gdizzle Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 So my father-in-law passed away suddenly two weeks ago. We were trying to call him the entire week after thanksgiving and he wouldn't answer the phone, nothing unusual. My wife went up to the house to leave him a note and saw that his truck was there. She went around and banged on all the windows and doors to no avail and couldn't see anything inside the house. My wife and I have been together for 16 years, and I've never been in the house and she hasn't been in it since 1998. Well, she had a key and I told her to call the cops and have them go in, and they found him face down in a pile of trash. He'd been dead for days. Once I got word he was gone, I ran my daughter over to a neighbors and bolted up to be with her. After the M.E. was done and they removed the body, the cops said I should go in and take any valuables out of the house (she's an only child). She didn't want to go so it was up to me. So this is what I found when I went in.The funeral was yesterday, had to wait for his dd214 to come in so he could have his military honors. So today myself, my dad, and my wifes uncle went up to the house were able to clear the floor of trash upstairs in the kitchen/living room/dining room areas. There was about 8-10" of trash covering the entire floor except for a small path through the kitchen. :omg:So has anyone else dealt with anything like this too? Part of the problem is,I can't just throw everything away, there are valuable things mixed in with all the trash so it just compounds the nightmare. I'll post more as we clean it out. The bathroom down stairs is pretty damn gross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PyROTech Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 really not that bad. had (now actually have again, fml) hoarders next door to my rentals. it is a nightmare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matty Moo Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 My grandmother could be considered a hoarder, but her joint is clean. She just has stuff stacked all over, but it's clean overall. That kitchen is pretty bad. I spotted the half-gallon in the one pic, was he a heavy drinker or part of having things in bulk? A loose acquaintance of mine is a hoarder and an alcoholic, I'm not sure if the two really go together or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdizzle Posted December 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 He was a very heavy alcoholic. It's what killed him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Shadow Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 When my father in law passed, my mother in law never went into the garage so when that sucker opened there was stuff, just stuff everywhere. Alot of it was good stuff, that didnt make it to the dumpster. We craigslisted alot of the stuff for cheap, then held a garage sale at the end of the week while we were cleaning it out. You need some helpers to get it all sorted out. We also found rodents both dead and alive hidden amongst the stuff. You have a bigger task on your hand. We also donated alot of his clothes to the salvation army too. there are companies that will come and do cleanouts and buy the estate as a whole lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Some Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 man i hope you were wearin a solid facemask... that stuff could be nasty to breathe in .. goodluck on the cleanup though man Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vard66 Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 wow. I thought my father was bad, but all I really have to deal with is hundreds of boxes of back issues of Practical Classics and other car mags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyfishing3 Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Dang man Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdizzle Posted December 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 man i hope you were wearin a solid facemask... that shit could be nasty to breathe in .. goodluck on the cleanup though man You have to wear a respirator with hepa filters inside Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt b Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Wow, I didn't realize the entire house was like that. Sorry that you guys had to deal with that, I'm not sure it's not easy or fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterhalo Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 there are companies that will come and do cleanouts and buy the estate as a whole lot. My sympathies for your situation. I, unfortunately, had to deal with a situation very similar to yours several years ago. Hope he had a valid will at least. My advise - Take what you want immediately, hire a cleanout company and have a lawyer handle the estate. This approach will net you less money (slightly) but will keep your mind clear and sane for the next two years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt b Posted December 17, 2012 Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 Is this where you got Bambi's Mom for your office ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdizzle Posted December 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 Yeah. I found him buried under a pile of trash by the dining room exterior door. I also took a set of moose antlers from a moose he killed in the 70s. They're pretty awesome. If I build I garage out back I'm going to hang them out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fudge_Brownie Posted December 17, 2012 Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 The other day when you said you found a gun laying around the house, I was pretty confused initially. Then I figured it must be a disaster. The pictures are well beyond what I'd imagine. It's "funny", that for the brief moment I met your wife, and seeing the well kept home the two of you live in, you'd never imagine she had any ties to a life like that.I don't have anything useful to contribute. But I'll second the opinion is that it looks like a "numbers game", just getting friends to help sort the shit. Maybe build a "sort criteria" to pass around for people to identify anything of potential value. Get it all in the truck, so your wife can go through it individually in the garage over the next month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honeyman Posted December 17, 2012 Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 Sorry to hear about this, Greg, it's not easy, In the short term you may want to consider renting a dumpster for the driveway. It enables getting all the "stuff" out of the house quickly, and depending on who will be owning the house now, will be instrumental in any interior demo/renovation activities... and although a huge bummer for your wife, I think she owes it to herself to go through her father's personal effects. Potentially there will be items she has emotional connections to that have been long since forgotten. Doing this with my father, I found newspaper clippings and gloves from my boyhood baseball activities that I never knew he had. There were a bunch of military items as well that I am glad didn't get tossed. In a strange way, it helped us know him better. I like the idea of a staging area, too, from which she can do that if she wants without having to deal with the disarray. All in all it assists in the process of closure and saying goodbye. Best to you and yours during these times. Seems like there is a lot going on... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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