Usually unfriendly, prices are very high for discarded items. They try to beat you out of the last nickel. Not a fun place. Someone needs to train the staff to think of service and a constructive attitude. I avoid the place due to the vibe. read more

I have been going to Urban Ore for years and today was the last straw. The workers at the back by the door department are total arrogant jerks. I took a brand new $350 pre-hung interior french door to trade for no more than $25 worth of totally overpriced items and I was offered $10.00. These guys call themselves 'artists' when they just hang around and make the customer feel like they are doing them a favor waiting on them. They would have striped the hinges and door jamb off the door and sold them on their own. I love the entire recycle process but the owner should send in some blind shoppers and see how these employees treat the customers. I took the doors to Habitat for Humanity and gave them to them for FREE......they were so happy to have them for a good cause. BE CAREFUL OF THESE TOTAL RIPOFF ARROGANT SO CALLED EMPLOYEES!!!! THEY CLAIM TO BE ARTISTS BUT THEY ARE NOT EVEN CLOSE!! read more

This is a classic bait and switch. I called asking if the items I had in my house would be accepted and warrant cash or store credit. The lady on the phone said yes. I loaded up the truck and made the half hour drive to Urban Ore excited I could get something for the perfect building materials I had on hand but couldn't use. As soon I dropped the items off, they were hauled away. The loading dock supervisor then told me I wouldn't get credit and my items would just be scrapped because they were not sellable. I would have believed the loading dock supervisor if I didn't see him bring the items all back into the store and put price tags on them for sale when I walked through the store later on that day. I am never going to shop here again, and I encourage you to do the same thing until they become more honest. read more

I want to like it more, but it's true, most of the "stuff" is significantly overpriced. It's fine if you want to kill time, but not worth it for much else... read more

In theory this place should be awesome. In reality it's a fail. Recycle and keep stuff out of the landfill? Great idea. Charge top dollar for stuff you get for free (in mostly POOR condition, I.e, "free junk") to pay employees for hiding out, and having attitude when you find out where they're hiding? Bad model. Being in Berkeley, the Good Intention Capital of the World, makes this failure all the more glaring. Is it in the business of recycling and saving the landfill? Or paying people for being professional slackers? One visit, and you'll have the answer. Or save yourself some driving and disappointment, by going to the local non-profit thrift store if you're looking for bargains, or the many used building materials places in the area if you're looking for that stuff. You will find "treasure" here, not. Guaranteed. If it's worth a dime, they will want a dollar. No surprise stuff sits there for months. The employees obviously get the good free stuff before it ever sees the public, because if it isn't wrecked, dented, rotted, or covered with dirt, it won't be for sale. Urban Ore could be a model of moving reusable stuff around, reducing waste and lowering the cost of living for people in the Bay Area. Instead, it's just another cynical "concept" business. read more

I could really, really like this place. It's a recycling and re-use center and alone from that perspective it theoretically has something to offer. But it loses a star or two because of the chaos. There's really no effort to separate the good from the bad, the crap form the valuable or the junk from similar items that work. The stuff is just piled up or heaped everywhere and one had to fight one's way through a dozen clearly non-functioning items to get to one that works. Then they lose a star because of the horrendous discrepancy between what they will pay for an item and what they will sell it for. Yes, it's a business, I know. Oh, yes, I know - they can do whatever they like as long as the market supplies and offers it. But seriously, I've seen them offer $5.00 for a perfectly decent solid core door and then watched them put it on sale for $150 the next day. It's just egregious because they knew the couple bringing the door didn't want to take it away again and clearly they were disappointed. Yeah, I also know that greed is the American way - but I am free not to like it. Next, they lose another three stars for the crappiest service this side of the Mississippi and they lose another two for a shitty attitude. You ask the surly mid-twenties dufus who's reading a newspaper where the bathroom medicine cabinets are and he barely looks up, nods his head in a vague and undefined direction and mumbles "down there," before going back to reading whatever nonsense he's engrossed in. Sure, I know - at least he can read, but let's face it, it's Berkeley, not Topeka, KS. OK, so where does that tally leave us? At around minus three stars. yeah, that's about where i'd put them. Oh, and don't try and deal with the alleged boss guy - if it's the same one from a couple of years ago, he's a real piece of work. i'd rather buy second hand crap form Mussolini. read more

