Scrap Metal Pricing

I've got a bunch of copper wire that I was thinking about selling since it's just in the way basically. I checked and copper is at $3.23/LB on the commodity index now. I called a scrap yard and they tell me they'll only pay 50 cents/LB for the wire. I know it has a plastic covering on it (it's mainly RJ-45 eight wire cable) but that doesn't seem like a very good price. Anyone have any experience doing this? Is that really all it is worth?

Commodity prices are for the raw material as it comes from the processor; what you have is finished product that has to be stripped, cleaned and reprocessed.
Try a few other yards as they do vary in what they are willing to pay for various scrap metals.
good luck

karl

Copper wire worth more bare.

Big fire recently in NJ / NY recently. Some winos started it when they were burning insulation off copper wire.

I was just going to suggest burning it off.. seemed like a good idea at the time

twentysixtwo said:

Copper wire worth more bare.

Big fire recently in NJ / NY recently. Some winos started it when they were burning insulation off copper wire.

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Do _not_ burn it off. The fumes from burning it, as well as what's left over, is toxic. Not only is it illegal and unhealthy, but then you have to strip off the charred insulation by hand.

Proper metal scrap yards run the stuff through some kind of industrial chipping machine that strips it off. You can do it with sharp tools if you have some time to kill.

Phone, TV, and data cables are not worth much with the insulation on them, plus wire that has been burned is also not worth near as much as it would be if the insulation is removed by hand or a machine stripper. Clean unburned copper is about $2.27 a pound here (PA), heavy wire with insulation and copper pipe with solder and fittings still on it is around $1.73 a pound.

One thing that occurred to me - 50 cents a lb for copper wire is not as bad as it sounds given that they pay you for the weight of the wire - insulation included.

If the insulation weight is 50% of the wire, they they are really paying you $0 for the insulation and $1 a lb for the copper - or maybe -$0.50 for the insulation and $1.50 for the copper - you get the idea.

Ditto on burning the insulation to be a bad idea - very messy. The people who did this in NY/NJ were winos - not really role models for ingenuity.

You get more money for 1/0 and heavier wire. Basically, the more copper in the wire, the more it's worth. They tend to pay less for clippings and short ends, especially in smaller guages. They also tend to pay less for very finely stranded wire, as it's harder to process.

Don't burn the insulation off. Not only is it dangerous and not only does it emit noxious and toxic fumes, but they pay less for burned wire vs bright stripped. I think they pay the least for unstripped, then burned, then stripped.

Yes, I've been recycling all types of stuff, including different grades of wires, weekly, for about 8 years now. $.50 a pound is pitiful. The classify copper wire as either #1, #2, or if it's stripped BS (brown,shiny). #1 is the stuff you can bend and it stays in it's bent shape, or the stuff that is thick and heavy (you can see that it has more wire inside than insulating covering). #1 is paying about $1.50 a pound, right now. #2 is, almost, everything else -- telephone wire, data cable (multi-stranded stuff), extension cords, vacuum cords, anything used by a household appliance.... #2 is paying about $1.00 a pound, right now. BS is #1 that's been stripped (it's the highest payed for of copper--even pays more than all types of copper tubing (which pays more that wire). It's paying about $2.50 a pound, right now. Oh yeah, there's one other class, and that's Romex wiring, the electrical wiring found in houses and buildings. That pays in between #1 and #2, which about $1.20 or $1.30.

Copper has been at an all time high, recently, but has just dropped a little bit. Still, though, 50 cents a pound is awful. The prices I mentioned apply to the place that I bring it. There are some places that pay less, some more. Some pay more for quantities over 100 pounds, and some pay even more than that for large, large quantities.

I've come accross places that pay half of what I get, and some that pay even more (but they're too far to make it worth my trip). Just call around to what other places are paying.

Burn baby burn!!1 LOL


I recycled a radiator from an 1978 monte SS for about $6.00 in 1998...

Trashman said:

I've come accross places that pay half of what I get, and some that pay even more (but they're too far to make it worth my trip). Just call around to what other places are paying.

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I would think that pricing should be fairly competitive across the country. So, you think that about $1.00 is a decent price for the kind of wire I have?

Lightmeup said:

I would think that pricing should be fairly competitive across the country. So, you think that about $1.00 is a decent price for the kind of wire I have?

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I would think so, too, but there are some places that just pay a lot less. Possibly, because they do less volume, or just because they feel it's ok to take advantage of people. I know a place that has a big sign, "Highest Paying Recycling Center," which may be true for aluminum cans, but for other stuff, they pay half what others do. I stopped at this place to inquire about their payment for scrap aluminum and copper, and I was shocked at how low it was. The guy saw that I thought their prices were ridiculously low and he said that if I had a lot I could talk to the manager about getting more. I guess they take advantage of the ignorant people and those that know can bargain for a better price.

Anyway, yes, $1.00 a pound is a very fair price for what you have.

Hey Trashman, or anyone else that knows. Is there a market for computer memory chips or cards? Or plug-in computer cards, printed circuit boards, etc.?

I can find out. I think my friend was recycling old computers for about a buck each. I do know that there is market for circuit boards/mother boards and such that have gold on them, but I don't know where to find it (the market). I actually know someone, who, about 6 years ago had *a lot* of old mother boards from which he extracted 11 ounces of gold. I don't remember exactly how he did it, but I know they used nitric acid. The final product was fine powdered gold. There is definitely a market, but I'm not sure about the details. I'll ask tomorrow, if I remember.

Did you find a higher paying place for your wire? It's still at $1.00 and $1.50, over here.

I dunno. I haven't sold it yet. I called a couple more places and asked what they were paying for #2. One guy said a buck, then asked me what I had. When I told him, he said 'That's not #2. Your stuff only gets sixty cents/LB'. Didn't you say that data cables, etc., are considered to be #2 by you?

If by wires, you mean CAT-5, I suppose the buying yard has an idea of % copper by weight for many typical types of wires.

Ethernet cables are freaking expensive when you buy retail, that said, I say you have better chance cutting them to whatever length, mount connectors and sell as data cable on eBay.

Most of them are ethernet cables. 8 wires with RJ-45 plugs.

Yep, that's what I said. Where I am, they only classify as, either, #1 or #2 and Romex (in between #1 and #2.) They're not too picky about the wire where I go. The only think they don't take where I go is coax, but even that, I'm told is taken by some places, but I think it only pays like 10 cents/lb. Phone cords, wire, usb/ethernet cables, data wire (the multistranded stuff where each strand only has a hair of copper inside each insulated strand), and anything you find to power anything electric (though, that could be #1 if it's for some large, heavy duty-machinery).

There was a thing on the news a couple of nights ago about people getting caught near the airport stealing the extra wire that hangs on some telephone poles. Those wires are heavy!

Yeah, I think I just need to make more calls. Most of these places seem like they're used to dealing with idiots that have no idea what is going on. What do you deal with besides copper? Is there anything else out there that sells well?

I sell mostly scrap aluminum--windows, window frames, shower doors, sliding glass doors and the tracks that go with them, gas BBQs (the ketel portion is usually made of cast aluminum, patio furniture, etc... Also, copper tubing, brass, stainless steel (pool filters, sinks, etc...), and electric motors are some other things I recycle. The bulk of what I find is aluminum, though. The radiators in old air conditioners pay quite well, too--90 cents to $1.30. Everything generally has to be "cleaned", or isolated from other metals, which means removing screws and such. It can be a lot of work, but good tools can make it a lot easier.