By now, you’re well aware that the iScrap App helps you find scrap yards near you and find the recent reported scrap prices, but did you know that we can also make you more money? There are several tips and ways to prepare your scrap metal and collect the right items that can make more money on metal.
The iScrap App was started by a scrap yard owner, so we know scrap and are constantly finding new ways to make more money on it. That’s right, we go behind-the-scenes at scrap yards to show you how to get more money for your scrap metals. Below we have 3 easy ways to leave your local scrap yard with a little extra cash with these helpful tips.
Separate Your Scrap Metal
We’ve said it a million times before: separate your materials to make more money. When you bring a bin full of copper, brass, and aluminum, you’re going to get paid for aluminum. You’ll be losing out on a few dollars a pound if you make that mistake! Taking an extra 10 minutes to separate your scrap metals before you leave your job site will add some extra cash to your wallet.
Important Resource: Guidelines To Different Scrap Metal Types
Whether you use buckets, bags, or boxes to sort your material it is a step that is critical to making more money on your scrap metal. When you are confused on what kind of of metal you have we have a guide with photos and descriptions of common metals and materials when scrapping. If you are collecting metal when you are on the go whether you do it your truck or in your garage, have pre-labeled containers ready to sort and separate your scrap metals separately. This will save you time when unloading and weighing up at your scrap yard and also make you more money.
Read More: Difference Between Non-Ferrous & Ferrous Metals
Have your magnet handy at all times when separating your metals. When you aren’t sure if something is a ferrous metal like steel or a non-ferrous metal like aluminum, stick it with the magnet. When the magnet sticks, throw that metal in the ferrous pile with steel and if it doesn’t stick you probably have copper, aluminum, brass, or another non-ferrous metal. Non-ferrous metals are more valuable at your scrap yard and will yield more money. So if you have them mixed with ferrous metals, your yard will most likely degrade the price for your pile. So to make the most money on scrap, be sure to separate it.
Take Apart Your Scrap Items
If you bring an AC unit into a scrap yard, you’ll get money for it. If you take apart an AC unit for the parts inside like copper, fin, electric motor, steel, and sealed unit you’ll get more money for it. With electrical items and machinery, it can pay off to take them apart. For the extra copper, aluminum, or motors that are inside, those items are all priced separately at the scrap yard, so like we mentioned before having them separate can make more money.
Suggested Reading: How Do You Scrap An Air Conditioner?
The same idea goes for insulated cable and copper wire, if you bring it in stripped then you’ll get more money per pound. When you are collecting a large amount of wire or cable that is thicker than your pinky finger, it’s a good rule to start stripping it if you have a large quantity. When you are looking to strip your copper wire, it can pay off if you wait for a larger quantity to collect because when you are stripping the insulation off it is removing a bulk amount of the weight. So if you have 50 pounds of wire, you may only have 20 pounds of copper. So be mindful of how much you are bringing in and what the current prices are to help you determine the best time to strip and cash in.
Suggested Reading: How-To: Strip Copper Wire for Scrap
Bring Valuable Scrap Loads To Your Yard
Think about who has more room to negotiate a better price: someone with 50 pounds of material or someone with 5,000 pounds of material. Scrap yards work just like playgrounds; the kid with the biggest pile of jelly beans has the most negotiating power (and probably the most friends, but we’re not saying size matters). Like we mentioned earlier about collecting enough wire or cable to make it worth your while to strip it for copper, the same goes for how much you bring to your yard. Bring enough scrap to your scrap yard to make it worth their while.
Suggested Reading: Finding The Best Scrap Yard
If you are consistently bringing them a large quantity of scrap, they are going to remember you. Some scrap yards work with tire pricing, which allows more consistent and valued customers to get a few extra cents per pound on some materials. That is worth it if you are bringing in a lot of non-ferrous metals like copper, aluminum, and stainless steel. This can be a great bargaining tool for you when you are bringing large, valuable loads to your scrap yard. So be sure to talk to the scale manager on how you can work with them on a better relationship and they will be able to give you some valuable information.
We Have Resources
Still looking for tips and tricks to make more money scrapping, we have some places you can ask questions, watch videos, and talk about scrap to help you make more money scrapping.
- Watch our YouTube Videos for Tutorials & Tricks
- Join our iScrap Metal Forum to chat with Scrappers
- Like & Follow us on Facebook for Helpful Ideas
