BargainJack.com » Home & Garden

If My Garage and Attic Mated…

Jack — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 16:38:45 +0000

If my garage and attic mated, it would be one ugly baby. They are both full of mountains of junk, stacked with no particular rhyme or reason. I cursed the day I had to find the leaf blower. I cursed the day I had to find wall paint. I cursed many days. I curse the fact that I’m staring down the barrel of Christmas decorations that are still waiting to be put away…but where? It sucks, but I need to man up and get this junk organized before it causes my hairline to recede.

Sears is running a nice sale for 20% off tool storage over $99 and 20% off all garage storage items that cost over $100. If you are in the market, you should absolutely check out the tool storage blowout, also at Sears. This includes the best of the best savings in the tool storage category with savings of up to 70%. Most of the blowout items are rolling toolboxes, but there are some other fun items included which look like they’re aimed to help you get the beer flowing in your garage. (pub table, rolling cooler, the list goes on.)

It’s gonna be painful, but it’s gonna be worth it. And I’m gonna need beer.

Cheers!

Jack

Mini Kegerator: Major Awesome

Jack — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:36:40 +0000

The best things in life really are free. They often include beer. My new neighborhood gathers at someone’s house and drinks beer while trick-or-treaters swing by for a mountain of candy. That’s was my Halloween and it was grand. I have loads of cool, beer-drinking neighbors. Life is good.

So now the pressure is on to get my house into proper party mode. My dream is to eventually own a full-sized kegerator. With an entry-level price of ~$600, this would be a hard sell with the wife. Next best thing? The EdgeStar Deluxe Mini Kegerator and Draft Beer Dispenser is my kind of price at $162 and $1 shipping at Overstock.com. It’s rated 4.3 stars after 3 ratings so far. Cons – it takes a while to cool down a room temperature mini keg…like 12 hours. So pre-chill your beer or grow some patience. On the plus side, it’s just pretty sweet. The AC/DC power adapter lets you take this puppy from your home bar to the next tailgating party. The beer stays at a nice temperature and the carbonation is bar quality…and it’s awesome. Dear neighbors, I will do this for YOU.

Cheers!

Jack

Lean Mean Steam Cleaning Machine

Jack — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 19:22:11 +0000

Less than a week at our first home, and our dogs decided to christen the new carpets…in 6 places. Our light carpet ain’t getting any more dog proof, so we needed a weapon that can stand ready 24/7. At $50+ bucks a pop for renting a steam cleaner plus the hassle of me having to pick up and return it, we decided to get Best Buy to wrap up the Hoover Platinum Collection Carpet Cleaner for us. Cleaning supplies are not typically something that I’d brag about BUT this thing is BAD ASS. It even looks all big and mean, like if your vacuum took steroids and then mated with Schwarzenegger. … Read more This bad boy retails at $399.99 and is on sale at Best Buy for $359.99. Yeah, that’s pricey, but it’s a heck of a lot cheaper than new carpet. It’s usually hard to find below $375, but with the hefty discount comes a catch: it’s sold out online, so you need to order it online and select local pickup as your shipping option. This thing works awesome. It’s easy to load with water and detergent. It doesn’t leak all over the place like cheaper cleaners can. And wielding this thing is almost kind of fun, but don’t tell my wife I said that. And yeah, it looks like a pro came and did the work. That said, it is big, so don’t get it if your closets are already jam-packed. The 6-year warranty sold me since these things are known to crap out after a couple of years. Investment protected. Yahtzee.

Cheers!

Jack

But Babe, We Don’t NEED 2 Fireplaces in Texas

Jack — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:34:51 +0000

Alright, I hit a snag since the last time we talked. I had grand visions of a wall-mounted flat screen to sexy up my bedroom. My wife wants a wall-mounted fireplace?! UUuuhhhhhhh…is one fireplace in Texas not enough?!

Ok, so thinking cap ON. How can I fix this, how can I fix this, howcanifixthis, HOWCANIFIXTHIS!!!???

God bless America! Of course! A fireplace DVD! For just $3.99 with free shipping at Buy.com, I might be back in business with the ScreenDreams Living Fireplace DVD. It’s 73% off the $15 retail. And while the whole thing seems kind of corny, the reviews are actually really good with 5 stars after 6 male-dominated reviews. This DVD contains 90 total minutes with 9 different fireplace scenes that you can either rotate through, or just choose your favorite and set it to loop. Reviews say that the crackling and popping noises are well done and add to your likelihood to score the overall ambiance.

$3.99 could be all that stands between me and my flat screen. Count me in.

Cheers!

-Jack

Joy Is a Utilitarian Table

Jack — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:40:57 +0000

The thing about me is that I am way more concerned about function than form. My wife will spend $300 for a printer stand that isn’t big enough to hold our scanner, our router, etc, etc…because “it’s pretty and it matches our other stuff….” Yeah, pretty is not my problem. Give me massive amounts of unadorned desk space for cheap, and I feel like a king. OfficeMax has a great price on the OfficeMax Folding White Table. See this thing? Clean, straight, giant plastic tabletop surface. Ahhhhhhhh yeaaaaaah. Fancy isn’t home right now. Good.

There are a bunch of sizes to pick from, but the dimensions with the best prices are these two.

