If you have recently purchased an old, worn down fixer-upper, it is safe to say you likely have plans to remodel in your near future. Remodeling a house, especially an older home, is a big and often expensive undertaking. Luckily, there are ways you can turn the old junky parts of your house into treasure – especially the metal parts! But to make money you need to know where to find the metal.
The Kitchen
There is metal throughout your entire home, but it is better to break it down by specifics. First, begin with the kitchen. If you plan on replacing your kitchen sinks, they may qualify as scrap metal, unless you have a porcelain sink of course. Metal sink types usually include aluminum and stainless steel. Either way, make sure you heft that chunk of metal toward the recycling pile.
The Walls
If the wiring in your home needs updating, take a look behind the walls to see what kind of wiring you have. Many older homes use copper wiring. Lucky for you, copper is usually one of the highest paying metals at most scrap metal recycling facilities. You can identify copper by its reddish color. Given that you are opting to replace the wiring, it is likely older, meaning it may look more of a brown color than red. Patina copper will have a greenish tinge to it.
The Bathroom
The bathroom is likely to contain traces of metal, particularly if you have old metal pipes that you would like to replace with PVC pipe. If the home you are renovating is significantly older, you may want to take a closer look at your bathroom's hardware. It is not uncommon for older homes to contain brass fixtures. Brass sells for an average price, but because it weighs a decent amount, it can add up quickly.
The Stairwell
Check the stairwells of your home, especially external ones. Interior stairwells are usually made of wood whereas external stairways often have metal railings made of steel. It may be time to update any old, rusted looking metal railings with something newer looking. Not only will you be able to update the look of your home, but you may even make some of your money back.
The Exterior
Head outside and take a look around. Does the guttering needs be replaced? If so, you may be in luck! Aluminum guttering is something you can take to the scrap yard. Although aluminum is not worth a lot of money, you are likely to find plenty of aluminum throughout your home to justify using it as scrap metal for recycling.
Testing the Metal
As a side note, you may want to keep a magnet handy to test any metals you find while renovating your home. Non-ferrous metals are often worth more when you recycle them. A magnet will not stick to non-ferrous metals such as brass and stainless steel. Magnets will, however, stick to ferrous metals such as iron.
Although ferrous metals are not worth much, it is still important that you take them to a local scrap yard for recycling. Recycling centers ensure the metals are disposed of properly and both ferrous and non-ferrous metals cay be used by industries to create new metals. In fact, many industries rely on recycled metal for the purpose of building roads, bridges, furniture and other objects or structures.
Contact a scrap metal facility near you to find out what you need to do to recycling your scrap metal. Your best bet is to make sure you have a large pickup truck so you can haul the metal in as few loads as possible. The facility will likely weigh your truck with the metal in the bed of the truck and gain without the metal. To make things easier and faster, sort the metal by type before you head to the scrap yard.
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