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Over these past four years, I have been reading remarkable stories of successes, failures, highs, and lows. So now I ask, "Why do you scrap?"
I have changed my own story to this. I plan to save every scrapping cent I make for a solid year to pay for a three week dream vacation/camping trip to New England and southeast Canada.
This goal will help me gain focus. It gives me a reason to successfully navigate in a business to provide for the trip of my preretirement dreams.
No particular order...
1. I like money.
2. I like working for myself.
3. I have a very big cooler, an beer an beverages don't grow on trees!
4. I like breaking ****.
5. I like breaking ****
6. see 3.
7. See 4 & 5.
8. See 3, 4 and 5.
9. It's fun.
10. It lets me do fun things like...take the wife to Disney, or wherever she decides we're going.
11. It's cool being "that" guy at a social function an when they ask what you do you can say..."I break **** for a living." an it's true! An a good thing.
12. I was going to put another one here but hell...thats to much work, see 3, 4, 5,..ah screw it..just reread the list. ;)
Good luck with your goal. Always good to have goals. I'm betting the trip well be worth all the hard work.
Sirscrapalot - Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal. - Henry Ford
Bonus quote! - You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream - Les Brown
This is a great idea for a thread.
Since I am not a tree hugger, do not believe in global warming, and love the outdoors scrapping allows me to contribute to the environment. I love challenges and most of my scrapping involves new challenges and learning opportunities. I took early retirement and wanted to start my own business that I could do what I wanted, when I wanted to do it, and still be outside.
The ferrous money made from scrapping is reinvested into the business allowing for bigger/better equipment and the non-ferrous is being saved as a retirement gift for my wife.
The real reason I scrap is to be able to control my lifestyle.
I am a very small time scrapper just scrapping computers.
I do this because I consider it free money, and by free money I mean I don't have to pay any money to make this money. Just my time and a little gas in the tank.
I like the extra spending money. I learn a lot of stuff especially on this forum. I even payed for my subscription here with my scrap money.
Since I have been scrapping I tent to think outside of the box, when it comes to fixing things.
I also like #4 and #5 of Sirscrapalot's post.
To keep some stuff out of landfills and other stuff in my pocket while controlling my own work schedule.
Ditto on Patroit76's post. Also I started out as a "rehab" to help recover from kidney disease side effects. I stayed for brain activity needed to succeed in this business, even on a small scale. 73, MikeQuote:
Originally Posted by Patriot76
I got started by loving the idea of cleaning up the woods by my parents house and getting paid to do it. Picked up more skills and advice from this forum making it easier and more profitable and helping to pay off my student loans. Yes the money helps but more so I love re-using/ recycling other peoples "trash". I hope I don't see it but I think if not in my life time than probably in the next generations we will see a collapse of some sort in society due to lack of resources from over-consumption and the greedy lifestyle we live, especially in the USA. If everyone had the attitude most scrappers do, it would be much less of an issue. Also its very therapeutic breaking scrap down.
The why do I do it is a pretty simple answer: found money.
The how did I get started, and why do I enjoy it so much is probably more to the point of your question.
First off, the "real" job I have is pretty much the dream job for a curbco scrapper: I go to 35-50 residences every day Monday through Friday, and scoop up the dog poop from my customers' yards. I make a bit more than you might think at this endeavor, but who isn't looking for more income?!?
So, basically, all day every day I drive a pickup around through neighborhoods where people by definition have disposable income and are not frugal with it.
I had been doing this for a while, and one morning several years ago I was sipping coffee & surfing the net before work and I found this article about copper. Copper prices were on a meteoric rise at the time, pushing $4 per pound and some folks were saying they were going to $10 a pound. I filed the info away & went on about my day.
As I was heading up the alley to one of my stops that day, I saw a beat up, taped up, frayed orange 100' extension cord sitting on someone's trash can awaiting the trash dudes to come & haul it away. My mind flashed back to that article, and then I kinda realized that I was always driving past heaps of thrown away stuff like that. I stopped & grabbed the cord, not having ANY IDEA what to do with it, only knowing that there HAD TO be a few bucks worth of copper in that thing, and SOMEONE SOMEWHERE would probably pay me for it.
So I came home at the end of my route, and a few internet searches later I found this forum, and set to reading. Then, as now, there were a brazillion threads about "is it worth it to...." one of which was "strip extension cords". It didn't seem that there was a clear answer, so I tied one end of the cord to the trailer hitch on my truck, stretched the other end down the street, and set to scoring the orange insulation with a utility knife. :o Once I (FINALLY) had the black, green, & white strands freed, I tied one to the trailer hitch & set about trying to score it. :o:o:mad: I went back in the house I read a little more on the forum. I went out to the garage, cut a block off the end of a scrap 2x4, drilled a hole through it for the wire to run through, screwed a sharp pointed drywall screw into it & went back out to my wire to assert my dominance!!:)) ..... not so fast. It didn't exactly work very well, kept binding and tearing and catching on the strands of copper. Many cusswords were uttered!