Was $60, now $40: 60″W x 30″D x 29-1/4″H

Was $75, now $45: 72″W X 30″D x 29-1/4″H

Orders of $50 or more ship free, so add some extra to your cart to push you over the top. Keep your add-on unfancy or I’ve ordered OfficeMax to void your free shipping. It’s for your own good.

Cheers!

Jack

Home Theater Furniture Quest for Greatness…Again

Jack — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 16:00:13 +0000

So about 5 or 6 years ago, I built a bad-ass home theater in the house that we just sold. Yes, with stadium seating. We went a little crazy and bought ridiculously expensive, semi-custom home theater seating. The custom furniture stays with the house (ouch) and now I am trying to plan Home Theater II. Never again will I buy custom furniture…largely because you don’t really need to anymore. Home theaters are really common now, and places like Overstock and even Target carry some good furniture for the cause. So today I’ve been weighing my options.

Overstock has so many awesome reclining sectionals. The Beldon 7-piece Leather Recliner Home Theater Set is a great-looking place to park yourself for football and movies. At just $1757, the price is very reasonable for a piece this large. This seven piece leather-matched curved home theater sectional features 2 recliners, 2 one-seaters, 2 storage console tables, and one ottoman. Reviews are strong with 4.5 stars after 13 reviews.

For a straight-up theater feel, the Brown Leather 3-seat Recliner Home Theater Seating for 3 rings in at $1400. It’s highly rated with 4.8 stars after 8 reviews at Overstock.

Target has a few well-priced recliners including one that is deeply discounted down to $217. The Kensington Bi-Cast Recliner in Chocolate is a very affordable spot for your kids. For adults, not so much. The scale is off with no neck support when adults recline, and feet pour over past the footrest. But a cool option for the wee lads, or as an occasional chair for adults.

Cheers!

Jack

Beer Fridge: The Next Generation

Jack — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:13:46 +0000

I’m a 32 year old man who still owns his 14 year old dorm fridge. That’s where the beer goes. It’s my untouchable corner of the home that isn’t all girlied up…a private sanctuary for my favorite brews…strategically placed in the home theater, forming a “work triangle” with the row of recliners and the restroom.

But 14 years in, my college workhorse is giving out on me and he is freezing my sacred brew. Party foul. With a heavy heart, I’m ushering in a new era of beer fridge. I’ve found some good bets. I’d “like” stainless, but I’d also like inexpensive, and it needs solid ratings since wee little fridges can often exhibit wee little quality. The winner in the I-know-that-the-freezer-won’t-work-but-I-just-need-a-cheap-beer-fridge category goes to the Kenmore White 3.9 cu. ft. Compact Refrigerator at Sears. Reviews indicate that the freezer is worthless. My beer and I are fine with that. And at $105.25 (32% off $155), pennies are saved. For more beer. Also, opt to pick it up in-store to avoid any shipping fees.

In the category that I am calling the beer-drinker’s-Mercedes, I nominate the Kenmore Stainless Steel 4.6 cu. ft. Compact Refrigerator as the winner. It’s still reasonably priced at $169.99, down from $199.99, and it has awesome ratings. 4.5 stars after 14 reviews – that blew away most of the competition. It looks great skinned in stainless, and the inside is smartly configured to hold many a frothy beverage. This fridge is temporarily out of stock to be SHIPPED, but since most of us would order it to be picked up at our local stores anyway to avoid shipping fees, I am still calling this a winner.

Cheers!

Jack

Daryl Collins: How to Score with the Ladies #47

Jack — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 15:47:50 +0000

Hello cyberfriends! I’m back here again on irc.freenode.net #dating-howto with another installment of my program, How to Score with the Ladies!

If you haven’t had a successful first date, then I would invite you to review my previous 46 tips that have to do with finding a date and first date tips, FTW!

That said, at some point during your flirtations, you will decide to bring the lady home. Maybe it’s steak night, or dinner and a movie. Either way, you want the lady to be completely convinced of your sophistication.

That’s why I recommend to all my clients that they pick up this Haier 6 Bottle Wine Cellar with Touch Screen. The ladies just love wine, and even more, a man who can talk wine. Show her this wine cellar, and she’ll be yours forever! I highly recommend chilling some bottles of chardonnay and pinot grigio, and maybe even a riesling or two for the sweet stuff.

I hope this helps all of you out there! Until next time, I’m Daryl Collins… PEACE!

Start Your Own Margaritaville

Jack — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:58:29 +0000

Wasted away again in Margaritaville,
Searchin’ for my lost shaker of salt.
Some people claim that there’s a woman to blame,
But I know it’s nobody’s fault.

I think I just found my lost shaker of salt at Kohl’s. You can get the Margaritaville 36-oz. Frozen Concoction Margarita Maker for just $180, or 33% off the normal price of $270. As the description says, it’s five o’clock somewhere!

More Outdoor End of Summer Sales

Jack — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 06:10:50 +0000

At Kmart, you can find amazing values on their patio furniture. More specifically, you can save up to 50% for the Marthas Stewart Patio Furniture collection.

Not only that, but Home Depot also has a killer deal on the Hampton Bay Palm Canyon Swing. At only $49, that’s 25% off the regular price.

I’ve gotta say, my weapon of choice when it comes to the great outdoors is certainly a hammock. Nonetheless, these are excellent opportunities to save some serious bling on nice, new furniture.