I usually wouldn't bother reviewing a place with so many reviews already, but I was that disappointed by my recent trip to Urban Ore. I'll be the obnoxious person who says "this place has really changed," and not for the better. 15 years ago I got an excellent, large, old steamer trunk for $15, and a great old window with a funky wood frame for $30. The windows are still there, but for 3-4 times that price, and there is nothing as cool as an old steamer trunk. Instead, there are piles of broken particle board furniture, rusty filing cabinets with some kid's Misfits stickers still on them, and drawers full of stuff like cheap plastic cameras from 1995. The only remotely interesting things we saw were marked "property of Urban Ore," meaning, we can't sell this stuff because then this place would look like the crap hole it really is. If you want an overpriced aged-looking door, a bathtub, toilet, or sink, or shutters (they have tons of shutters), you'll find it here, but the good ones will be expensive. Other than that, don't get your hopes up. read more

Urban Ore is filthy and it stinks. It's also full of garbage, and the garbage isn't even all that cheap. They claim to be a super-hip, eco-friendly, waste-reducing, money-saving center for enriching yourself with socially conscious culture, but really it's just a dusty, sour landfill without so much as a curmudgeonly muppet to add flavor the experience. I once bought some kitchen trinkets here and the salt shaker had some old marijuana crammed into the lid along with some guy's phone number. Today, I'm returning the remains of a coffee table that didn't have the structural integrity to hold its own screws in its own screw holes -- I took the thing home and dismantled it for refinishing, then when it was time to screw it back together, the wood turned to dust in the screw hole and the pieces fell apart. And this cost me $30, plus what I spent at Home Depot for the finishing materials. I could have just gone to Ikea and gotten another $50 particle board disposable paper-and-glue piece for the same money without the headache and wasted time. My point is, it's clear that they don't check their products for quality, they just put them on the floor and price-gun them before slinking back behind the counter to sneer at your questions. Urban Ore believes that one man's trash is another man's treasure, which is a cute idea, but they should learn that some things are everyone's trash, identify those things, and not sell them. read more

Recently re-visited and had a better experience. The employee's were much friendlier, the place looks as if they have done some cleaning. I didn't find what i was looking for, but things seemed to improve.... read more

Urban Ore is: 1 part hardware store 1 part antique store 1 part Goodwill 1 part ReStore There is a really interesting mix of things in here. A lot of it is overpriced because all of the tragically desperate folks in Berkeley will pay a bit more than they should (those suckers). If you are a vintage lovin' homeowner, this is your place. Lots of antique hardware, old doors, windows and such. That barn door pin you've been lusting over on Pinterest? You can likely get your supplies for that here. They have a massive supply of cameras and camera equipment as well. Also: some of the furniture is completely haunted. Oh hello, old, creepy children's school desk from the 1800's. You're setting off some strange, negative energy. Oh and by the way, they take cards! Check this place out and see what you can cram into your Nissan Versa. read more

Wow, I've worked within a mile of Urban Ore for over a year and always thought it was just for building supplies. I was so pleased to go there for the first time today and discover all the antique house ware junk! My life revolves around wedding planning at the moment, so I was immediately drawn to the selection of glass vases, realizing they were just what I had in mind for a vintage-y, mod podge-y centerpiece decoration. I spent $11 on six of them (this was all I could carry) and I'll be back for more! If you can get past the cat urine-ish odor when you first walk in, and are able to steer clear of the numerous accidents waiting to happen (there's plenty of stuff to trip over and fall on you) then you're in for a treat. read more

things i've bought from urban ore in the last 3 years: item(s): old school wooden window sashes, various sizes diy vision: replicate the infamous "room divider" in marie de salle's loft in the movie high fidelity outcome: stored in the garage currently, until further notice item(s): church pew bench (2 seater) diy vision: quaint outdoor seating area outcome: repainted it, but it was thrown away-- forgot to treat the wood and it got ruined. WHOOPS :( item(s): typewriter, old cameras, and rubber stamps diy vision: shadowboxes and decoration outcome: realized! YAY! item(s): replacement storm shelter hasp and matching handle diy vision: see above outcome: realized! YAY! item(s): house numbers diy vision: replace house numbers with cooler ones outcome: the zero broke as i was installing it. SHITTTTT!!! p.s. anyone interested in a 2 and a 9? inquire within. ;P urban ore is expensive for the things you might wanna buy, but visiting the damn place is a fascinating, free, and sometimes terrifying experience. great for window shoppers, impulse buyers, wannabe weekend warriors, and couples wanting to do something cute when wasting time together. not recommended for serious buyers with an exact, specific item or people looking for affordable lumber. happy hunting! read more

