Dėkui stations: free item-sharing points in Lithuania
Next to a bulky waste collection site there are often things nowhere near ready for the bin: a child's bike, a set of chairs, a dinner set, a microwave that still works. That is what Dėkui stations are for — places where an unwanted but usable item is not thrown away but waits for a new owner. "Dėkui" means "thank you" in Lithuanian.
This guide covers what they are, what you can leave, how much you can take and when they are open.
What Dėkui stations are
A Dėkui station (officially stotelė „DĖK'ui“) is an item-sharing space set up inside a bulky waste collection site (DGAS in Lithuanian). People drop off things they no longer need, and others take them for free.
The scheme is run by the Vilnius County Waste Management Centre (VAATC) together with the "Atliekų kultūra" initiative. The station list currently counts 123 sites in ten regions — from Vilnius and Kaunas to Neringa, Zarasai and Druskininkai. Sites outside the Vilnius region are run by their own regional waste management centres.
The idea is simple: what one person no longer needs can be a real find for someone else. The item lasts longer and less goes to landfill.
What you can leave
The stations take a wide range of household items:
For children — bikes, scooters, toys, car seats, prams, school supplies, children's furniture.
Furniture — office, hallway, living room, kitchen and garden furniture, and interior pieces.
Electronics — computers, audio and video equipment, home appliances, garden machinery.
Renovation — flooring, paint, tiles, tools, building mixes.
The key condition: the item must be fit for its purpose — tidy, not broken, clean and free of bad smells. A small, easily fixed defect is fine.
How to give an item
Make sure you really don't need it. You won't be getting it back.
Clean it. A clean item is usually taken within the week; a dirty one, most likely never.
Check pockets and drawers. Don't leave money, documents or other valuables behind.
Bring a dismantled item with every part. Add a photo of it assembled and, if you have them, the assembly instructions.
Bring it during the site's opening hours. Items are accepted on every working day of the site.
A few kinds of items have their own rules:
Clothes — clean, without stains or smells, neatly folded. Tie shoes together in pairs.
Electrical appliances — working, or with their condition clearly labelled. Include cables, chargers and manuals.
Paint, varnish, solvents — only in their original, undamaged, sealed packaging.
Both residents and companies can give items. A company that needs proof of how many items it handed over can get a declaration.
How to take an item
It is free. No registration and no booking.
One person may take at most three items. In exceptional cases — after a fire, or in serious financial hardship — more are allowed; you need to email VAATC (contacts at stoteledekui.lt).
You can't reserve items, but you can browse what is currently at the stations on stoteledekui.lt.
There is no delivery. You take the item away yourself, so arrange transport for anything large.
Clean or disinfect an item before using it. The centre running the station is not responsible for its condition.
When the stations are open
Two things are worth keeping apart:
Dropping items off is possible on every working day of the site, during its opening hours.
Taking items at Vilnius-region stations is possible on Thursdays from 11:00 to 18:00 (break 12:00–12:30). The station at Pilaitės pr. 50 in Vilnius is open on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the same times.
On public holidays the stations are closed.
Hours at sites in other regions may differ — check the local waste management centre's website before you go. Every station on our Dėkui station map links to it.
What not to bring
Broken, mouldy or smelly items. These are waste — the same site has containers for them, and most household waste from residents is accepted free of charge.
Incomplete sets. A wardrobe without doors or a bed without screws helps no one.
Opened or leaking paint and chemicals.
Clothes in bags. They are hard to look through, so they usually just stay there.
DĖK'ui racks — for clothes
Alongside the stations there is a separate project, DĖK'ui kabyklos (clothes racks), set up in libraries, schools, universities, workplaces and community centres. The rules are even simpler:
Leave as many clothes as there are free hangers. If there is no room, take them to another rack.
Take as much as you will actually wear.
Don't leave clothes in bags — only on hangers, clean and tidy.
We put all 123 stations on one Dėkui station map. Tap a point to see the site's name, a Google Maps link and a link to the local waste centre, where the opening hours are listed.
When Findings is easier
A Dėkui station works well when you are going to the waste site anyway or live close to one. But not always:
A large piece of furniture and no car. Post a listing and the person comes to you — you don't have to haul it anywhere.
The station is far away or open when you can't go. A listing on Findings works around the clock.
You want to know who gets it. You arrange it with a specific person in chat, and after the handover you can rate each other.
The item is worth selling. Everything at a station is given away; on Findings you can set a price.
Both aim for the same thing — keeping things in use. If it is easier to find your item a new home from your own doorstep, post a listing — a few photos are enough.
Based on the rules published at stoteledekui.lt (VAATC), November 2026. Rules can change — check their website before you go.