Brand New Scrapper!

I think I'm hooked! LOL!

I wanted to try out this scrapping thing, and I told my sons about it. They told me that there was a large CRT TV set sitting next to the dumpster in our apartment complex for the last three days! When we went to pick it up, there was also a large metal built-in style microwave. So yesterday I tried my hand at scrapping both, as well as scrapping an old computer tower we had (it had been smoke damaged and heat damaged in our house fire last year). Then today, I took the plunge and made my first trip to the scrapyard!

The guys at the scrapyard were incredibly nice & helpful. I learned a lot. The motor from the microwave, I didn't know I was supposed to remove it, and the guy told me that if I'd remove it from the platform it would count as a motor and be worth more. All because I didn't remove three stinking screws! (And because, like an idiot, I left my tool bag at home when I went!) He showed me the difference between grades of circuit boards, talked to me about the best things to remove and what to leave alone, and helped me to identify and learn about different grades of copper. He also taught me how to distinguish aluminum from steel (because I apparently forgot how magnets work!). So I kind of feel stupid because I made some obvious mistakes, but I'm also really psyched because it was a lot of fun!

All total, I had about 80 pounds of scrap, most of that low-grade aluminum and junk. I made $18.44!

So my husband thinks this new obsession of mine is a little crazy, and he's probably right. But the way I see it, it took me about 3 hours to break down the TV (and that was mostly because I was finding videos and tutorials to learn how to do it!). It took me about an hour to break down the microwave, and the computer took about 2 hours. So maybe that's not the best hourly wage, but the more I do it, the faster I'm going to get. And earning almost $20 for one evening of work really isn't that bad. Besides, it sounds silly, but I love this! I've always loved the thrill of assembling things, and with scrapping, I get the joy of working with my hands and none of the headaches of making sure it actually works when I'm finished.

What else? Oh, so now that I've developed this new hobby/obsession, I'm looking everywhere for scrap. I posted on a few of my free boards and groups (places where people post that they're giving away free stuff) what I'm looking for: washers, dryers, TVs, computers, computer parts, grills, and so forth, working or not. I browse Craigslist for the free section, but that's pretty hit or miss since metal scrapping is pretty big in my metro area. I have the best luck working with the military community here (hubby got out of the Army just recently, so we still have a lot of contacts in the service). At some point over this coming weekend, I'm supposed to pick up a washer, a dryer, three TVs, a microwave, and two grills. And I spoke with a friend of mine who does computer (hardware & software) stuff. I asked him what he does with his parts. He said he knows he SHOULD recycle them or scrap them, but he doesn't have the time or the inclination to mess with it, so he's agreed to let me take all of his old parts! Yay!!! I'm supposed to pick up several boxes from him early next week.

So now it's midnight where I'm at, and I'm debating between geeking out on the boards or disassembling the microwave I have in the living room. At any rate, I'm so excited to be here, and hoping I'll find some folks that can sympathize with my scrapping obsession!