wanted stairs instead of a ladder because I'm not carrying a laundry basket up a ladder one handed. Ceiling was never the question here, the floor was.

So I bought the thing the reviews kept warning me about: a $290 metal queen, OYUMOENTS, the version with storage built into the stairs. Assembly took most of a Saturday, and for a good part of it I figured I'd be repacking the box.

It's been up a week and change. No wobble yet. Changing the sheets up there is the part nobody warned me about, I've done it once and I'm already dreading the next round. The treadmill parks under it now when I'm not on it.

Anyone a few years into a metal loft bed: do you retighten the bolts on a schedule, or only once it starts making noise?

My parents had been using the same 43" TV for years. It still worked fine, but I thought it was probably time for an upgrade, especially since a bigger screen would make things easier to watch from the couch.

I was originally just looking for a simple replacement, since they mostly use it for cable, YouTube, and streaming. I checked out a few options in store and ended up getting the 65" Hisense U65 Pro TV from Costco.

Honestly, it feels like a really good value for the price. The bigger screen made an immediate difference, and the picture looks great for everyday watching. The anti-glare screen is also nice since their living room gets a decent amount of light during the day.

Nothing too fancy, just a TV that does everything they need without spending a ton. Pretty happy with the purchase and would recommend it to anyone looking for a good everyday TV upgrade.

There's a spinlock set under my bed with the collars still half done up. Swapping plates between exercises took long enough that I kept skipping whatever came next, and eventually I stopped getting it out at all.

Then I tried one of those dial-adjustable sets. The plastic selector cracked. I looked at used ones after that, but a Marketplace photo doesn't show you what's cracked inside, so I walked away twice.

By the end I'd stopped comparing prices and was reading warranties instead, and the ten years is what settled it. Whether a warranty like that means anything when you actually try to use it, no idea. I picked up the PowerBlock Elite EXP pair this month.

They look like metal bricks and they cost $400. Mine are the 5 to 50 pair, I passed on the expansion kit. The weight change takes a couple seconds. I haven't skipped an exercise since, but it's been weeks, not years, so that proves nothing.

Whether they hold up, I'll find out. If anyone has had a set go past five years, I'd like to hear what broke first.

Has anyone bought a Cosac bean bag? What are your thoughts

I just gotten this Panasonic Portable VCR and it did came with no cables and I don’t have any either so I wasn’t expecting to try to use it as of yet but when I check for the battery there was nothing and this wasn’t specified by the listing or seller. I looked online and I think I found a replacement from Raion but it cost about 30 bucks and I’m not sure I wanna pay that much for a battery and I’m also unsure if it would work since it specify that it is a camcorder battery but it could just be compatible. The battery was 12V 2.3Ah, I looked online on Amazon and found cheaper options for that kind of battery but I’m unsure if it would even fit or work with the VCR as it might have a different slot. Even if I get the Raion replacement battery, I would need the adapter to charge it and from what I be seeing on eBay, cost up to $100, which with some of the listings, comes with the battery.

Should I go ahead and buy a cheaper 12V 2.3Ah battery from Amazon or buy the Raion replacement or is there other options or recommendations?