12 Things to Never Buy at a Thrift Store


Woman Buying Children's Clothes In Charity Shop

From watches to books and vintage silverware, you can find many great deals at a thrift store. But there are 12 things to skip, no matter how tempting the price tag is. 

Mattress

An Old Discarded Single Mattress And Divan On A Residential
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Resist the urge to buy a thrift store mattress, as the likelihood of taking home bedbugs and unimaginable dirt is quite high. A Reddit user who disposed of her bed explains, “I put an old mattress on the curb that was beat to hell and had stains on it (husband would drool), and it was gone within hours.” Sounds disgusting, right?

Opened Puzzles

Hand Close Up Holding Blue Jigsaw Puzzle Pieces. Person Trying
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Never buy opened puzzles. Chances are it’s missing a piece or two! A Reddit user explains he counts the pieces in the store before buying, but counting a 50- or 100-piece puzzle can be exhausting and annoying. 

Used Pantries

Versailles; France June 10 2018 : The Flea Market
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“It’s so hard to find a decent pantry to store my non-perishables,” writes an unhappy commentator. And there’s a reason why thrift stores do not have high-quality used pantries. “Nobody just throws away good pantry,” explains another user. 

Dri-Fit Clothes

Asian Man Body With Sweat On Black T Shirt Workout
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These clothes wick away sweat from your body to keep you dry. Buying Dri-fit clothes means the former owner’s sweat may be embedded in the fabric even after washing. 

Wedding Dress

Vintage Wedding Dresses In Thrift Shop With Mannequin
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Some Reddit users consider buying a wedding dress at the thrift store a bad omen. One post reads, “I got my perfect dress ex-display from a charity shop. The wedding never happened.”

Shoes

Hanging Shoes At A Thrift Store.
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They (shoes) wear out faster than other clothes might, and you can’t just chuck them in the laundry,” says a commentator. Or,” You never know if that person had a foot fungus,” adds another commentator. 

Porous Kitchenware

Various Clay Bowls Stacked One Into Another On A Wooden
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Porous kitchenware is not glazed, so imagine all the dirt and grime embedded into each of the tiny pores. A Redditor says, “(There) could be some serious contamination.” 

Underwear

Hand Holding Man Underware Or Underpants For Men On White
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As one commentator says, “If it directly touched your privates, I don’t want it.”

Bedsheets

Women's Hands Hold Bed Sheet With Period Blood Spot Stains
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You may also welcome bedbugs into your home with used bedsheets. Mysterious stains should always be a NO as well. “It’s a lottery of the gross!” exclaims a commentator.

Sports Helmets

Bicyclist Man Ridding Bike Going Fast On Mountain Road Racing
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Helmets are only good for one crash. Once the material deforms, it’s junk,” a Reddit user writes. Since helmets are life savers, paying extra dollars for a new, unused one is best.

Hats

Papar Sabah Malaysia Apr 14 2016 : Various Kind
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When shopping for hats, you typically try them on, right? The only problem is other people did so too, and some may have lice – yikes! 

One post reads, “I love thrift stores, but I’m willing to bet the thrift store clientele has a higher chance of having lice than other stores.”

Fabric Furniture

Blue Couch In Room Of An Abandoned Building
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If you do not intend to deep clean fabric furniture from the thrift store, forget about buying it. “Nothing is getting washed or reconditioned. They just give the stuff (furniture) a quick squirt with some sort of disinfectant and toss it out for sale,” explains a user. This increases the chances of carrying bedbugs with you. 

Source: Reddit
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