Saw a guy on Nextdoor post about his ‘free’ pallet shed that cost him 400 bucks

Some guy on Nextdoor was bragging about building a shed from free pallets. Then he listed all the stuff he bought: nails, screws, a saw blade, primer, paint, weatherproofing, hinges, a lock. Added it up and he spent over 400 dollars. Plus he tore down three pallets before finding ones that weren't busted. I get the appeal of free materials but you end up buying so much junk to make them work. Is it really cheaper or are we just lying to ourselves for the satisfaction? Anyone else secretly track the real cost of a 'free' project?

2 comments

2 Comments

betty_palmer27d agoMost Upvoted

Oh the classic free project trap. That pallet shed probably took him three weekends and a lot of cuss words too. The real kicker is he spent over 400 bucks on something that's basically a wood pile held together by hopes and prayers. Meanwhile you can go buy a metal shed kit for like 500 that'll last way longer and doesn't require breaking down busted pallets. People get so caught up in the word "free" that they forget time and sweat equity counts as a cost too.

the_pat27d ago

400 bucks for a pallet shed that looks like it survived a tornado. @betty_palmer nailed it with the metal shed comparison, those things come with a lock and everything. Plus he probably spent another 20 bucks on bandaids from splinters.