Indiana Scrapper

Hello to all. I've been scrapping copper and other 'traditional' metal for 5+ years. I have a full time job and scrap on the side.

As seems to be the case w/ a lot of others, I too am interested in learning about electronic/e-waste recycling.

I do some computers & CRT's now - maybe 3-5/week. CRT's are pretty straight forward, but I'm still getting my feet wet with computers.

Any thoughts/suggestions/information you'd like to shoot my way; please do so. If anyone has info on E-scrap start-up requirements (would like to look into starting a legitimate business that can advertise) - regulations, certifications, contacts, etc. please advise.

hey man, where at in Indiana are you? i live up by Logansport and mechanic lives in Warsaw. you close to either one of us? welcome to the forum.

YEA, another Hoosier signs in, we're getting as many as Texas,,,lol WELCOME. start with the electronics section and read back thru it then maybe thru the dismantling/breaking down one next. That should be a good start for you,,,

Welcome. I'm in indiana also. Close to Mech.

Thanks guys for the hoosier hospitality. This seems like a great place to pick the brains of those w/ more experience and knowledge than I have.

I live about 30 min S of Terre Haute - Sullivan/Greene Co area.

I'm a one man gig. My spare time is limited to 10 or so hours M-F (usually spent gathering). I spend 8-20 hours ea wknd depending on the amount of scrap.

I recently established a source for a small but steady stream of escrap. I've gotten as few as 5 and as many as 8 computers ea week. CRT's are as many as I want up to about 15/wk. I've also gotten 6 HP transceivers, a couple VCR's & keyboards, and 1 printer.

I also have a source for fingers/contacts/pins. Right now i have 12-15lbs of clean fingers & Contact pins. Some are commercial and some are from military electronic systems and telecom equipment.

Im not sure how long this will last but i'm trying to learn & stockpile at the same time, hoping to reinvest at some point to hopefully grow my side job into my full time job. Right now Im taking all my copper, alum, and shred to my yard but saving the electronic items i breakdown. I'd like to move the fingers/pins soon to convince my wife that this is time well spent. She's getting a little annoyed by my collection :).

Any suggestions for solid buyers wld be great.

Also I have a start up question for any fellow Hoosiers who are familiar with Indiana Department of Environmental Management and deal in escrap....are you IDEM certified and what are the advantages/disadvantages of registering?

Thanks!!!

Hey man, sounds like your on your way! To get registered with IDEM you must move around 250 thousand tons a month, or something asinine like that. Otherwise you can't even register. But it would still behoove you to read all you can on the state website concerning ewaste, as it is considered a hazardous waste and there are still certain laws that need to be followed i.e- storage of your waste, blah blah blah. Its pretty simple to follow. There are other certifications you can work towards like R2 and NAID certification. Just google them and all the info is right there! Good luck!