New World Recycling - Fort Worth, North of the Stockyards

OK, I have to give a review on New World Recycling. I'm warning you, it's not
going to be good.

What did I bring with me?

1. 132.5 LBS of Aluminum Cans
2. 74.5 LBS of Sealed Lead Acid Batteries
3. 71 LBS Copper Bearing Motor (Sump Pump)
4. 64 LBS of computer power supplies

It's hard to know where to start. First thing is, when you get there, it's confusing as
all hell. It's such a small yard, there's not really anywhere to park.
Half the people there don't even speak English.

OK, so the only reason I'm going there is, they have a February special posted on
their Facebook and Twitter pages, where you print out a copuon and get 4 cents more per
pound of aluminum cans. So I call them on the phone before going to confirm that
this coupon works, and will bring me $0.64/LB for aluminum cans. They say yes, just
show us the coupon. So when I get there, I talk to two different people outside,
and show them the coupon, and they assure me everything is OK.

When they finally weigh my scrap and I go inside, guess what they try to do? Yes,
you're reading my mind, that's right, they say we can't accept your coupon. I told the
lady that I called on the phone, and talked to the people who greeted me at the scrap yard,
and they told me it would work, and so after about a minute of arguing with her (I wasns't
cussing or anything, just pleading and begging), they accept one of my coupons, but
not the other coupon I brought in for 5 cents extra per pound on copper bearing motors.

Fine, I accept this. So if you're going there with a coupon, be forewarned, they will
only accept one category at a time.

Any more problems? Yes! They pay me for only 122 LBS of aluminum cans!

Now I watched them weigh the cans. Let me describe how that works briefly. So I
brought 14 bags of aluminum cans, weighed at 10 pounds per bag, with each bag weighing
about a half pound, so I had 133 LBS of AL. You empty all your bags into a big
steel container, and on the side of that container was spray pained in red "999". This
is the weight in pounds of that container. When they put that container with my cans
on one of their 4 or 5 scales, I saw that thing go up to 1131 LBS. Subtract the 999 LBS
for their steel container, and you are left with 132 LBS, what I actually brought there.
One thing I noticed on the printout was, it showed a Tare weight of 1000 LBS on that
particular container. So right there, they made an error. Looking around the yard,
I saw 4 or 5 containers with those tare weights spary painted on the side. Mine was 999,
another was like 1005, another was like 1003 or something. So they don't even bother
to accurately figure out which container box they're weighing your stuff in. They
just average them all to 1000.

On item #2, they weighed it at 80 LBS, instead of 74/75 LBS, they forgot to subtract
6 LBS for the Plastic box I had them in. So this error worked in my favor.

On Item #3, it weighted at 69 LBS, vs my home scale of 71 LBS. I'm using a WII
Balance board hooked up to my PC by bluetooth, and I'm pretty sure it's accurate.
Now I remember that the scale showed -2 before they put the sump pump on it. So did
they short me 2 pounds by mistake or on purpose? Either way I don't like it.

Item #4 really got me irritated. They weighed it in at 70 LBS, forgetting to subtract my
6 LBS for my plastic box, so that was in my favor. But when I called I asked about computer power supplies
and they said I could get $0.25/LB on them. Guess what they counted my power supplies as?
Yes, that's right, Sheet Tin #2 Light at 170 LBS a TON. So, instead of getting $0.25
per pound, I got a whopping $0.085/LB. I argued with them about this but by the time
I was doing that, their workers had already dumped my box of power supplies into the
Steel Tin Box.

So I said (to myself), screw it, I'll take what they're giving me and NEVER COME HERE AGAIN.

Now in regards to the copuon, the lady acted like it was a big deal that she had already
filled out the form and would have to REDO IT (OH MY GOD!) to take into account my coupon.
That was the real reason she gave me an issue with it. This is what I think happened;
they got pissed off at having to do some more work for a customer, and they changed the
weight on my aluminum cans on purpose. They figured they were going to pay me $0.60
for 132-133 LBS and then they changed it to $0.64 for 122 LBS.

Moral of story? Stay away! They get you to print out a facebook coupon, and they're
going to DELIBERATELY SHORT YOU on it. I'd have been better never mentioning this stupid
coupon to begin with.

Also, I had my iphone with me, but didn't think to take a video. Even still, taking a video in that
scrapyard or any scrapyard is scary - I don't want to get hit by falling scrap or some forklift
whizzing around the yard. Even if I had taken video proof, I didn't feel like arguing with
them. The AL can error cost me $6, the error in my favor on the batteries gained me $1.50,
and the error on the power supplies cost me ~$11.

I'm sure they know they have the advantage on that - most
people want to get in and out with their cash. Next time I go to a scrap
yard I think I'll video them. I'll just say it's nothing personal, the last yard I went shorted me
for 10 pounds of Al.

In DFW I've had good results with Encore Recycling in Garland for metals, and FMI in Oak Cliff for ewaste.

I have bad things to say about some other places around town, but I'm'a be a nice guy & bite my tongue.