Question for the 'Professional' E waste buyers..

Hi guys,

Adam from Australia here.

(here is my introduction)
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/showt...tralian-member


I have a question regarding the current e waste market in the US.

I have read alot of threads (on this, and other forums) about the prices many are getting for computer parts (CPU, Boads etc.. @ XX$ per lb) and it got me thinking.

How long has a market for selling this type of scrap exsisted in the US?

The current situation here in Australia is that some smaller e watse recycling centres started up a few years back, and now the more major players such as SIMS metals are getting involved, however it seems that these places still charge companies a hefty fee for collecting and recycling; there end of life systems, and the smaller 'free computer drop off' ones I have spoken with don't seem to want anything older than a P4 machine.

I often wonder at what point did people catch on, leading to the sellers market you seemto enjoy over the other side of the ocean, and also as to whether Australia will also go this way.

I must say, if this will one day be the case here in Australia, i wil just continue to collect, breakdown and store e waste, stopping only to recycle the 'easy' items such as wires, heat sinks, power suplies, steel cases etc..


Any thoughts on this gents?

Many thanks,:)

Adam.

some here havent caught the "gold " bug yet but many have, kind of depends on the area I guess. Ebay is the megaphone for trends,I get some calls for free computer pick ups and a few for my $5 price but they are getting fewer and fewer. I am seeing scrap (non working) usually listed as " dont know if they work or not" for 25 to 40 each, any idiot knows you just plug it in to test it so they all know they are scrap crap. same thing happened with catolytic converters and , junk cars. Most people dont bother to find out the real value of them, the just hop on the bullit train to the current trend.

all we can really do is fasten our seat belts and hang on, and work smarter and harder.
sooner or later all those bitten by the Gold bug, will sell when the find out they paid $25 for $2 worth of gold and discover there is no way they can ever get it out, I figgure after a few die trying the regs will change as usual.

PS: my wife is one of those bitten, she wants to buy my "Gold" scrap for top price. :) pay back time. those who follow my threads will understand :).

Olddude is correct. eBay was really one of the major springboards for e-scrap along with the huge jumps in the price of gold. I myself found out about e-scrap almost 5 years ago before it was illegal to throw away electronics and I did by searching eBay. Things are a bit different right now since states are passing laws regulating e-waste in many forms.

And yes, many companies still charge fees for disposal of electronics. The reason why is simple....Because they can. E-waste has been labeled as toxic and therefore dangerous and with that companies see an opportunity to charge because there is no other way to get rid of the material. So it is a golden opportunity for those that want to get in the game. By not charging and simply accepting the items for free there is plenty of money to be made if the person is willing to do the hard work.

Thanks again for the replies.

I feel I should add tha I 'CAN' sell towers etc to my yard, but I would only get sheet steel price for them only

torker man....I Think we should talk I have the means to reach as far as Australia...but will need to do some work on pricing. This is what I need to know tho....can you fill a semi truck? If you can...I can setup all the supply lines and upfront the money needed for that...But if what you are saying...it will be worth every penny.

WOW! A Semi??

Man that would take some doing!

but if the pay day is there, I can get cracking!!

pm me with a little more info.

Cheers,

Adam