The Maker Guide to Recycling Metal

Shortly after I started welding and casting metal, I started accumulating piles of metal. Couple that with the periodic repairs around the house and my propensity for accumulating junk; I needed a solution to dispose of metal.

There are many places that will help you discard your scrap metal, and will reward you in the process. In the past six years I have probably made 4 trips netting about $80-$160 a trip. All this for waste material I would have thrown away if there were not folks who depend on my scrap for their livelihood. Aluminum and steel are the bulk of what I recycle.

Do’s of Recycling

Organization System- Develop a process to make it easy to recycle. I have several bins in my garage and one behind the garage that I use to store scrap until I have enough to make the load worth my while. I have a small scrap bin on the work bench to collect things like screws, nuts, cut-offs, and any other small ferrous pieces generated on a given weekend. It is only a few pounds of material. It beats putting it in a landfill, besides I am not too rich to pick-up a quarter laying on the ground.

I also keep a bin for things like light fixtures, copper wires and pipes, plumbing fixtures, and brass items. The outside bin is for larger steel scrap.

Obtain Metal for FREE- My employer is very flexible and allows me to put a recycling bin for aluminum cans in the break room. The agreement is that I keep the bins empty and I keep the cans. When I empty the bins, I just tie up the bags and store in the wood shed. Occasionally, I walk around the neighborhood at work or at home. I bring a bag and collect recyclable material from along the roadside. Nuts, bolts, spark plugs, brackets, beer cans, anything goes into the recycle bin. Sometimes I wonder what a customer would say if they saw beer cans in our break room bin at work.

Sorting System- I sort the scrap from the various bins–particularly the copper, brass, fixture bin–into more specific bins before taking to recycle. This will often generate a slightly higher yield from the recycler. On a ceiling fan, the recycler may pay a fixture price. That price will be less than the price of the constituent metals. If you were to break out the pot metal, the copper windings, the brass trim, and the steel core, you would get a hire price. Granted the added labor to separate the components is why they pay less for the whole. You make the determination of whether the added yield is worth it.

Finally, I like to call multiple places to try and find the best prices for scrap. Note that each scrap yard will have different prices for each type of scrap you plan to recycle. You should request pricing on the types of scrap you plan to recycle. After deciding who is the high bidder, I load all the bins in the back of my truck.

When you arrive they typically will weigh you going in and weigh you coming out of the steel recycling area. You drop all your steel scrap and then take the aluminum, copper, brass, etc. to a special area to process those materials. They weigh everything and document how much you brought.  They should take your ID, create a record that you sold them scrap, and give you a check or sometimes cash.

Don’t Do’s of Recycling

There are many restrictions in the world of metal recycling. The recycler to which you sell your scrap will likely appraise you of the general restrictions as well as any limitations specific to that recycler. If you have questions, ask.

• Radio active material (seriously, this material could cost a steel mill millions of dollars)
• Pressurized vessels (such as air tanks, birthday party helium tanks, propane tanks, fire extinguishers – some recyclers will take these albeit at slightly different price)
• Fluid containing items (oil drums, air conditioners, gas tanks)
• Ballasts (many recyclers will take these at a specific price)
• Batteries

Call to Action

There are plenty of folks out there who will tell you why it is important to recycle. I will instead tell you recycling is a great way to subsidize your future projects with today’s projects. It is a great way to help folks make a living feeding your material supply chain.