new to scrapping, looking for some guidance on e-scrapping

I just got into scrapping about a month ago, and Ive had a blast dismantling tvs, computers, anything electronic. I think electronics would be best for me right now because i only have a small car. Ive got a pretty good idea of whats worth my time to break down/seperate, only problem im having is getting e-waste. I have been curb shopping mostly, and ive found several crt tvs and a few other appliances. I posted an ad on craigslist offering free pickup of unwanted electronics, and so far ive gotten 2-3 emails, but mostly tvs and 1 computer monitor >.<. Im working on setting up a time with them to come pick them up, and i plan on leaving business cards with them so they can refer me. Also today i stopped by a computer repair shop near me and had a look in the dumpster, and found 2 crt monitors. I feel like the professional thing to do would be to print out some business cards, go into the shop and talk to the owner about putting his e-waste to the side and letting me pick it up from him. Any tips on how i should go about this? Or should i just keep raiding the dumpster? lol

Thanks
Chris

Im new here too. I started electronics a few months ago. Including this month. CRT and monitors along with a few other items you must be careful with. I wont touch a tv or monitor because you must process the glass properly. Here in MA the market is not good for crt. I have to pay to get off them and its the right thing to do. Same with ac units and microwave pink things. I just stay away. Buy and sell. flip flip. Let the larger companies that are set to properly do it.
YOu can still make $$. Just charge enough to cover your cost on the proper disposal. Its the right thing to do and our market needs to fix this.

Crt and tvs getting smashed by guys and gals who dont care is a big problem. This country is full of them. All over the roads and woods. There must be a solution.
Come on you guys lots of threads here and this should be taken care of now. Soon or now there must be a way to handle the stuff none of us want to. I know were here to make $$. Do you think about why we recycle too. Its for our planet. If you care about money or not, keep and reuse what you can before its scrapped.

In 2014 Im trying to go zero waste and not buy buying credits and upgrade more. This scrapping good batteries because they are bought as scrap Im going to stop. Every battery that I get or item like memory or a pci card Ill do my best to resell or trade if I can.. Its better for us as a whole and I think we caN MAKE MORE $$$. More work though first I must keep the doors open. LOL

Aaron.

Just search and read too. The forum will keep you up all nite because you will be so excited! Okay newbie you say. No recycling never got old for me.

Chriss you will love it too.

Yeah it is pretty addicting so far, I'm driving around on my lunch break looking for electronics lol. Anyone have a suggestion as to how I should approach this computer shop owner? ,I haven't even made a trip to the scrap yard yet so idk what kind of money I'm making, so I don't want to offer him a split off the profits. Also what do y'all remove from circuit boards? I know about ram,cpus, etc but is it worth it to pull off transformers and heat sinks? When I try to pull the heat sinks off it usually rips up the board, so I've been skipping them lately.

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Originally Posted by Chrissm14

Yeah it is pretty addicting so far, I'm driving around on my lunch break looking for electronics lol. Anyone have a suggestion as to how I should approach this computer shop owner? ,I haven't even made a trip to the scrap yard yet so idk what kind of money I'm making, so I don't want to offer him a split off the profits. Also what do y'all remove from circuit boards? I know about ram,cpus, etc but is it worth it to pull off transformers and heat sinks? When I try to pull the heat sinks off it usually rips up the board, so I've been skipping them lately.

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Welcome to the forum from southern MN.
I would go to the electronics recycling section and start reading the threads there, yes there is an enormous amount of posts but the time spent will be well worth it. Likely most if not all of the questions you have already been answered, some many times over. I've been here over 2 years and I read the threads every chance I get, almost daily and there is always something new and even re-reading some of the posts refreshes the memory and makes it sink in a little farther in. Good Luck and wish you success