Yeah, other than the easy find, my introduction to scrap was not peaches & roses. I finally got that extension cord stripped to bare copper... it probably took me 4 hours or so of researching cussing & working.
Over the next several years, I've branched into many other arenas of scrapping. I've scrapped hundreds of tube TVs, but now I won't touch them unless, maaaaybe it's a Sony Trinitron. I've made some very unprofitable auction purchases, I've made some lucrative ones. I've put together a booth for attending earth days, community garage sales, etc handing out business cards & recycling peoples' old computers. I've injured myself so bad I'll feel it for the rest of my life while being careless with a loaded server rack. But bottom line, I've gained a skillset and knowledge base that will provide at least the basics for me for the rest of my life if worst comes to worst.
One other thing that doesn't get much mention is re-use of scrap-found things. I've quit even picking up lightbulbs since I have a 18 gallon bin on a shelf out in the garage FULL of used but working lightbulbs. A few months back our fridge/freezer in the kitchen quit working. I had three (yes, THREE) mini fridges in the garage that I'd found left in alleys for trash. WHY anyone would throw one of these away is beyond me!! I bleached the insides of those three fridges & moved all our stuff into them, then I fixed the fridge, which necessitated laying it over on its side. For three days, we used those mini fridges and the only thing we 'lost' was one of them was set too cold & froze/cracked a couple of eggs. After three days I plugged in the big fridge & (knock wood) it's working fine. I can't imagine how much food we'd have lost without those minifridges. The faucet in our master bath came from a curbco find. Apparently, these rich folks like to remodel a lot! And they throw away their old fixtures when they do. (Actually, they hire it done & I'm boggled the contractors don't scrap/resale some of the stuff they haul out!)
I really enjoy branching out & learning knew things. I think that America is a VERY wasteful nation. That's a bad thing on the whole, but it does provide a lot of opportunity for someone with some gumption & hustle to turn some of that wastefulness of others into a pretty decent revenue stream for themselves.
OK... enough jabber from me. Today is the day I bust out the sawzall & take care of that bin of pipes that have some soldered joints but also have decent chunks of #1 on either side of the joints... and cut the headers off those 2 pool heater heat exchangers. I love those things!
So... I better quit writing books & get on with it. ;)
well my story may be the same as many..........I was an alcoholic and drug addict for approx 20 years........This ended up landing me in some trouble including prison time........This may have been the best thing that ever happened to me.........I met many great people there and was introduced to a LONG TERM RECOVERY PROGRAM within the prison walls......It was there that I vowed to change my life and have not taken a drink or drug for over EIGHT years now......When I was released work was not exactly easy to find for a "convict" with sporadic work history........I went back to the Labor Pool "LABOR READY" and worked fairly frequently...........Unfortunately because of my previous lifestyle I owed so much money to past debts I would work an 8 hour day and they would garnish my check leaving me with approx $20 a day after taxes..........There was a guy there who had an old beat up pick up truck and after getting to know him he made me a deal...........Take the truck and make him money........After expenses we would split all profits 50/50.........It took me a few weeks but I landed a job cleaning up construction out of an old mall..........In one day we cashed in over $800 worth of metal.......At this point we took all our profits and went "ALL IN"...........Many jobs and 1000's of miles later I no longer have a partner and currently deal in mainly Ewaste........This is a lucrative business for someone willing to do the work.......Sure I care about the environment and recycling but at the end of the day if this did not support my family and give me financial freedom I probably wouldn't look twice at things going into a landfill..........So to make a long story short I SCRAP for financial reward and to have a freedom of lifestyle that would not be available at any other regular job
dittoQuote:
Originally Posted by sirscrapalot
I love to scrap.i go to auctions trying to find that goldmine most of the time its just ferrous. People look at scrappers as being beneath them.just imagine the country without scrappers.its hard work but if you enjoy it that helps.and it helps pay the bills.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sirscrapalot
All of these.Quote:
Originally Posted by Patriot76
As I've told people that ask, because I can. $$$ and "unwind" are the principal reasons. I'll elaborate when I get around to doing an intro.
In two words - personality disorder.
I would say all of the above but the main reason is because of my full time job.
Because I work on phone and computer systems customers give me a lot of their old equipment for free.
