So you have old cell phones sitting around the house, or you see them at garage sales or even in the trash, well, these are great items for scrapping! Not all scrap yards will take the cell phones, but we suggest doing some smart things to make them worth it.
Tips for Phone Scrapping
- Always take the batteries out. By taking the battery out, you will be able to sell a cleaner product to your E-Scrap buyer, and they will like that. Many scrap buyers of cell phones do not recycle or buy the batteries because they are harder to recycle. The cell phone without the battery is like a small laptop with plastic, gold pins, and a circuit breaker inside.
- Put that aside after you take the battery out, and you can also sell that. Make sure you save up enough of them to get some decent weight. Cell phone batteries are lithium-ion batteries and are usually worth recycling when you have a few dozen pounds. You also have to make sure you can find a buyer, as they are not as common as you may think.
- Some phones are worth reselling on eBay or other online media outlets. If they are an older smartphone model, it could be worth $50-250 online for families looking to buy a phone for their child or if someone needs an extra phone for work. If you resell your cell phone, remove all personal information and perform a factory reset to be safe.
- You can donate them. Some domestic abuse organizations and child protection programs ask for donated cell phones to provide them to those who need the resources and accessibility of communication that phones provide.
- Save them. You never know what cell phones could become a collector’s item one day. Weird or unique phones are always worth saving…especially if you found them while scrapping. It’s also a good idea to save cell phones in case yours gets crushed at work or breaks. It pays to have a backup phone.
Keep your phone safe while scrapping!
Made with impact-resistant and shock-absorbing materials, it keeps your phone safe from bumps and scratches.
Other electronics like tablets and e-readers will become more and more popular over the next few years when scrapping, so make sure to watch out for those as well. You can ask members of our Facebook Group and your local scrap yards what items they are taking so you can stay in tune with pricing.
