Some states in America have a tremendous amount of metal that is thrown away and many of these scrap waste are thrown away needlessly in landfills. Fortunately, many people are coming to realize that metal scrap should not be considered as a waste, but as a resource that still can be used by other people. Scrap recycling is a necessity nowadays because excess metal that was thrown away need not be left to rust away or take up space in a landfill. It is a good thing that many states are now requiring their citizens to participate in programs that would enable their scrap metals to be used as other materials by other people.

All over America there are mountains of scrap metals like old cars, bicycles, surplus metal and discarded refrigerators that are wasting away in many homes and businesses. It is a good thing though that there are sites that employ scrap recycling wherein the collected scrap metals are taken to a junkyard where they are processed and later melted to be sold as newly refurbished products. Other scrap metals that can be used are the so-called ferrous scrap such as pipes, tubes, wirings, railroad and boat scraps.

Scrap recycling is very good for the environment because recycled materials will substantially cut down on carbon emanations especially air pollution by eighty percent and this will protect future generations from inhaling the fouled air. Moreover, metal that has been recycled will be a perfect alternative over virgin ores that may contribute in polluting water as well. Recycled metals are a welcome development because virgin resources are fast running out and landfills may not be able to absorb more waste coming from the nearby cities or states. Furthermore, scrap metals provide an opportunity for many people to earn more money rather than throw away their scraps.

Too much garbage is disposed in dump trucks that landfills are running out of space to put this excess waste. It is fortunate though that there are companies that who do recycling pickup to lessen the buildup of mountains of garbage to protecting the environment as well. There are many untapped markets that can utilize recycled parts like papers, cardboards, fibers, plastics and metals. Incidentally, there are three ways to recycle materials and these are bale routes, single stream recycling, and non-fiber recycling. First, the former is about selecting materials on the site that need to be recycled and things that can be collected are newspapers, old cardboards, and a number of fibers.

Single stream recycling on the other hand will use a single container to collect all recyclables and this will be save many people the trouble of putting these in overloaded landfills. Incidentally, some companies who are into recycling pickup will also use a method called non-fiber recycling to collect materials such as cans made of aluminum, bottles, plastics, sheets, profile and industrial products such as rubber. These methods are very useful and responsible good for the environment in collecting usable garbage that need not be thrown away.

Some recycling companies that do recycling pickup often give out good rates for people who want their garbage to be recycled and collected as well. Residents in many areas are given two recycling bins to put their thrash in them and are free of charge. On the other hand, commercial or business clients are supplied as many as ninety-five gallons of containers to store their recyclable garbage. For their service alone, these companies only charge fifteen dollars a month for residential clients or an equivalent of one-hundred-fifty dollars- a- year, so they can save as much as thirty dollars. These recycling companies simply request that the residents separate different kinds of paper before they are collected.

Nowadays, the advances in technology have made strides on a daily basis and newer and more sophisticated electronic devices and gadgets are now out in the market. Amidst these new innovations, old devices and used up electronic gadgets are being stored up in many houses and left there for years as white elephants. Televisions for one are used up to twenty-four months and then discarded. Same thing with old computers as they are used a maximum of thirty-six months.  It is a good thing that people are resorting to electronics recycling, so that toxic materials inside these electronic junks can be removed while ensuring more landfill space.   

The value to the economy of these old television sets, cell phones, computer monitors, and PCs cannot be discounted because not only will many people be able to save money, but they would also help keep the environment clean and safe. It is a known fact that technological advances have given consumers the opportunity to change their old products into better, more efficient and cost saving units that can be used for a longer time. However, electronics recycling comes to fore because many of these old gadgets or devices have not been rendered useless and in fact can still be used, repaired, and even be given away to charitable institutions and a number of schools.

Incidentally, if there is a big market for new and more advanced products, there is also another market that can make a killing by selling these refurbished television sets and computer laptops that were repaired and still in tip-top condition. It is the same thing with discarded cell phones because many buyers who want to save money can have these recycled units at a much lower price. Electronics recycling has been a boon to consumer and the environment because nothing is wasted. 

Millions of businesses in America throw tons of commercial waste like aluminum cans, food wastes, glass and others, so they will be collected and brought to a landfill. However, the growing population means that more trash are in the offing and landfills are becoming scarcer. For this reason, many states have asked their constituents and businesses to adopt commercial recycling methods that would reduce the cost of their yearly waste bill and substantially lessen the volume of waste that would be discarded in these landfills. Trash bins often yield many materials that still can be used for future purposes.

Among the many materials that can be collected free of charge would be cardboards that are not soiled or contaminated. Business owners can save a substantial amount if they are able to collect a number of these boards. Glass and cans can be collected and recycled to make more bottles and cans, so this saves the trouble of burying them somewhere especially that these are not biodegradable. Commercial recycling is also about collecting newspapers, yellow pages that are old, white envelops, clean cards, and junk mail, so these will be recycled again to newspapers that people read every day.