One of the all time favorite shopping experiences - no exaggeration. Urban Ore is always inspiring. Their inventory is an all encompassing term for everything possibly imaginable - to something you desperately need to nothing you ever thought you'd want, but you will find yourself unable to walk away from that 1930s art deco waffle iron (working beautifully) for under 4 bucks, currently in my kitchen making great grilled cheese sandwiches. I empathize with the reviewer who shared her dismay at some of the prices marked. But here's the insider scoop - for every thing you find that is overpriced, there's four that are an incredible deal. But experienced thrift/vintage shoppers know that's how the best places operate and for those of us that are cursed/blessed with the thrill of the hunt, this place is heaven. If you need it, 99% of the time, they have it, from old appliance cord replacement to a 3-hole punch to... a 1960s oscilloscope. A 4x6' flying pink pig - perfect for a kids room. A truly amazing steel steampunk desk with a hidden, spring-loaded compartment designed for a typewriter now perfectly suited for a wireless keyboard or laptop. (They also have Larry, one of the coolest cats around, but this slinky jet black dude is definitely nfs.) Forget Ikea. No, don't forget Ikea, cause sometimes you do need that super clean, mass produced and (usually) well designed item, but Think: If you filled that need at a place like this (is there any other place like this?), you save beaucoup d'argent for something 10000x more interesting. Plus although every tiny thing you do to help the earth probably won't make much difference, you are at least not making it worse. Come here before buying it somewhere else new (i.e., Made in China by robots) and you will find it. Also: Imagination is not something they stock, but I always walk out of here feeling like I have more of it. That in and of itself is worth a trip. And I always walk out with something unexpectedly randomly great. The prices are fantastic - maybe not on some of the antiques, or on the used 2.99 Safeway strawberry jam jar marked 2.00, but 99% of everything else, including some truly great vintage items. This place does not try my patience for great bargain hunting, unlike some other so-called thrift stores. But you do have to have the sense of adventure and curiosity and toleration for the clutter, sometime grime, and chaos. If you are gifted with that tolerance as most creative people are, and there are corners of this place that will test that tolerance, you will be rewarded - materially and otherwise. I hope this is helpful to people trying to get a fix on this place. Berkeley/West Oakland is one of the few places where a business like this could exist, and Urban Ore kind of wonderfully exemplifies what is so uniquely cool about this area. I understand those reviewers who objected to the rare, but nevertheless truly unpleasant olfactory encounter, but try to remember that besides running an enterprise that needs a profit to survive, unlike almost every business, the owners of Urban Ore are doing more than their part to help control the stray animal situation in the east bay. It's that compassion and devotion to community that puts them in a whole different category of "retail". read more

I was surprised how rude and anti-recycling their manger David was. After several calls, they came out to pick up three doors at my house in Berkeley. One was an outside door with 5 etched glass windows and a wooden door with an intact screen. They are in good condition but not brand new. David said they only wanted new items. He said for me to take them to the Berkeley Recycling Center and pay the dump fees. The his people would take them to be resold. He was upset that people keep recycling building materials instead of taking them for landfill. He could have just said they could not use them. It was clearly not what I expected from them. read more

A GREAT IDEA POORLY EXECUTED. I love recycling, and even more, I love using good old pieces of building. I'm even willing to pay Urban Ore $5 to take my free and totally usable toilet, which they can likely sell for another $10-20. However, amidst the occasional shiny needle in this giant haystack is a lot of unvaluable--and worse yet, unfiltered--crap. The biggest problem with UO is the staff. I have been to several similar places, including the much better and side-by-side Habitat Re-Store and St.Vincent DePaul down on San Leandro and 92nd, and a few in Seattle. They all outshine UO because the people who are paid there actually WORK there. When not busy, it appears that they actually sort through stuff, organizing cabinet doors and hardware and discards of all sorts. UO, on the other hand, has giant piles of broken windows, splintered wood products, shattered tiles...and always several staff sitting around, shooting the shit, apparently unwilling to either (A) help customers or (B) make the place more "shoppable." I'll keep going there in a pinch...but prefer those on San Leandro Blvd. Get it together, UO Management...and staff the place like it's a business. read more