I've never had to buy a computer, monitor, printer or laptop for myself or family members.
I brought home a load yesterday and was able to upgrade from a Dell Latitude E5420 with a Core i3 to an Acer TravelMate 5742 with a Core i5.
It's not the newest or the bestest but it's better than the one I had. :)
Can't stand the corporate structure. Also I feel better about my failures and accomplishments if they are truly mine. I started in 2013 because I was still recovering from an autoimmune disorder that was killing my large intestine. It's been a long road to semi-health since and that's what prompted striking out on my own. Prior to that I had worked for p&g and the army before that none of which I was too fond of lol.
My wife and I both have decent jobs, however we are getting close to retirement. We've been broke, very broke. Scrapping helped us get through some of those times. I've always wanted to save everything I've scrapped. Now, we don't " NEED " the money. Scrapping will be another type of savings account. I will buy some stuff to supplement free stuff.
It's good therapy, and I am in the camp of those who like to take things apart and not have to put it back together.
I scrap because it's fun and you can make good money at it. As a full time worker, part time scrapper you can make pretty serious amounts of money. It has also raised extra money for my college tuition which I would call a win!
I concur.Quote:
Originally Posted by alloy2
Good stuff, good thread.
I need to also add to my list..
52. The People I've met. Whether customer/client, forum members, etc. I've gotten to know some very interesting souls. A lot of them on here, who I call friends to this day.
53. Another thing is the unpredictability of this work. When I was in wholesaling/retail/shipping/whatever...I knew my day before it began. No surprises, lest not any good ones. lol. This scrapping/ewaste thing...whole other story. My day is as crazy an as unpredictable as I am, an I love it. No rigid schedule or deadlines.
No matter why you do it, I hope you enjoy it.
Cause at the end of the day..while I enjoy the money, the freedom, the ability to yes..break ****. I like the fact I enjoy an like what I do...vs being miserable an collecting a paycheck. An to me that is the cherry on the top.
Sirscrapalot - Find something you love to do, an you'll never work a day in your life. - Or something like that.
I scrap because I am better at breaking things than fixing things. My wife working for a small IT company helps a lot too! Lots of free computers, modems, monitor, etc... I also have a small commercial cleaning company, so I get a lot of free scrap. The money is always a nice plus, but the quiet solitude is refreshing!
I scrap because i quit my fulltime job. Worked 18 years as the night manager for a major grocery/drug store chain. I would scrap on the way to and from work. Not to mention all the shelfs, and racks i got form work. Long story short, I got sick of the corporate bone heads there and Quit. So Im a fulltime scrapper now.
I hate waste.
I started when a 4 year old flat screen TV blew up on me about 3 years ago, and every guy i called to fix it said throw it away and buy a new one, it's cheaper. So after a little research, including finding this forum, i learned about scrapping. Once i made my first dollar(literally), I opened a separate bank account and that is where i put any money i make, as well as use for any costs I incur. This account is set aside for my sons college(which he starts this year). Initial goal was to pay for 4 years of books with scrap money. Happy to say that was accomplished awhile ago, now working on paying for a complete semester. Plus as others have said, I can't fix many things, but i sure am good at breaking things apart.
Started scraping in June of 2012 to help my then girlfriend with the medical bills because her son had Leukemia and in April 2013 his 3 years of chemo finished. He is in remission and doing well. Girlfriend is now wife as of 11-1-2013. Now all the money goes to a fund that pays for an annual anniversary vacation for the wife and I.
From 1983 to 1997, I worked in maintenance at a retirement home and when I got there, the crew would scrap and split the proceeds. I learned there to tell the different metals and how to sort to get the most from a trip to the yard. Once I started my own handyman business, I would save the goodies I could as well as what I would find curbco. I also love to shop garage sales and have found I can buy brass and copper for pennies on the dollar. It all gets processed as a dollar gained to effort spent. It is all put into the garage sale/scrap proceeds/ebay/craigslist purse. It will get spent on items that I can turn for more money or on items I believe will be a store of value or things that would be helpful in a survival situation, if things get tough, or even if they don't. It is the closest thing to alchemy I have been able to find.... Turn nasty, trashy metal into gold and silver.
I started out "scrapping" houses ( architectural salvage ) at a young age during home remodeling projects during the early 90's . I sometimes stripped parts from cars that were left in the fields.
By the 2000's I was digging computers out of the trash, fixing them, and than reselling the units. I ( accidentally ) discovered E-waste was worth some $ after I threw out hundreds of units I could not salvage parts from.
The area I live in now-a-days is not good for "making a living" from scrap. It's a hobby.
