Copper Tubing From Refrigerators - What About The Soldered Joints?

Copper tubing or solid wire by itself is generally #1 copper. I have had people tell me that contamination from elements (such as the green that forms from oxidation) can, by some yards, still be sold as #1. But what of the soldered joints and tinned areas where a copper line has been attached to the tubing. Both of these are common in an A/C unit. I have read conflicting things about these areas on this forum and others. I have attached some pix that can help us all after folks chime in with answers and suggestions.

This image shows where copper tubing has been soldered. I assume this is lead-free (tin/silver/copper) solder, but it's not a water line - it's A/C tubing, so maybe I'm wrong. Do you simply cut the tubing around the soldered joint and toss the soldered part into the #2 copper bin or...?





Another soldered joint, this time where the copper joined the aluminum tubing that led into the radiator.






This image shows two soldered joints, one where it joins aluminum and the other that joins two sizes of copper tubing together. The question here is the same as both questions from the above two images.








This image shows copper tubing that has had a smaller copper wire tinned to it. I suppose I could clip the two pieces from each other and then clean the tubing on the grinder to make it #1, or does it matter? Every 'fridge I scrap seems to have a couple feet of this.

Just cut off any aluminum as much as you can and toss it all in your #2 copper bucket. Since there's usually only about .10 difference between #1 and #2 copper, it isn't worthwhile to try and upgrade it.

There is not much of a difference between #1 & #2 so i put it all in the same bucket unless I have a massive amount then i upgrade it because that difference between the two adds up but that's just my .02

I would say it depends on how fast you can cut them apart. If you are quick, separate, if not, spend your time on something worth more than the small difference. To me I could probably break down a computer in the time it takes to do 15 of those. Off the top of my head I think that's about $10 instead of $.40 for the time

Those welded joins are made 'premade' at a factory, then when it comes times to solder the tubes up, the fitter welds two joins, one Ali to Ali, one silver solder on Copper to Copper.
On one of those joins, cut just a little thru the Ali at the side of the weld, then bend the tube back & forth so it fractures, once its broken you will find theres a long thin copper tube inside the Ali tubing, you can pull it out if the outer Ali tubing is bent strait.

I get a 'Domestic price' for that copper & leave the silversolder joins on the copper and I'd never bother with cleaning the copper up, as long as theres no rubbish on it, and silvers not rubbish.

Last week I found out that copper pipe is first generation Copper, strait from the copper mines, its still got some Gold & Silver & such in it. Next time they recycle it, they refine it & get some of that Gold & Silver out.
I wonder what the returns are.
The reason why they don't go to the effort right at the copper mine & get the gold out was because they would have to put the whole lot of it thru another 'process cycle' & took to much energy, its only when they recycle used copper and put it the the 'process cycle' that the can do it as part of the process.

Thats where they will catch all of the Silver from used solder joints along with the other metals like Lead and Tin.