Berkeley Parents Network: Where to Donate Clothing in Poor Condition

Berkeley Parents Network

Where to Donate Clothing in Poor Condition

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Charity, Donations & Recycling > Where to Donate Clothing in Poor Condition

What to do with non-usable clothing?
Donating Old T-Shirts
Donating torn and stained clothing
See also: Recycling Rags
More advice about donating clothing

What to do with non-usable clothing?

Nov 2007

What do people do with old clothing that is torn, stained or just worn out? Is there anywhere to donate it where the clothes can be used for the material? I'd rather not throw it in the trash and I have plenty of old T-shirts to use for cleaning. Thanks. vf

Check this out. I have seen their big green boxes around. http://www.stopwaste.org/home/index.asp?page=70&actionview=Go2&actionstep=3&Go2DropDown=ru&Mat=clo&Vendor=5928

http://www.cctg.org/TextPage.asp?MenuItemID=42&SubMenuItemID=121

I think I have also seen a box somewhere on MKL in Berkeley near the Tuesday Farmers Market.

Donating Old T-Shirts

Dec 2005

We have a million old decripit t-shirts. They are not good enough to give to charity and I don't need that many dust rags. Any suggestions on what to do with them? Thanks!

Try your local animal shelter. We donate old towel, cotton clothing with stain, and other clothing that cannot be reuse, to the animal shelter in Fremont. They need material to make bedding for the animal or to dry them after a bath. Miranda

Donating torn and stained clothing

Sept. 2003

I'm wondering if there's any place/business that RECYCLES old clothes. I'm getting ready to clear out lots of closets, and I have tons of ''chore'' clothes (torn and stained, mostly cotton-knit stuff like t-shirts, underwear and socks). These are not something I would give to Goodwill, but I don't want to put them in the gargage either. (And I already have a huge stockpile of rags!) jenne

Hi Jenne, You could always dump them off in the 'free' box at People's Park. (I believe it still exists) That's the 'reuse' in the recycle trilogy! :) Jennie

Feb 2003

Where does one donate used-but-useable clothing? Someone pointed out that we should NOT donate worn/torn clothes to Goodwill, etc, but what to do with these items? For example, Gymboree leggings w/ a hole in the knee (and no, I won't get around to patching it... I SHOULD, but I admit that I just don't have the time to mend). Anyone have suggestions about what to do w/ used-but-usable kids clothes? Seems like such a waste to make scraps out of them... Thanks, in advance. leslie

If you know anyone on the Tiny Tots Diaper Service, their drivers pick up donations of old clothes, or better ones, toys, etc. from the porch of the family. Put the items in a sturdy garbage bag, label visibly: ''You Are Special''. These items go to help families who are desperate. You can send pants with a hole in the knee. Since the Salvation Army on Solano Ave closed, I was glad to find out about this one. Truscojeff

ECAP (Emeryville Community Action Program)is a wonderful program that gives away cloths to homeless and poor families. They are completely non-profit and get very little funding. They are located on San Pablo near a freeway overpass in Emeryville. I don't know the address, but there is a ''Doug's BBQ'' next store that is more noticable. We take everything except junk there! Bene

October 2001

I've finally faced up to the fact that I'm just never going to get around to patching those faded old jeans, mending the hole in that ragged sweater, stitching that torn seam, etc. In other words, I'm trying to get past that depression-era mentality that tells me to never get rid of *anything* that I *might* be able to use someday. So, my question is: is there anyplace to donate stuff that's *not* in usable condition, or should I just (horrors!) throw it in the trash? I've actually also got non-clothing, non-essential items that don't necessarily need repair, but are just old and extremely faded (e.g. drapes)...same question: is there anyplace that would want these?

i recommend dropping off the not-so-good clothing (and blankets and towels) to People's Park. Drive down Haste right before you get to Telegraph. There is a big brown "dumpster" there. Actually, if you pull over, folks will come over to your car and take things from you without having to park, get out, etc. and, they really appreciate your donations.

Try calling the Ecology Center in Berkeley or Urban Ore (also in Berkeley). Both have been great resources for where to get rid of stuff I had questions about. Freyja Knapp

When I lived in San Jose they would accept textiles for recycling, but I don't know where they went from there. Bedding and towels, if washable, might be welcome at the ASPCA or an animal hospital for use in animal cages. Something like drapes might be welcome in a theatre for costume/set materials. Garments with holes worn through are most probematic. I finally cut up a bunch of old shirts into a) rags to use in cleaning/crafts b) colars and so forth that just had to be discarded. My advice is to forgive urself and let it go. Now if I just could follow that advice... Bill

A lot of textiles donated to places like goodwill, salvation army will end up as scrap, whihc they sell. They don't require "useable" condition.

You might want to have a small garage sale for starters. I know a lot of women who quilt who have no problem buying torn jeans as it's the fabric they want, not the clothes. All 100% cottons are great for this. I've seen these women go to garage sales just to buy up cottons for cutting up. They get some unusual quilts that way, make for more homey looking scrap ones. Or see if there isn't some quilting guild around you that wants the clothes. As far as the other items, try good will anyway. If they are just old, but still usable, someone may want them. Marianne

I wanted to chime in on the donation thing, as I work in recycling. Please do not donated torn or stained clothing to the charity thrifts (Goodwill, Salvation Army, St. Vincent de Paul.) They only want items in saleable condition. While it is true that they do recycle or scrap out unsaleable items, it is very expensive for them to handle clothes that are not saleable and it costs them money. Meghan

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