Agree with others; ideologically in love with the place. But, not always easy to get help. And most of us over 22 don't feel the need to act cool all the time. We own houses. We like being nice and friendly. Also, prices for some stuff are a joke. Are we supposed to barter? Half these prices would seem reasonable. So much for anti-capitalist excess in profits...these prices push me to consume anew elsewhere, on credit. This should be the store of the future. But jeez. read more

There is a lot of stuff here, some good but mostly it's all crap. They have cats that live in the warehouse which is a good thing but the litterboxes scarrered about are full of stinky cat piss and shit read more

I would truly love to give a good review to a company that does what Urban Ore does. Unfortunately I suffered the worst retail experience I have ever had to endure at this establishment. I only wish zero or negative stars were an option on Yelp Without going into excruciating detail, Urban Ore sold me a piece of junk that had been lying around their yard for months and months. When I went to pick it up, they had sold it to someone else. Their excuse for selling it to someone else was that I had not picked it up in time. This despite never having told me there was e time limit and, in any case, they didn't call me up to ask when I would be able to pick it up. No, they just sold it again to someone else! Pretty good business model - eh? Want to double your sales? Well - sell everything twice! Brilliant! To compound this egregious behavior, when I asked for a refund, the extraordinarily aggressive General Manager refused and even threatened to throw me off the premises. Mind boggling. Perhaps "Urban Bore" would be a better description. Only go to this place if you are absolutely desperate and under no circumstances make the mistake of asking for assistance from the boorish General Manager. And don't expect any assistance from the Operations Manager, she's almost as bad. Check out: http://urbanoresucks.blogspot.com read more

This place is a bullshit rip off. They take people's garbage and sell it at totally arbitrary prices. There is no rhyme reason or consistency to anything and most of the employees are incompetent scumbags. read more

I really, really wanted to like Urban Ore. I love the concept of a gigantic store full of useful salvage - environmentally sound, easy on the budget, reasonably convenient. And Urban Ore delivers on variety. They've got a lot of different kinds of things. And that's great. But it's got enough problems that I rarely find anything usable. - The selection for any given item isn't so great. I've mostly tried to buy furniture, and occasionally parts, so maybe the actual building supply is better, but the selection of tables or chairs or dressers isn't ever very extensive, and almost all of what they do have is seriously mediocre. - Everything is filthy. Like, disgusting. I would have serious reservations about buying anything there that I couldn't scrub thoroughly, like upholstered furniture. - Most of what they do have is in pretty bad shape. Lamps have exposed wiring, bookshelves are ready to collapse, chairs are missing seats. Which would be fine, except... - It's overpriced. Things in bad shape are priced as if they're in good shape; anything cheap is going to require fairly major repairs, and probably money spent on additional materials. That last one is really the killer for me. I could buy dirty, busted up things and fix them up, but they have to be cheap. And Urban Ore really fails that particular test. read more

5 stars for the concept. There should be more huge warehouses of salvaged materials in more cities than the most OBVIOUS city to have one....Berkeley. That being said, Urban Ore encompasses all of the hippie-dippie ideals -- only at a yuppie-duppie prices. While I'm sure you will be able to find deals on some things, we came to check out their huge selection of doors, hoping to find something we could restore with our own bare hands and thus be super proud of every time we looked at it. While most of the doors are really beat up, the prices on anything we would remotely consider ranged from $100-400. Now I'm no door expert, but I have done my shopping, and brand new stained mahogany doors can be found for around $200. An old beat, severly nicked up, in serious need of TLC, a paint strip down, refinish, etc, will probably run you at Urban Ore around $150. Although it is better for the earth, my evil wasteful consumer side tells me that this is a giant ripoff, and while it sucks to spare another tree, I'm going to have to go with the new door for $200. So, I'm evil. But I dont like to get ripped off and create gobs of work for myself in the process. In the end, worth the visit. Especially if you need doors of any type. Wear closed toed shoes if you want to venture outside, its amazing how much broken glass is just chilling out there, waiting to lodge itself into your feet. We were a little disheartened by the prices (I guess we were expecting that this place was more about making you feel like youre getting a great deal, but its not), but you never know what you'll find there, and in the end...recycling is cool. read more

Projects are endless and customer service is great. I am so thankful to have found this gem!

