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Stopped by a thrift store in Spokane and saw a stack of old tube TVs

I was in Spokane last week and popped into a Value Village just to look around. In the back corner, they had a pile of maybe seven or eight old CRT TVs, the big heavy ones from the 90s. What got me was that every single one had a price tag of $15, but they all had the power cords cut off right at the back. The manager said they do it as store policy so no one tries to plug them in and start a fire. I get the safety thing, but it made me think about how many of those sets could have been a simple fuse or capacitor job for someone who knows what they're doing. Now they're basically just for parts or the tube itself. It felt like such a waste of gear that could have had a second life with a little work. Has anyone else run into stores doing this, and what's your take on it?
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3 Comments
henry492
henry49228d ago
Cutting the cords is the only smart move for a thrift store (they can't test every old TV for electrical faults). It's not waste, it's just shifting the repair risk from the store to the buyer.
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emerycarr
emerycarr28d ago
Shifting the repair risk" sounds like my strategy for every home project.
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margaretshah
Actually, cutting cords creates a bigger fire risk.
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