Chris,
I have been scrappin for about 5 years now. The last few years I avoided tv and other electronics because the trashmen stopped taking it. I actually had no clue there was a market for escrap. Recently, as times are tough and driving around looking for heavy steel, I noticed alot of crt tv's on the curb. I said what the hell, as I knew this forum had what I needed to know.
Anyway, here is my experience so far in a nutshell regarding escrap;
1) If you can get rid of crt for free without driving 20 miles, grab it.
2) It takes up less space than shred, however there is steel casings involved.
3) I do not have business cards, and only escrap with what I find, which ain't much. My reccomendation for approaching the business owner is to be polite and ask him if he has a recycler, and if so, what kind of setup the deal is. Be careful, though. Don't wanna step on anyones toes or seem to nosy. See if you can help the owner out. His scrap guy might be a cheap lazy pr**k, or he could be a standup guy who was his best man at his wedding.
4) Dont get discouraged. I have limited space to work in, my truck bed is my storage area, and i tear stuff down in my basement, just down a narrow flight of steps. I just started escrapping about two weeks ago, and am thinking its not for me, just because of my storage and room situation. Right now I am just hoarding.
5) It's really fun...

some places I've seen said to pull the little heatsink, others say don't worry about it, best to decide what buyer you'll use and see what they say.
Far as approaching the shop, don't look sloppy or act stupid, but at the same time don't be afraid to tell him you're just starting out

Chances are the pc repairmen already sell their higher end e-waste (boards, IC's, CPU's, RAM, HARD drives and so on). its probably why you only found crt's in his trash. But it does not hurt to ask, and as already stated, just be polite and absolutely do not be pushy.

I thought I already knew what I was doing with my e-waste, until I found this board a few days ago. Holy cow I must have thrown God knows how many dollars worth of valuable boards and IC's into the ferrous pile over the years. What a fool I have been. The best videos I have found so far on youtube are by mike the scrapper - YouTube MikeTheScrapper. he really breaks it down in GREAT detail, shows you the entire process, shows you virtually every part of any e-waste, what category and pricepoint it falls under, and the actual labor required to extract. Too many are just general talk, and cut scenes skipping some of the processes.

Hell I only joined a couple days ago, so no doubt he is probably on this very board somewhere.

As far as CRT's go, nearly every scrapper on here has dealt with them and still does whether they admit it or not. They all have their methods for dealing with the hulky glass part, many of which are not the most honorable. We will deny it because of the stigma, but trust me, most of us NEVER EVER turn down a crt no matter how hard it is denied.

In the spirit of honesty, I will tell you how I deal with it, and many of the veterans will hypocritically chastise me for saying it even when they themselves are in fact lying and still do the same. I just pop it open where I find it, take what I need, and leave it right there. yea I said it, at least i am being honest. I always carry a small cheap power drill in the car for that very purpose. I usually have the top off in under thirty seconds. Another thirty to politely unscrew the yoke. The board and wires I can literally pull in like ten seconds. May times I replace the top and two or three screws. I do this so that whoever has to finally get rid of it, at last they can still pick it up like normal. I cannot stand when i see lazy pricks who just break the yoke off. Morons have no brain power. it takes like literally an extra fifteen seconds to just unscrew, so why break it??

Word of advice, avoid RCA crt's like the plague, The bastards glued the **** thing on with a very powerful adhesive forcing you to either break it out of the glass, or spending a very unnecessary amount of time and effort twisting and pulling, and chiseling with a flathead. I either skip, or just grab the board and wires and leave the yoke for the jerks that break em off.

I harvest a CRT in under two minutes with a cheap powered drill/screwdriver. Processing the individual components only takes about another five.

Happy salvage!

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I harvest a CRT in under two minutes with a cheap powered drill/screwdriver. Processing the individual components only takes about another five.

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Does that also include the wire around the tube (degaussing cable) that's wrapped in tape?? Another pound or two of copper there, once in a great while you'll get an aluminum one.

well yea that just pulls right off its not really difficult. Or did you mean the cutting it out of the tape part?? My usual tactic was to just cut it at some point and straighten it out. After I cut it and straighten it out (only another 30 seconds or so) then I step on one end, insert the blade just under where I am stepping on it for stability, and I have it cut all the way down within a minute or two. The first couple of months I was doing them I had no idea that cable was even in there. Boy was I thrilled when I started paying more attention. I dont even bother stripping the aluminum ones, I just throw it into the number 2 insulated pile. Not trying to be shady or anything, thats just what my yard says what they will pay for it. I thought that was odd, but hey, they want to pay me more for less fine by me.