Storage Locker Blues

Today, I finally decided to get back to my ongoing project in Akron, Ohio, the storage locker. You have seen the clothes, the packed unit and the huge cache of money that we found in a small chest. My return trip produced no treasures, only trash. Today's pickings; a closed refrigerator, a grease filled washer, a stove and a dryer.

Let's start with the stove. Most people use stoves for cooking, a few people use them for heating their homes and this stove must have been used as an alternative food storage area. I say this because the top is encrusted with a heavy coating of leftover food. The entire top is covered with several layers of soups, cheeses, various greases / fats and of course a huge grouping of I don't know what to call it. All of this fine storage coupled with several broken elements makes this a prize ready for only the finest homes. Apparently among the now ninety plus bags of clothing items they didn't have a single rag to wipe off the stove with.

The grease filled washer is something that I can honestly say I have never seen before. Just how do you get a heavy coating of some type of greasy substance on the inside of a washer that you never used? I know that they didn't actually use it because there was not a single piece of clothing that was clean. The heavy film will probably need a good strong dose of ammonia to put any type of dent in it.

The dryer, full of dust, need I say anymore.

But the coup de grace is the refrigerator. Anytime that you enter a storage locker and see a closed door refrigerator or freezer you know that you are in for a treat. When a refrigerator is in operation, closing the door and keeping it closed are absolutely the correct thing to do. When they are shut off, not such a good idea. Experience has taught me to remove the refrigerator from the storage locker before opening the door. Take my word for it this is the best way to do it because people often leave items in the refrigerators when they store them, remember we are not always dealing with the cream of the crop when it comes to people who rent these units.

After removing it from the building I was ready (kind of ) to proceed. Viewing the lush black fungus that had accumulated on and around the door seals still didn't prepare me for the mess that was contained within. In all of my years I have never seen the inside of a refrigerator that had turned completely black. The white sides...black, the clear plastic bins...black, the door seal...black and on and on it went. The leftover pickle jars were permanently affixed to the shelves by a furry black mold. I'm just not sure that there is enough Clorox in the world to fix this one. I'm sure that the scrap yard is going to discount the weight of the appliances to allow for the growth both on, in and around them.

So, how have I done on this locker so far? Pretty bad. I am expecting to loose around $300 after I include the trips back and forth to Akron to pick up the contents.

But, don't cry for me. I purchased 3 other storage lockers and two cars in the last 6 days. I am going to do very well on the other 3 lockers and the cars...who knows! The joys of being a junk dealer. I will add some photo's tomorrow after the final day of cleaning out the locker.