I broke down and bought some stuff

When I tell people about my project, I can see their eyes widen as they imagine a hodgepodge of mixed-and-matched tiles, boards, lights and fixtures.  After all, how do you get nice stuff for completely free?  I know, I know!  And I got little nervous a couple weeks ago, especially as I drove too many miles with too little success.  I found an online surplus auction at www.equip-bid.com with lots of building materials!

Does this look like 3" X 5" tile?

One lot featured "Approximately 200 3in X 5in white ceramic tile."  It looked appealing until I did the math and discovered that 200 tiles of this size would cover only 20 square feet!  That is not much.  But then I looked at the picture again and realized that either the picture was very distorted, or they measured incorrectly, because the tiles were square.  And in comparison to a standard-sized pallet, they looked bigger than even 5in X 5in.  So I took a chance- figuring I could re-sell white ceramic tile, and bought the lot for $10!

When I got it home I measured the tile- 8in X 8in!  And there were about 300 pieces in the lot.  Lowes sells this kind of tile for $30 for a box of 25.  I scored $350 worth of tile for only $10!

I also bought a sink.  I remembered thinking that most of the sinks featured on the craigslist free page featured old cultured marble or clamshell stylings. The surplus auction was offering a nice, white sink.  Granted, the sink was offset, so I might have to cut it or do something creative, but I took a chance on it and won it for $10!

I am starting to regret my third purchase at this same auction.  The listing showed a "Lot Of Misc Corian Like Sheets"  I like Corian, as it looks just like granite, and I would love to have granite countertops.  Plus I thought I might be able to re-sell it. Apparently someone else wanted it, too, and I had to bid up to $17.50 to win the auction. 

I was able to pick up the items the next day while driving back home from another appointment, so it didn't require an extra trip or extra gas.  I didn't know, however, that the sheets of corian were 12 feet long.  It made for an interesting ride home in my Honda minivan!

At this point, my free bathroom is no longer free.  I have spent $23.00 on tile and a sink (the corian was for other uses, so it doesn't count).  What am I going to sell to bring me back to $0 net cost????

Auctions are a great way to get building materials for not a lot of money.  And many of the auction houses are putting their auctions online, making it easier for you and me to bid.  If you live in the Kansas City area, check out equip-bid.com and auctionbymayo.com