Fresh Ideas on Where to Find Scrap Metal

Originally Posted by IdahoScrapper

Do repair techs really drag stuff back to the shop/supply warehouse? Figured most would set them out at the customers trash for pickup.

Got a friend who owns an oil and HVAC company. They bring back almost all of their old stuff. Some of it sits out back for a few years and then someone throws it in the scrap yard for a few bucks. It's really disorganized, but I have a feeling that one of the guys is making loot on the copper out of the old units.

Originally Posted by HGWells

Got a friend who owns an oil and HVAC company. They bring back almost all of their old stuff. Some of it sits out back for a few years and then someone throws it in the scrap yard for a few bucks. It's really disorganized, but I have a feeling that one of the guys is making loot on the copper out of the old units.

I Do HVAC with a friend. He gets the job we do the change out and I get all the scrap.
At first I sold the compressors as is for $3.00 each. Then I cut one open removed the core as I do with motors.
The windings came out to about 5 lbs. @ 3.45 for # 2 copper here. And the steel left over was about 75 lbs. @ $.08.
So for about 45 minutes of labor I am able to convert $3.00 into $23.25 less the two beers it takes to do the job.

Originally Posted by injunjoe

I Do HVAC with a friend. He gets the job we do the change out and I get all the scrap.
At first I sold the compressors as is for $3.00 each. Then I cut one open removed the core as I do with motors.
The windings came out to about 5 lbs. @ 3.45 for # 2 copper here. And the steel left over was about 75 lbs. @ $.08.
So for about 45 minutes of labor I am able to convert $3.00 into $23.25 less the two beers it takes to do the job.

Are you talking about compressors in AC units? I have cut a couple of them open and found that the windings and the string holding the windings have some sort of heavy varnish coating, which makes them a royal pain to remove. Do you remove the coating, and if not, how do you go about removing the windings? I remove the windings off of the motors inside compressors from refrigerators easily because they do not have the heavy varnish coating, but have found the AC units to be difficult.

Originally Posted by wayne1956

Are you talking about compressors in AC units? I have cut a couple of them open and found that the windings and the string holding the windings have some sort of heavy varnish coating, which makes them a royal pain to remove. Do you remove the coating, and if not, how do you go about removing the windings? I remove the windings off of the motors inside compressors from refrigerators easily because they do not have the heavy varnish coating, but have found the AC units to be difficult.

Yes compressors from Ac units. I cut one end of the wire off with a sawzall then flip it over and run my grinder over the strings. The trick to getting the wire out is a pair of these babies! http://www.harborfreight.com/hand-to...per-38496.html
I start with just one set of wires after you pull the first set out the rest get easier as you go. A large vise makes it easy also.