Neighborhood Scrap Route

Hello Scrap forum,

Me and my brother run a scrap hauling business (hauling/cutting ag lots) and we have been doing this for about a year part time (both are college students).

My idea is to purchase some 5 gallon buckets (real cheap on craigslist) and go door to door in a dense neighborhood (1 house every 200 or so feet). We would knock on doors offering to haul small scrap items (Pretty much anything like wire, ferrous, electronics we can make money on, etc) as well as free hauling of large items we can break down like washer or dryers. If the people are interested we say just put any metal items in the bucket and any large items out front and we will pick them in a week or so.

Our current business is mostly ag lots with some appliances. My thought proccess behind this is it gives the people with say 20 or 30 pounds of metal (I get messages all the time asking if we want 10 pounds or 20 pounds) a chance to recycle that. It would also give us the ability to take small lots because we would be getting so many of them.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

I believe your time would be better off concentrating on get some Commercial accounts, auto body shops and places that generate scrap on a regular basis. I think you will get a lot more material getting commercial customers than home owners. just my Two cents

The only way that you'll know if it works or not is to try it. Good luck.

My experience is that most people could care less what you have to say when knocking on their door. They just are trying to think of a polite way to make you leave. If you were wanting to do the door to door approach, I would recommend making flyers, with a phone # and e-mail.
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/smf-s...tomizable.html

There are lots of threads about flyers here. Just type 'flyer' in the search box

Just make a flyer with catchy colors maybe the name of your business, what you recycle, and your name, email and number. This is way more effective in cost and I know I wouldn't want to keep a bucket around, and most of the metal you are getting Is probably bigger than a 5 gallon bucket.

I think that if some stranger came to my door offering me a free 5 gallon bucket, I would say "thank you very much" and they would not see it again..

Alright so scratch the household recycling idea.

I have looked at commercial accounts and have run into some problems such as we only have a F150 and a single axle aluminum trailer. We should be getting a F350 dually soon as well as a bobcat trailer. Thoughts on trailer? Our current buyer doesn't have a magnet and we either throw it off the trailer or if he has a baler in he unloads it with that. Should we spend the extra money to get the dump trailer? Or should we stick with the bobcat trailer until we can afford a roll off trailer?

I read somewhere on here that people are doing routes to restaurants getting the large tin or aluminum cans (A gallon?) and they are making money going once a week. Thoughts on this? I know several owners around here (pizza buffet and a bar and grill) that would probably be willing to give me them if I provide a container. Is this worth doing?

Thanks for the help!