This place is NOT a non-profit, yet they act disgusted if you expect any payment whatsoever for things you bring in. Their website says they will pay 10-20% of resale for items they accept, but of the trailer-ful of building supplies and household goods I brought, they offered only $10 for one fireplace mantle. Lest you think my stuff was crap, they wanted it ALL for resale, but were only willing to pay for one item. What's worse, they acted as if I was trying to steal a lollypop from a baby by not being willing to donate everything. I was treated rudely, and to top it off, while I was getting my $10 bill from the cashier, one of them unhitched my trailer tailgate, which came open as I was going 60 on the freeway. Very funny, right? It could have been disastrous if the furniture and building supplies had come out as I drove. Finally, for some reason they offer receipts for your donations, maybe to convince you that Urban Ore is a non-profit? But sure enough, they're a for-profit company which accepts free 'donations' which they turn around and sell for insane prices. read more

yeah, it's stinky. yeah, things are old. and, yes, things might be a tad overpriced. however... you can bargain (at least, i have), you can hunt, and you can prevail! i found the most beautiful old door, amazing hardware to go with it and bought a great pedestal sink all for under 100 dollars. it was all priced above what i actually paid and, thus, i got a great deal. i have to say though, the real standout for me was Matt in the lights/hardware section. he helped us figure out exactly what we needed and did so with the friendliest, most patient attitude. i was getting a little discouraged with our remodel since we're trying to use only reclaimed materials which is hard for someone with no building experience. Matt's enthusiasm reminded me how much i enjoy vintage stuff and has encouraged me to keep forging ahead with my building-plan, despite my lack of experience. thanks, Matt! read more

A cat piss smelling warehouse full of bad feng shui but outside a wonderful assortment of pedestal sinks. Staff is really nice.

This place is a hole. They have collected everyone's trash (I understand some see it as "treasures") and are trying to convince you that this stuff is usable or has monetary value. Check out the photos for yourself online. Do not go here unless you cannot afford to go anywhere else. If you must stop by to go junking, bring friends because you will be moving your "treasure" all on your own. No one is willing to lift a finger or offer any information. Take it or leave it, they don't care. Just don't bother them while they do nothing. The poor quality and condition of items, along with the lack of effort by employees makes this place a waste of time and space. read more

Wow. I was just *shocked* by the fantabulousness of this store! I've been to the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse many times, but recently a friend told me Urban Ore was even better (we were talking about art supplies, specifically). I initially felt some loyalty to the Depot, but once I'd had a thorough look around Urban Ore, my allegiance definitely shifted. It's housed in a gigantic warehouse, with these high ceilings and industrial-looking walls and cement floors, with no actual room separations, but they've used furniture/bookcases and such to form themed areas: the power tools, the plumbing supplies, the doors, the windows, the dressers, the coffee tables, whatever. At first, I was dubious, because the central aisle as I came in seemed populated largely by chatchkes. I am not a chatchke person, so I was wincing internally and forming a first impression that this place sucked. But then I got to exploring. I was looking for the art supplies, but I had no idea where they were, and so I wandered almost the entire place before finding them. (I'm sure I could have asked one of the staff at the counter in front -- they were extremely friendly when I did end up talking to them later -- but I was perfectly happy to just explore for a while. I was in no hurry.) They had some terrific furniture, such that I decided, "The next time I need a piece of furniture -- or a lamp, or CD jewel cases, or whatever -- I'm coming here first!" They even had a small selection of gently used clothing, which was all marked with price tags that made me gasp ... at the lowness of the price. The prices were *way* better than I've seen for similar merchandise at Goodwill, for example. I didn't check the prices on the plethora of hardware items, but I'd be curious to see whether they have similar items and similar prices to Ohmega Salvage (another very cool store). The next time I'm needing to shop for that kind of thing, I'll definitely come here to compare prices and quality. Anyway, I eventually found the art supplies (looking for collage materials, in particular), and there were these *multiple* filing cabinets just *filled* with paper-type stuff: greeting cards, photographs, maps, decorated envelopes, etc. I ended up with quite a handful of stuff and approached the cashier in some trepidation, because there were no price guides posted anywhere in the art supply area, and I didn't know if this place would price things similarly to the Depot or if it would be more expensive. (And I had like $3 in my pocket. Yeah, I'm a big spender.) Well, my stack of stuff -- maybe 12-15 items like cards and such -- ended up costing me $1, so I thought that was pretty great. I highly recommend this place, and I can guarantee that I'll be coming back -- not just for the art supplies I usually go to the Depot for, but also for pretty much anything I might ever need to buy. They probably have it here, so why not look here first? read more

