Results 1 to 12 of 12

Treasure at the car wash

| Scrap Metal Tips and Advice
  1. #1
    copycat started this thread.
    copycat's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Apr 2012
    Location
    South Western PA
    Posts
    215
    Thanks
    150
    Thanked 169 Times in 64 Posts

    Cool Treasure at the car wash

    I haven't tried this yet but someone I know goes to car washes and gets the vacuum cleaner garbage bags from the dumpster. He claims it's full of loose change and sometimes find rings, other jewelery. I remember one of his hauls was one wedding band and about $30 of loose change. It does make sense I myself have dropped change down under the seat. If anyone else tries this please share what you find.

    Copycat


  2. The Following 2 Users say Thank You for This Post by copycat:



  3. #2
    Curbside shopper's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Pa
    Posts
    317
    Thanks
    171
    Thanked 289 Times in 152 Posts
    I've thought about it, wondered if anyone ever thought to check them. I can't count how many times I've spied a quarter or some chance under the seat a moment too late.

    Darn things have some wicked suction.

  4. The Following User Says Thank You to Curbside shopper for This Post:


  5. #3
    SMF Badges of Honor



    Member since
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    1,159
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 248 Times in 169 Posts
    Thats all fine but who wants to dig threw garbage for a few cents not me.

  6. #4
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Nov 2010
    Location
    Boise, ID
    Posts
    2,702
    Thanks
    2,237
    Thanked 2,352 Times in 1,014 Posts
    It does seem like a lot of work. But if you found the right ring (or coin/whatever) it could be a decent pay day.

    Don't know if I would sort it at the dumpster though. I'd prolly bring it home and fashion some kind of sifter out of mesh screen.

  7. #5
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Kansas
    Posts
    3
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
    My friend had two car washes that he would hit on a regular basis. One was downtown and the other was north of town. He would usually get about 40 dollars from the one downtown and about half of that from the other. He figured it was because the people downtown wore slacks and the change fell out of their pockets easily. I think the north side was just broke and had no change to lose, or vacuum their car. Most of the time the change would be sticky and it seems like it always smelled like puke. He found a mans ring and a couple of broken gold chains too.

  8. #6
    SMF Badges of Honor



    Member since
    May 2012
    Location
    Metro-West , Mass.
    Posts
    93
    Thanks
    54
    Thanked 95 Times in 18 Posts
    What does he do with the Big Pile of garbage bags at his house ?
    I have to pay $ 1.75 Ea. to get rid of mine , so that idea wouldn't work for Me .
    Bandit

  9. #7
    SMF Badges of Honor

    Member since
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Kansas
    Posts
    3
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
    He just mixed it in with his regular trash, it was fine so it filled in any spaces and made good filler.

  10. #8
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    Feb 2012
    Location
    n.e.ohio
    Posts
    23
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 28 Times in 8 Posts
    I worked at a car wash some 30+ years ago and found all kinds of stuff in the vacs. Back then they didn't have bags in them so you had to open the little side door on the side and use a small shovel to clean them. We had a piece of 1/8 inch hardware cloth put on a garbage can and sifted it as we cleaned them.

  11. #9
    submarinepainter's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor



    Member since
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Maine
    Posts
    1,025
    Thanks
    1,230
    Thanked 654 Times in 316 Posts
    I am amazed how well these vacuums suck up coins but have a hard time with sand and other crap lol
    Old dogs care about you even when you make mistakes;
    God bless little children while they're still too young to hate

  12. #10
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    May 2011
    Location
    Mn
    Posts
    131
    Thanks
    80
    Thanked 28 Times in 16 Posts
    I get alot of alum. cans at vacums and car washes.
    God is great, scrap is good, and people are crazy

    Its better to be scrapping and thinking of God than sitting in church thinking of scrapping

  13. #11
    wayne1956's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor



    Member since
    Aug 2010
    Location
    Cleburne, TX
    Posts
    705
    Thanks
    195
    Thanked 754 Times in 293 Posts
    All the car washes around me have locks on the doors to the spaces in the vacuum where the trash accumulates.

  14. #12
    saabsw's Avatar
    SMF Badges of Honor


    Member since
    May 2012
    Location
    Pittsburgh
    Posts
    59
    Thanks
    100
    Thanked 68 Times in 30 Posts
    I used to work at a car dealership, I've found rings and earrings, I once found an olympic championship ring(returned that one), under seats and in vacuum bags I have found change galore, if you can find the vacuum bags from a car wash and are allowed to grab them it may be worth it. Wear a respirator or some sort of breathing filter...


  15. Similar threads on the Scrap Metal Forum

    1. holiday treasure
      By Scrapette in forum Off Topic Discussions
      Replies: 40
      Last Post: 12-28-2012, 11:06 AM
    2. treasure, whats this ?
      By EcoSafe in forum A Day in the Life of a Scrapper
      Replies: 8
      Last Post: 01-16-2012, 03:27 AM
    3. Treasure or Tea for Two?
      By Scrapette in forum Dismantling, Breaking Down & Maximizing Scrap
      Replies: 5
      Last Post: 10-17-2011, 09:23 PM
    4. From trash to treasure
      By skuljagr in forum A Day in the Life of a Scrapper
      Replies: 3
      Last Post: 05-26-2011, 11:01 AM

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 3 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 3 guests)

 
Browse the Most Recent Threads
On SMF In THIS CATEGORY.





OR

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

The Scrap Metal Forum

    The Scrap Metal Forum is the #1 scrap metal recycling community in the world. Here we talk about the scrap metal business, making money, where we connect with other scrappers, scrap yards and more.

SMF on Facebook and Twitter

Twitter Facebook