I scrap as it's the right thing to do for our enviroment and future generations , I have worked many jobs that would literally throw money away and then pay to have that thrown away money removed . I still continue to scrap as its viewed by myself as a part time job I can control the hours of . I have a full time job so that keeps me busy but rather than go out and spend money after work most days I'm in the garage making a few dollars .
It's a metaphorical change jar . No one item is going to tip the scale but that constant " throwing change in a box " tends to add up to the next vehicle repair , unexpected bill or special night or weekend . Good question btw !
I deliver pizza a couple nights a week. I scrap. People seem to look down on people who deliver pizza and people who scrap. In my experience, people who deliver pizza and people who scrap are some of the most ambitious people I know. Love your lives, people.
I'm new in the scrap world, but my reason for being here is simple. I wanted to be my own boss. So far it's off to a good start.
I scrap because I like the extra pocket change! But actually, and more importantly, b/c of the environment. I find myself spending A LOT of time at dumpsters rearranging garbage. It is amazing to me how many people don't recycle in today's world. And it's very frustrating how much garbage I find in the recycle bins. So, I try to move as much of the big stuff as I can...cardboard boxes only take a sec to break down and toss in the recycle bins. I consider this as doing my part. I do what I can when I can. And then I grab the cans! And I haul my scrappy ass down to the local recycler and cash in! :)
I started in high school because my friends sister died and her boyfriend left his old car engine in their garage. My friends mom wanted it gone and i needed something to do as my foot was broken at the time and i needed something to do. So i broke it down in to as small of pieces as i could since my foot was still broke and i couldn't lift much. It was fun and i made money doing it so when my foot healed i saw a grill laying down by the river. Went to go get it and found a whole truck that washed up on the river bank. So since I didn't have a job then Me and my friends spent that spring clearing abandoned cars and other metal stuff out of those woods with nothing but a generator, hammer, and sawzall. After that I found you could get stuff on trash day so i was hauling loads in to the yard every day for awhile. It was nice money back then and I learned how to do it completely on my own. Soon it became an obsession. Even scrapped the whole time i was in the army.
to answer your question I continue doing it because its fun and I need to get myself out of debt, its the only thing im actually good at and I really like breaking things by hand. It gives me a work out and im doing productive things for the world instead of wasting my life worrying about dumb stuff that doesn't really matter.
I also enjoy building things out of other peoples waste. My main scrap trailer right now is the back of a pickup truck i bought from a junk auto auction. It was built by me out of scrap i found in a dumpster. Ive also got a 300k mile dakota i bought from the yard that I use for hauling stuff thats sure to put dents and scratches in the tacomas i use. When i load the dakota up i really don't care about what happens to the body work and The look people give you when your hauling a washing machine or two on the roof of your truck, is pretty priceless and that alone would be enough reason to keep me hauling.
1) I desired to get to know the fellows at DEP and I did
2) I wanted to get to know the police and get schooled to Tarp loads Tie down loads
3) I wanted help from police to make sure trucks inspected registered insured
4) I wanted stitches here and there
5) I wanted to cut my Thumb so it feels a little numb - Still !!
6) I wanted to be able to WAVE to people - wile in dumpsters
7) I wanted to be able to get to know home owners as I sifted in there TRASH
8) I always wanted strange looks from people as I drove with a Giant erector set look of intertwined metal on roof (see#2)
9) The thrill of busting a back window pail's to telling the wife UM I just busted the the back window wile getting grocery's and a umm a small garbage disposal
10) The thrill of busting a back window pail's to telling a car rental company UM I just busted back window , yeah a rock some how hit it
11)Destroy my marriage due to intense mess
12)Cause embarrassment for children due to intense mess
13)Collect so much valuable metal that drug addicts decided to be my silent partner's
14)Develop a tool repurchase program with local drug addicts utilizing pawn shops .
15)Develop a reputation as " That Guy " there he is
16)Develop keen weight to price per pound skills to debate counter person over .42 cents
17) Understand the in's and out of metal pricing to debate how those 5 pounds of Aluminum was clean enough to pay .45# not .10#
18) Understand the reasons for cutting metal to maximize profits (See#5)
19) Become popular with the local kids as they say to you " that bike frame you took is actually my BMX project "
In truth
Scrapping is the one source of money income I seem to have control over
many other incomes involve making others happy to get paid
Scrapping is simple - find it - take it in - get the money & not just $20 - it's Good Money .....
