Should you go out of your way (no too much) to grab steel and store it?
- Is steel worth scrapping?
New Guy
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Is steel worth scrapping?
Should you go out of your way (no too much) to grab steel and store it?
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Only you can answer that question. Too many variables for anyone else to give advice on.Originally Posted by MierasMetals
1. how much can you get for it?
2. do you pay for storage?
3. how far are you going?
4. how far is the yard?
5. what do you have for transportation of the steel?
6. ETC., ETC.
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If you are going to be breaking down things you will have steel as a by product of the items you clean up in order to get a better price, so if you have some space and the prices for steel are ok by you then as my later father in law would have said "if its free take it!"
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For my business plan it is worth it, but I have an unusual situation than most on the forum. I do not have to pay for storage, have unlimited storage areas, can afford to sit on metal as long as I have to, can haul up to 10 tons per load, etc. My specialty is large machinery, # 2 prepared, and # 1 prepared. I haul tin immediately because I do not want it blowing into Minnesota or Iowa. As pointed out by the previous posts, it depends on your situation. You might want to provide more details and you might receive more specific answers.
Give back more to this world than we take.
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I think it is but I never just haul steel or shred I take in copper or brass also
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New Guy
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I have unlimited space. I can wait to drop it off. I can carry a truckfull. With a atttatchable trailer.
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You still have to figure your transportation costs (pickup and drop off). You also need to figure out what you can get at the yard and if it makes sense to process anything.
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This is correct some things may be better sold as is and be done...
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a
After figuring cost and time, find a price that will show a profit you can live with. Then turn and burn.
Metal Recycling Entrepreneur
I say it sounds like its worth it for you. I always take non ferrous in when I take shred, I don't have unlimited storage, so my shred pile determines when I go to the yard most of the time.
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I have a 16ft flatbed trailer that I use to store shred (after I process it, removing the wiring harness, etc) until it is full, then I haul it 4 miles to my yard. I do not go more than a couple of miles out of my way from work to home to pick stuff up, so for me it is worth it.
The owner of the yard told me a week ago that he and 4 other yard owners talked, and they all agree that there should be a pretty good rise in commodities by the summer, so I am hoarding all my non-ferrous until this summer. And like the OP, I have plenty of storage space on my property.
Last edited by wayne1956; 01-09-2017 at 11:19 AM.
Metal Recycling Entrepreneur
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I still collect steel. I often use it as material for projects. Also one of the yards I go to will cut me a check on the spot for anything over $25 if I bring steel with non ferrous instead of waiting for 10 days to get a check for any amount over $25.
Metal Recycling Entrepreneur
As has been stated, depends on your situation.
For me, no. I got a small yard in a suburb with a small truck. Shred steel is easy pickings when doing other tasks, so is basically free. I used to bring in a Ranger load at 9 cents a pound and get $36 easily just about every week, more if I spent some time packing or had some heavier items. Then the price dipped as low as 1 cent a pound. Truckload now brought in $4, covering the gas barely. With limited places to store shred/tin, I started including it with our local recycling (it is allowed here) as I wasn't making money from it anyways. Prices have now settled in the middle making the decision of what to do with it a little more tricky for me each time. Still not going out of my way to pick it up though.
Cash In The Trash
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In my area the price for shred is $0.03 /lb at the moment.
As long as I don't have to drive longer than 40 miles - it's better than nothing !
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Steel makes up about 36% of the cash for me and 78% of the weight I bring in. And in order to get better prices at a yard I go to I take in 10 trips of steel (separated into, sheet iron, clean sheet iron, torch and prepared) and then take the good stuff for the bonus pricing of $.10 a pound for everything the next trip.
Metal Recycling Entrepreneur
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in my opinion no i would not if you have the means to transport and store such things you could. in my case im more of a manual kind of person where as i want to make profit and not waste it on using gas but it also limits on what and how much stuff i can get on a dolly lol but i save money that way=) i can cut down anything else but steel and ali cans they to take up loads of room. cast ali can break down nice.
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For myself it is worth it. I specialize in steel 99% of the time. There are several businesses in town that would have to pay for disposal if I did not clean it up. The owners of these businesses visit the coffee shop every day. My name comes up and I get more business. One trip into town once a month will provide a trailer load of steel and at todays market, $ 400. From this I get to haul combines, tractors, and other farm machinery.
You need to create your niche based on your location and the market. I haul over 60 mi. and can make a profit. My recommendation, think like the big dog on the porch, not the puppy.
Experienced Scrapper
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take my word for it dude< if you have anything less than one ton< its not worth it< I promise you>
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At this point steel is by product of harvesting more valuable materials....i think some of the new guys here have a long way to go
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So it would be worth it to get $85 a ton for sheet iron but not worth taking in a truck load of 400 pounds @ $.0425 a pound? All metal is money...
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