Urban Ore is a big goldmine, if you are willing to look. It is in a big warehouse, so it not that hard to find. The Rundown: -Inventory: They have everything from doorknobs to photographs. I loved looking at the photographs, though they did not have very many real old ones. The record section was huge, and they have a clothing section. -The sections look like everything was tossed around, but it is not a department store, so they should not receive flack for it. -Prices: I did not see very many items with high prices. In fact, everything was very reasonably priced. They had some embossed chemical bottles for $5 each, which is a low price for those bottles. Books were $1 Ea for soft cover and $2 each for hardbound, unless marked otherwise.. I bought 2 very old and neat books for $4. -Service: Urban Ore Employees were very hard to spot. At one point, I wanted to see something in a case in the book section, and I went up to the register and asked to see in those cases. One of the men at the counter used a P.A system to call over somebody to open the cases. No one came, and I asked a second time, He called again, and still no one came. The 2 men at the Register were very nice though, and the one who sent out the call seemed visibly annoyed that nobody came to help me. Salvaged bits: The service thing was a little annoying, so Urban Ore, please try and either hire new people if you are understaffed, or make your employees more easier to identify. However, I still rate this a 11/10, because of everything. In fact this is a very dangerous store for me, as the prices are very good, and they have antiques. Those 2 factors are going to cause me financial trouble, so I should try and stay away :) WORD OF ADVICE: Come here with a budget set in mind, or you will spend lots of money. read more

"You wanna hear my review of Urban Ore?" I said to my roommates while walking to our car empty handed.... I always get excited to come here. A warehouse filled with all sorts of unique and affordable things I can create great furniture with. The car ride there is cramped because we have to take the ruck there. We all talk enthusiastically about the things we hope to find so everyone can keep their eyes peeled. Then we arrive and I walk through the entrance giddy as a school girl. As I get closer to all their products, one thing comes to mind. This is a bunch of junk. A few little gems here and there and EVERYTHING is over priced. The only things that are even remotely "useable" are either already sold, aren't even FOR sale, or so over priced it feels like they must be pulling your leg. I find myself walking up and down their FREEZING warehouse feeling like I wasted my time. Today, I did. I can buy something online or at any other thrift store for a fraction of the cost. And it's mostly broken or just plain trash. read more

This place is pretty cool. If you don't mind sorting through piles of dusty cast-off pieces of furniture, housewares, books, records, doors, toilets....you name it, it will be there...then this is the place to go. I wanted to find an interesting piece of wood to put in the center of our dining table for candles to sit on, and found something suitable for $1.00. Bingo. read more

Disappointing and over-rated are the two words that came to mind as I was leaving this place.... Sooo overpriced, and junky....Do yourself a favor and find treasures on the side of the road or at a garage sale and save a wade of scratch.... There were toilets outside priced at $75.00 that looked like that still had feces and pee in them....2 stars for the concept... they just need to do some refining. read more

At first glance urban ore looks great, but has you peruse its bowels you find that it's just full of waste. over priced waste. with unhelpful hipster help. that seems too cool for this blue collar home owner. If you're looking for feetless clawfoot tubs, unhung double hung windows, or something along these lines you're in luck. if you want a deal, you're out of luck. most of this stuff is overpriced and unuseable. plus they'll make you feel like your not cool enough to shop there. read more

The best way to describe Urban Ore is "upscale junkyard". For me, it was like walking into the Goodwill Bargain Barn in Santa Cruz after the world had just ended. I say this because when I went there it was raining outside, the warehouse was crowded with people and junk, and the power was out in the entire building. An employee had to yell at the top of her lungs that the credit card machine wasn't working due to the power outage. It was really magical. When the power came back on about 20 minutes later, things quickly returned to what I guessed was "normal" for the place, and it was much easier to see what all those piles of stuff on the shelves consisted of. I'm not much of a "builder" or "maker", but you don't have to be either to have fun at Urban Ore. I bought a vinyl album and an earring (yep, just one), but I'll definitely be coming back here if I need windows or doors, because there's definitely no shortage of either of those. The section of the warehouse with the doors all set it rows and piled on top of each other reminded me of Monsters, Inc. I have no need for old, cool-looking doors at this stage of my life, but Urban Ore made me feel like I did. Not sure how helpful the employees would be if you came in with a specific project in mind. My guess is very helpful, since there were quite a few of them standing around with nothing to do. read more