LOL :cool: Thats meQuote:
Originally Posted by CopperHeadAKA
agreed i to like money and it is fun taking things apart like a/c's the tubes can sometimes be a hassle and some of the motors to i strip every cord or wire i can unless its ali looking then i dont. it also cleans the enviroment to=)Quote:
Originally Posted by Sirscrapalot
It's been a while since anyone responded to this thread, so I thought I'd add my two cents (wait a minute the cheap guy at the local scrap yard says it is now worth only a penny!) :)
I retired about a year ago and this gives me something to do. It is something I can do (i.e., clipping ends off wires and stripping wire) while listening to a ballgame and I love that multi-tasking part of it. Also, my wife is less inclined to complain about my listening to a game if she can see that I am also working at the same time.
The money part is a mixed bag for me. I feel like if I can make $50 or a bit more in a trip to the scrap yard that I've done pretty well. I have no idea how someone can actually make a living scrapping. I know there can be a fairly steep learning curve (for instance, knowing what types of wire are worthwhile stripping), but I feel like I am way behind anyone making decent money. If I get a total of $1,000-2,000 for the entire year, I will feel I've done reasonably well. So I need to learn more about how to be efficient to make more money. If I could up my game to $25-50k a year, that would be fantastic. Not sure if that is realistic, but I will keep trying.
The environmental aspect is also important to me. I love the concept of taking something used and giving it a new life, perhaps as something totally different. Example: We had a neighbor who had an old swing set they wanted to scrap. The guy was nice enough to cut all the pieces of steel into about 16-18" pieces. We took several of these and put chicken wire around them to keep rabbits out of our garden. It worked just great!
I like the idea of helping provide a job for someone else (the guy at the scrap yard) who might otherwise find it difficult to find work.
This can be surprisingly strenuous work at times and I can really work up quite a sweat. That helps me keep my weight down a bit from what it would otherwise be.
The idea of working my own hours is truly fantastic!
I like being a good example to others and this gives me an opportunity to talk about things like Henderson Island. It is between New Zealand and Chile in the middle of nowhere. Google that one if you like to see some of the sad photos. The island is uninhabited, yet it is one of the most polluted places on the planet. This is because the ocean currents carry lots of trash to Henderson.
I also trade stocks and must admit that making $100 at the scrap yard feels much better than making the same amount on a stock trade. It could be because the yard pays me in cash, and seeing that cash has a different effect than a number changing on a computer screen.
I don't mean to sound overly preachy, but recycling is kind of a way for me to make amends for stuff that I've thrown in the trash in the younger part of my life that should have been recycled.
This is a great topic for a thread!
I find myself in a temporary position where I need a part-time job on top of my full-time job, my wife can’t work right now. I also don’t have time for a traditional part-time job and I can scrap anytime. I also do IT consulting, but it’s somewhat in conflict with my full-time job (time-wise, but the higher ups are aware I do it) and it’s more time constraining than just picking up stuff with your truck, maybe taking it apart, and then dropping if off somewhere for money. In fact, at lunch yesterday @ my full-time job, I picked up 660lbs of scrap metal. It’s also kind of fun. So even after the situation is taken care of - I will keep scrapping.
I am not a Prius driving tree hugger, but it’s more than obvious there is a problem with pollution of the air, water and land, and also recourses are being wasted and it seems as if doing this isn’t contributing to the problem as much as doing some other things.
...also for days like today - I thought for sure I was going to strike out, looked like I could get nothing substantial on the way home from work, but saw an old CL post (3 days old) with some stuff close by and took a chance, and picked up 860 lbs of scrap + some aluminum and copper, and will be back tomorrow cause there's still more I couldn't fit in my Dakota. :winner: x2 chicken dinner!
I like it because you (usually) get paid right for the hard work you do. I had stopped scrapping cause I had 2 slow weeks and was starting to lose it. Worked framing for 6 mo getting paid 10 an hour, working my butt off for maybe 300 bucks a week, granted, it was fun sometimes, I learned things, and obviously it was a good workout. We used no safety, and one day, while 20 ft up close to the edge of a gable, I thought, yknow, I can make at least this much easy scrapping, and i'd be on the ground. So, I quit, and got back into scrapping.
And obviously the freedom aspect is nice, for example: i'm home now, just rode my bike around a little, it's 2 in the afternoon, got some stupid scrap to break down thats been kicking my butt so it can wait, already got my main stuff/calls done earlier, i've been tired all day so i'm probably about to take a nap. Also i'ts Wed. and i've already made more than a week of framing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by recyclersteve
I'll tell you as a 20-something doing it for a living, I'ts really possible just from having a few ads up, getting connections, and just driving around the neighborhood sometimes. I've had shred loads that were close to $200, not counting non ferr. And between scrap and selling things, i've had (not many) weeks over 1,000. But that's a good week, not normal (yet).
That occasional gold mine.