An additional option for getting rid of your unneeded stuff is to donate it to a charitable institution. There is a variety of worthy organizations that will gladly accept your unwanted goods. Not only will you receive a tax break for donating those unwanted items, but you will also help someone less fortunate.

But please, make sure your gear is in good enough order that someone else would want to own it. If it's unusable to you, it probably won't be usable to a charity organization. Don't forget to get a receipt, as all your donations are tax deductible.

Salvation Army

Thanks to their charitable campaign around Christmas and the pervasive bell ringing, the Salvation Army is the most well-known charity organization. From family tracing to disaster response, the Salvation Army offers a wide variety of services worldwide. 

Goodwill

Another charity organization, Goodwill Industries is one of the largest non-profit providers of "education, training, and career services for people with disadvantages, such as welfare dependency, homelessness, and lack of education or work experience, as well as those with physical, mental and emotional disabilities."

Habitat ReStores

If you happen to have surplus building materials, one option is to donate it to the Habitat ReStore. These are retail outlets, operated by Habitat for Humanity, where used and new building materials are sold at greatly reduced prices. The proceeds from these stores go to fund the construction of Habitat houses in your local community.

There is also a number of other donation options, including churches, homeless shelters and schools. Simply find an organization or a cause that is close to home and contact them to see how your unused stuff may be of use to them.

Even if you're a pack rat with overly emotional ties to that Cosby Show era sweater, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how good it feels after a cleanup like this. In fact, you'll probably never miss most of that stuff and can take solace in the fact that you may be helping someone else. Good luck and happy cleaning!