Such a strange, yet intriguing place. Although I did find one knick knack, most items were a miss. I agree wholeheartedly with many reviewers: the store reeked of cats, prices were inconsistent, and the employee we encountered was rude. Glad we tried it, but we don't plan on visiting again. read more

Not for the feint of heart. This place has everything, from $1-5 table chairs, to a $100 pickled alien fetus on sale for ten bucks. If you're afraid of trash, don't go here. But if you love digging through trash, talking to friendly counterculture staff, and finding only the most wonderful of used items known to the bay area, I would move your house into Urban Ore. Or just sell your furniture there... I won't lie, this place isn't for everyone. If you're looking for high quality merch to decorate your home with, go to Pottery Barn. Keep an open mind and you can't go wrong here. read more

First time here, and there's something for everybody! My husband made a killing with the 50 cent records. Perfect place to go if you plan on remodeling a house, as they have tons of doors, windows, fixtures, tubs, sinks, etc. It's a major treasure hunt, so you have to be up for that. Some of the prices are great, some are not so great, so you have to know what you are doing. Good tip to wear warm clothes (it was freezing!) and clothes you don't mind getting dirty. read more

Let's just get this out of the way right now. What is up with the cat pee smell??? I didn't see a single cat on my visit to Urban Ore and yet I could smell them everywhere. It didn't totally turn me off - I have cats at home so I'm fairly used to the smell - it was just odd. This place is pretty awesome, otherwise. I could have walked around forever looking through all the old treasures. They have an AMAZING selection of old windows at pretty good prices. I got two from the clearance section super cheap. At first I was a little frustrated when none of the windows I was looking at had prices on them but it worked out in the end when the guy just looked at my selections and said, "Ehhh . . . five bucks each?" Yes please. A valuable lesson I learned the day I went to Urban Ore : it's probably one of the worst places in the world to bring a 3 yr old. I'm not sure why my sister-in-law and I didn't realize that a salvage yard wasn't the safest place to bring my niece but we soon found that out. Olivia: "Oh look! A little mug for me to drink from!" Too bad it was an old rusty battery. Luckily she didn't have time to touch it before we told her how "yucky" it was. She did, however, have time to knock her head on the bars of an old baggage cart she was using as a jungle gym. She was also able to come very close to bringing down a pile of old bathroom cabinets that were stacked in a corner. And good thing she was wearing her light up tennis shoes and not her favorite ballet slippers because her little feet trampled over a fair amount of broken glass. So lesson learned. Not the next location for your kids birthday parties. Note to self. read more

Be patient, bring the bottle of hand-sanitizer, and watch out for sharp objects or things protruding when on the hunt in this huge drab wherehouse that has endless portals of eclectic, cheap, good conditioned finds. A vintage signature COACH zippered leather billfold/wallet type....drum roll...$3.00...drops the microphone read more

I needed help with tools and asked one of the guys if I can get into the tool room to browse - cause there's a lot of tools - the guy would not let me in, so I asked him to please bring the bin of bits to the counter, he said no it's too heavy. Mind you he is much bigger and stronger than me cause I watched him lift solid doors with no issues. So we wasted time pointing from the other side of the glass walls which drill bits I wanted from a pile of unorganized drill bits. After missing the bit I wanted he just gave up and stopped pointing and proceeded to go back to the door. The next day I came back and asked another guy to help me and guess what? He let me in the tool room and let me browse and pick the bits I wanted. The bin - I could lift with no effort. As I stood in line the same guy from the other day asked if he could price the bits. I said no I'd rather the person at the counter do it for me. Person at the counter gave me a good price. After reading the reviews here it seems that this guy is such a problem and has a bad attitude. read more

this place is great, i have spent many a'hungover sundays pillaging through hidden treasures.. i never really have an agenda when i go here but there is always, always something that catches your eye... usually at a good discounted price. some of the stuff is pricey, but its probably way cheaper than you would find it elsewhere... definately worth spending an hour or two at. . . read more