Won my first auction . was it worth it?

Ok i cant remember if I have been at this for 2 months or 3 but, I have finally ventured out to try to start buying scrap I won auction for 54 crt style montiors some also include power cords, for roughly $35. If i am able to pick them up and have them processed before end of next week i probably can slip them into the roll off dumpster that is currently at parents house (plumbing problem caused flooding, so insurance is paying for it.)

I have scrapped tvs and monitors but have never really weighed the products from each. here the current prices are about $2.60 a pound for #2 copper and aluminum has dropped to about .45 a pound, and last week insulated #2 copper wire was 1.10 a pound.

do you all think each one would bring in atleast $4 including the steel plate that is in most?

you might want to check with the roll-off company policy about electronic waste before you put anything in that dumpster.

50 crt's might just raise a few red flags that will lead back to your parents driveway

City of Atlanta, GA : Household Hazardous Waste Disposal

"Collection events for electronics are a regular occurrence from 8 – 4, the third Saturday of every month at Grady High School."

Originally Posted by 99problems

Ok i cant remember if I have been at this for 2 months or 3 but, I have finally ventured out to try to start buying scrap I won auction for 54 crt style montiors some also include power cords, for roughly $35. If i am able to pick them up and have them processed before end of next week i probably can slip them into the roll off dumpster that is currently at parents house (plumbing problem caused flooding, so insurance is paying for it.)

I have scrapped tvs and monitors but have never really weighed the products from each. here the current prices are about $2.60 a pound for #2 copper and aluminum has dropped to about .45 a pound, and last week insulated #2 copper wire was 1.10 a pound.

do you all think each one would bring in atleast $4 including the steel plate that is in most?

So much for a respect for the Environment !

thanks for the info, and i will check into that, could somebody answer about should it clear atleast $4 in scrap each?

Depends on the tv an the stuff in it. Are they big crts or little? At one point the value put on a tv was 5 bucks. That's likely changed with drop in prices in some areas, an I don't break them down in a manner where I keep track, cause I get all mine for free for the most part these days. So all profit.

I'm not touching the tv in the dumpster thing, you already got a nice chewing an sure others would like a bite. LOL.

Before ya go buying auctions you should probably make sure it's worth it before you win it. Just sayin.. Oh an for further info on TVs, their value, etc..there are tons of threads on here on this subject.

Enjoy the reading in your future.

Sirscrapalot - !

Originally Posted by Sirscrapalot

Depends on the tv an the stuff in it. Are they big crts or little? At one point the value put on a tv was 5 bucks. That's likely changed with drop in prices in some areas, an I don't break them down in a manner where I keep track, cause I get all mine for free for the most part these days. So all profit.

I'm not touching the tv in the dumpster thing, you already got a nice chewing an sure others would like a bite. LOL.

Before ya go buying auctions you should probably make sure it's worth it before you win it. Just sayin.. Oh an for further info on TVs, their value, etc..there are tons of threads on here on this subject.

Enjoy the reading in your future.

Sirscrapalot - !

well $5 would be great , but I read lots of old posts where people say copper is $3 a pound, since i have started the highest i have been paid for #2 copper was $2.60. as far as the chewing out thing, i have noticed its an internet thing, and I HAVE developed a tough skin. I take the advice and comments and try to make use them to help make best decisions, but i do not understand the chiming in of warnings, and chewing out, without also helping with answering the original question, or atleast just saying "i dont know" kind of like going to a forum about restaurants, and asking if somebody knows what type of cheese is on the new "cheesy deesy bacon ham salami cheese burger" and the first 10 comments are about dont kill pigs and cows, and artery clogging, hormones, trans fats, etc

Originally Posted by brandon

To many variables to say for sure if you will get $4 out of each one or not. I have seen some degaussing cables that were really thick and then I have seen them so thin that it wasn't worth the effort. Not all degaussing cables are copper either, some are aluminum.
Are there any places in your area that you can take the monitors after you remove the parts you want? Where I'm at I can take them to the county collection site and drop them off no questions asked.

ell the company that placed th
yeah i have run into the aluminum degaussing cables in some tvs, but hadnt seen any yet in the monitors. I will start checking for places, i have read on here something about BEST BUY, but having to pay $10 to get that back in store credit. I never had more than a few to dispose of at once. My trash company hasnt put any restrictions on throwing electronics out as long as it fits in the trash container. (hate when they changed to that automatic truck that picks up the cans with the arm )

Leaving disposal out of the discussion, all that is known is that you will get your money back on scrapping them out. There are too many variables to say how much you will make on them, if anything.

Not worth it. Picking up 50 heavy crt's several Times to load and unload for a small small profit is not worth it to me. Then factoring in disposal, really a big hassle. Im guessing you Wont want to do it again, especially paying for them.

Congradulations on your win! I always get a rush of excitement when I get my hands on something new to scrap. As was mentioned, you'll probably get your money back. Since you have won such a large quanity, you can probably update this forum with what your average return per monitor was. Your numbers will be a little more acurate on average than just doing one or two monitors. I'll throw in a few other things to think about:

- Before you use your dumpster, make two phone calls. First the haul away company. Ask them first if TV's are a problem to put in there (make sure you mention a high #). Second, ask them if they are charging the insurance company a flat rate or a per pound amount. If it is per pound, stop there. You would be stealing from your insurance company if they incur extra costs not related to the claim. They could even possibly bring up charges. Not likely they will take signifigant action, but it is wrong. If it's a flat rate, then you might just have your parents ask the claim rep the next time they are talking to him.

- Call Goodwill. Explain you have several monitors to dispose of. Make sure they will take them (you might mention Dell's recycling program). Mention some have the cords cut and make sure those are OK. See if they are OK with you bringing all in at once or if they have a daily limit.

- Best Buy now takes them for free, but I think there is a limit of 3 per day. Note that they do not take "Disassembled TVs and Monitors"

-Something I have done in the past is leave the cord and the circuit board and only take the yoke/degaussing cable. Take a few parts off the circuit board if you want. That way you're less likely to catch flak about trying to pawn off a disassembled monitor. Your call on that one.

-Check with your local yard to see if they buy yokes as-is, and what the rate would be for the degaussing cable not stripped. You might turn a quicker profit with less work.

- Make sure you read up on the forums here for all the goodies to get out of here. There is the silver braided cupronickel wire and stainless screws/clamps on the tube. Make sure you get those in the right spot.

- In considering the net gain of the project remember to take into account gas for obtaining these and getting rid of the tubes.

I'm quite interested in what you have to say once it's all said and done and what the dollars come out to. If nothing else, you're not losing the shirt off your back over this one, and you will have a learning experience. I had one yesterday when I bought what I thought was a printer/fax machine/scanner from the 80's for $5 from a thrift store. I figured with the cartridges I could get my money back easy. It turns out it was a thermal fax machine only so no cartridges. The total thing netted me less than $2 in scrap and took half an hour to scrap. Lessons learned: do more diligence before purchase and stick to no more than my normal price points per item.

I don't like the OP. What is the point of recycling if your just going to smash them by throwing them in a roll-off dumpster. Your just killing the environment, yourself, and everybody around you.

These types of threads should be locked to prove a point, that CRT's truly are hazardous waste and should be recycled properly, not carelessly.