This Guy Built His House Using EBay Finds
This man has been building a home using things he finds on eBay, and it’s turning into a full-on energy-recycling science project.
By nowproducerdave on March 27, 2018
A guy named Frank Alsema says he built his home using a bunch of eBay finds. Apparently you really can buy anything on eBay, and like their old commercial from 2002-ish says, you can even buy a town.
Frank lives in Amsterdam in a town where recycling is a big deal, just as it is throughout most of the Netherlands. They recycle everything – plastic, wood scraps, even energy – the very power they use doesn’t go to waste. That’s why Frank decided to build a home using things found on eBay. Something else interesting about the house is the fact that it was even designed AROUND those things that he found on eBay. A cabinet he really liked was used as inspiration, and that portion of the house was actually built around the cabinet. He’s been working on the home since 2013, and he calls it “Palais Récup.” It’s become sort of a “model” for what’s possible these days, and it’s also being used as a project to create and invent new methods for construction and recycling.
Frank does admit that the basic “structure” of the home was built using new materials like concrete, wood for the framing, and bricks and stone. Old doors, windows, staircases, all those things were sourced and found on eBay, and the house was designed around those items to incorporate them into the finished design. We say “finished,” but it’s really still under construction. It’s a constant work-in-progress, but the idea that building a home from eBay finds just sounds like it might take a while. Also, shipping can be cruelly slow these days, you know? Here’s a ton more info and pictures about the house. What’s the best thing you’ve found on eBay? Do you think people use eBay for antiques and collectables like they used to, or has it turned into a similar-to-Amazon website?
