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Paying for things

2K views 26 replies 19 participants last post by  PlantedRich 
#1 ·
Anyone else feel like your pants (And by pants I mean underwear!) are being pulled down when your paying money, more often then not a large sum of money, for wood and rocks that people have probably just found somewhere haha?
 
#2 ·
Um, no. There are in many things multiple ways to go and paying for convenience and easy choice will often be one of those ways. People take time and money to collect and ship stuff. Restaurants charge you 4x the value of the food just to sit there and eat it. This is the way things work, and you always can opt out and DIY.
 
#3 ·
Uh, NO! But I do sometimes get really p.o.'d at folks who complain about not being able to find wood and still complain about the price. I live in an area where wood and rocks are all over the ground but there are some who frown when I go get it and ask them $5 for an afternoon of searching.
Others love the service so I guess it takes all sorts!
 
#4 ·
I don't think any one will agree with this. people that gather these thing don't have to spend time and money on gas doing anything for other people especially ungrateful people. If it weren't for them doing this just think of the limits you would have on stuff. If you order pieces online you cant even pick and choose. They jus send you something and you have to like it. I would much rather Support members on this forum then some company.
 
#5 ·
Nope, not at all. The person selling the item invested "sweat equity" in collecting the items in which they are selling. They ultimately decide on what they think is a fair value for the time invested in collecting the items. That is wealth creation. Raw materials + time = product.

Now on your end, you can choose if your income "sweat equity" is worth the value placed on someone else "sweat equity" if so, make a transaction, if not look for someone selling a like item that meets your perceived value.
 
#9 ·
I drive 40 minutes to my property in this.

Then I climb a big mountain to get to the layers of rocks carry back down 50 or so pounds at a time till I give up. Then I buy acid at 2.50 a gallon from my work. Then I treat said rock with acid. Wash it, dry it, weight it out in good looking groups, take photos of it, list it. For a $1.50 just because. : P

Sent from my LG-D500 using Tapatalk
 
#10 ·
Driftwood is a hell of a lot cheaper buying it local than taking a trip to malaysia, getting ill, paying customs and getting home. It's simply a convenience charge. I like to get paid for my time, and they have to ship it, someone else has to receive and distribute.

Adam
 
#11 ·
I agree with all the others. There is a cost for collection etc.

That said cost does not always equal production cost + profit margin. Say I need $10/hr. Said rock cost me $5 to find and ship. If it takes me one hour to find it, list it, ship it etc that's $15. If others are charging $50 for the same rock and getting it should I charge $15? Sometimes price = costs + required profit + Why should I lose out?. Welcome to the real world. ;)
 
#14 ·
I find what we read about how prices are set is often better left in the books. Does anybody in the real world actually go about setting price based on what it costs to produce the item plus a small markup for profit? What I find almost universal is that prices are set by what people feel they can get by selling the item.
So I went out today and spent 11/2 hours wandering around looking over the wood and came home with four items that appeal to me and I think should appeal to other people who like wood in their tanks. Add in the travel time and expense, plus the cleaning and soaking and the wood should sell for $25-30 each?
Got to smile at jokes like that!

I normally try to cover the gas and get enough to not look like a complete fool and feel good if I get that done! You sell it for what you can get out of it and have to eat the rest or call it fun!
 
#16 ·
Surprised no one mentioned the location of the OP?

OP's located in the UK, everything is going to be almost 2x the price just based on shipping cost, export/import fees alone.

Don't you guys who trek out into the woods/mountains come across rattlesnakes, and other poisonous creatures where you find those unique pieces? Not even going to mention the musKeetoZ.

Always afraid one day the dogs are going to get bit or sprayed by skunks when they run ahead of us.
 
#18 ·
OP's located in the UK, everything is going to be almost 2x the price just based on shipping cost, export/import fees alone.

Don't you guys who trek out into the woods/mountains come across rattlesnakes, and other poisonous creatures where you find those unique pieces? Not even going to mention the musKeetoZ.

Always afraid one day the dogs are going to get bit or sprayed by skunks when they run ahead of us.
Summer is coming! The rivers are nice, but the woods are hot and full of everything that bites. And sprays! :icon_lol:
 
#17 ·
I think you are paying for convenience. Actually finding unique wood and rocks can take a lot of searching, cleaning, etc. I've found it quite difficult and I live between two lakes and a handful of rivers. Most sellers have already done their homework to make sure it is safe for your tank as well. I guess buying these items is like buying anything else.. shop around.
 
#24 ·
Honestly, I'd rather pay someone $50-$100 for gorgeous aquascaping material than have to spend a day risking life and limb to find it.

Convenience fee? Yes. Do I like it? No. Am I going to go trekking down the river and into Copperhead territory to avoid it? No way.

I personally find it helps to swallow the cost when it's a piece of wood or stone that you really, really want. Something that you admire and will be proud to show off. Then it becomes a bit like art, subjective, meaningful to you, worth whatever you want to pay for it.
 
#25 ·
Collecting can be a challenge or fun depending on attitude. Most don't really have the attitude to make it worthwhile so they are willing to pay because they see no choice. If one finds the prospect of meeting nature to be too much, then that is their choice. I find it intersting and do spend some time just watching and hoping for some unusual event while I'm looking around. Some are fun, some not.
While collecting yesterday, I found a type of rock that I had not seen before in that size but then I also slid down a slope and grabbed a greenbrier to stop sliding further. You often bring home some nice wood but it does come with some scrapes and more than a few nicks.
In actual truth I would go back today if I could depend on spotting the fish I watched. I saw a line of hand size fish (perch??) following a group of small shad into a shallow spot almost as if they were herding them. I had never noted this before in that type of fish.
 
#26 ·
I never tire and look for an excuse to go jaunting in the woods.
I still turn over rocks (not here in LA-there are no rocks) and logs just to see what's under them. I'll brave fire ants, gators, bears (especially up in Potter County, PA) and bring back something that catches my fancy. I'll give away my findings to friends and neighbors who visit. There is a never ending source of materials at your disposal, that you can do things with. You can make really cool towel bars out of a simple stick instead of going to Home Depot or Walmart, for practically free, just shellac and hardware needed.

The biggest pain to me, and why I don't sell or offer driftwood, rocks, shell, etc. cheap is finding a box to ship it in, packing materials, choosing which way to ship it, photographing it, listing it for sale, and the whole great Post Office caper. That, to me, is the bite in the butt part, and where my time is most valuable.

-Stef*
 
#27 ·
One reason wood will be expensive is due to the supply /demand question. If it were easier to ship wood, prices would level out more. I have lots of wood and rocks available but the shipping doesn't work. If I find a really nice pice of wood, it often has a nice heavy base with lots of small, semi-fragile parts sticking out. I see no practical way to wrap, stuff or otherwise pack something like that. Putting it in a box and then shooting spray foam around it would work --- except for a few hundred dollars of equipment!
Otherwise, I see the heavy end ramming the fragile end into the end of the box and the buyer not liking what I sold him. Just too much hassle so I sell local and find there is more supply than demand so prices are cheap.
 
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