If you’re looking for a fast and easy way to make some extra cash, selling scrap metal is a good choice. Any appliance, object, or machine can be scrap metal even if it is damaged or no longer functional, it still contains valuable metal.
Our scrap metal recycling facilities will pay you good money for your scrap metal.
Here are five ways as to how scrap metal can make you some cash.
#1 Household items
Many defunct household items can be sold for scrap. Ordinary, everyday items such as broken Christmas tree lights contain valuable copper components, while toasters contain copper wiring and usually have a steel body. If they are made from recyclable metal (most industrial metals can be recycled) you can sell them for scrap. Not only this, often you will make more money for them as scrap than you would selling them as used items – especially if they’re broken!
Pro tip: Remove non-metal components like plastic casings and you will get more money.
#2 Major appliances
Large household appliances like washing machines, refrigerators, and freezers contain large amounts of valuable metal that can be sold as scrap. If you have broken items, or simply old items you want to replace, as with smaller household items they will be worth more for their scrap metal than they will be as used or broken appliances.
Pro tip: Don’t forget the copper elements in the power cords!
#3 Scavenge roadside items
How many times have you driven past an old kitchen range languishing in a ditch or random items that have been abandoned in streets and alleyways because they’re too large to transport to a tip? These items can easily be scavenged and raided for scrap metal. Even items that are rusty and have been crushed will still contain the metal elements you want to sell.
Pro tip: Never take anything from private property, or items that are behind gates or fences – that is trespassing and theft!
#4 Auto parts
Old auto parts can also be salvaged and sold as scrap. Car parts that no longer work are very valuable as they are usually made almost exclusively from metal. There are often different types of metal within parts, so take them to pieces and sell the different metals separately – you will get more money.
Pro tip: Don’t forget about the nuts, bolts, screws, and fasteners – they look small but soon add up!
#5 Old plumbing
Fixtures and electrical parts from your plumbing are a wealth of valuable metal. You can sell old drains, faucets, pipes, and the wiring that goes with them at scrap yards.
Pro tip: You don’t need to clean them prior to selling.