Selling off your old scrap metal is a great way to earn some extra cash to finance a vacation, make unexpected repairs, or simply help make ends meet. Unfortunately, while more people than ever before are taking advantage of this money making opportunity, far too many people are still failing to get top dollar for all of their scrap metal. Thankfully, by utilizing the tips outlined below, you can ensure that you never walk away with anything less than the full value of your scrap metal.

Take Advantage Of Changes In Supply And Demand

Scrap metal prices constantly fluctuate based upon the current supply and demand for any particular type of metal. For instance, if a new manufacturer begins purchasing a large quantity of recycled aluminum each month, the demand for that type of metal will quickly spike, along with the price that is paid for this type of metal.

While some changes in supply and demand are difficult to predict, others are much easier to predict based on past trends. For instance, the supply of scrap metal typically decreases during the winter months when fewer people are willing to dig through their garage or attic in search of some old metal items to sell. Consequently, choosing this time to sell off your scrap metal will often allow you to take advantage of more favorable rates.

Always Separate Your Metals

Different types of metal will be worth considerably more than others to scrap metal buyers. Unfortunately, if you fail to separate your load before arriving at the scrap yard, you will likely receive one low flat rate per pound for all of your different types of metal. This is because if the scrap yard is required to do the extra work to separate the load, they will no longer be willing to pay you the higher rate for any high-demand metals you may have.

If you are not familiar with the properties of all the different types of metal, simply separating your load into ferrous and non-ferrous metals can help you to increase your payday since non-ferrous metals, such as aluminum and copper, are worth considerably more than ferrous metals, such as iron and tin. In order to separate your load into these two categories, simply test each piece of metal to see if a common kitchen magnet will stick the metal. If the magnet sticks, the metal is ferrous. If the magnet does not stick, the metal is non-ferrous.

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