 Incidentally, these papers are collected, checked for contaminants and taken to a fiber preparation plant for them to be reduced to a pulp, cleaned and converted to a newly recycled newspaper. Commercial recycling also involves the collection of discarded meat products left in restaurants and these includes  meat, vegetables, tea bags, pork and chicken carcasses cardboard and paper soiled by meat products, small and large bones and expired breads. When these are collected, they are brought in a plant to be shredded or dissolved and finally composted inside a large machine that will further break down these products, so they can be used as fertilizer.

Tons of scrap metal are thrown in many landfills everyday and many of them can be hazardous to those who may handle them. For this reason, catalytic converter recycling is a necessity because it can lessen the number of scrap catalytic converters that are found in auto supply, repair shops and auto wrecking operations. When people collect these converters they carefully shear the coverings made of steel as well as the case openings, so that honeycombed biscuits or beads are taken out. The total value of the converters is dependent on the coating made of PGM (platinum group metals) that those who are interested in it should also collect the small pieces and even the dust from these converters

Catalytic converter recycling is very important for junkyard owners, those who own scrap metals and mechanics because they can have these treasured metals like rhodium, platinum and palladium taken off the converters and refined. More importantly, when these converters near the end of their shell life they are filtered so they can be used again and help lessen harmful emissions that are emitted by millions of vehicles towards the atmosphere. Instead of these being condemned in a junkyard or land fill, these converters can be used time and time again.

These precious converters are crucial for junkyard owners and mechanics because every time they are sold or refined, these owners are able to keep the profits that in turn help their business stay afloat or even become more profitable.  Catalytic converter recycling is also about collecting converters from huge machines like trucks, forklifts, trains, buses, mining equipment and even generator sets. This type of recycling is a win-win solution for everyone especially the environment. Many people will earn money by having these converters cleaned for future use, so that the environment will be much safer due to lesser emissions.

Products made from steel range from appliances, automobiles, oil filters, cans to construction materials and steel recycling has been around for almost 150 years. With steel recycling, fewer resources are used and therefore reduces the waste thrown in landfills and incinerators. With every ton of steel recycled, it saves 1,400 pounds of coal, 2,500 pounds of iron ore and 120 pounds of limestone. More than 83% or more than 60 million metric tons of steel were recycled as of 2008 in the United Sates.

Appliances or domestic metal scrap in bad working condition can be donated to a local recycling center. Other sources of metal scrap used in steel recycling are heavy melting steel, cast iron from pipes and engine blocks, manganese steel used in mining industry and rails from train tracks. Used cars are being accepted and towed by local donation centers regardless of their working condition. Landfills do not accept used automobiles since they have parts than are still valuable for further reuse. Even if the car has extensive damages, auto dismantlers can still salvage some parts that can be recycled. These recycling companies remove the batteries, gas tank and drain the car of other fluids before these are flattened and sold to ferrous metals scrap dealers.

Cars that have worn their usefulness and are taken off the road will be sent to a recycling facility. Most steel products today have already come from recycled steel. Steel, like aluminum and copper, is a product that can be recycled indefinitely to be used again and again and still retain its quality and properties. This process not only minimizes the environmental pollution but also conserves a significant amount of energy. Through steel recycling, the steel industry saves enough energy in a year to provide electricity to 18 million homes for one year. 

One of the most sustainable methods of conserving environmental resources is by metal recycling. Unlike other scrap materials like paper and glass, metal can be repeatedly recycled without losing its original strength or quality. Recycling metals also have a more cost-efficient production compared to manufacturing new metal products.

Metal recycling begins after the scrap materials are collected from households and businesses. Afterwards, these products are delivered to centers which sort them according to their composition and type. One type is ferrous scrap which is composed of iron and steel. Examples of these cars, household appliances and construction steel beams. There’s also the non-ferrous type which include aluminium products like foils and cans. These metals will be inspected and checked so those with similar alloy composition will be bundled together.

The sorted scraps are then sent to metal recycling centers. These scrap metals will now go through smelters, devices which can melt these materials at a very high temperature. Different metals have different melting points so these have to go through separate smelters. After they’ve been melted, these are slowly cooled and molded into small bars called ingots before they’re sold for reuse for other products. Some products using recycled metals include auto parts, appliances, doors and windows. The prices for these recycled metals depend on the quantity, purity and demand for the material.

Recycling metals offer a lot of benefits. This process use 95% less energy and using less energy means using fewer resources which help conserve the environment. Metal recycling also minimize water and land pollution and decrease damages caused by mining raw ore. Because of the high demand and unlimited supply of scrap metals, entrepreneurs have discovered it to be a thriving business opportunity. These metal recycling facilities not only generate a lot of jobs and a decent earning, they also play a significant contribution in preserving the environment.

Copper recycling has been around for hundreds of years, even starting from the Middle Ages. During those times, bronze cannons were melted and reused for other items. Even old church bells were recycled to be used as cannon. Copper is the third most recycled metal next to aluminum and iron. The most common use for copper is for electrical applications like wires and power cords because of its high conductivity and freedom from breaks even after production.

Before buying or selling scrap copper, be aware of the current rates so the sale will be worth it. A stripped coated wire has a higher value. Just be careful when using razor when pulling out the wires from their coating. Scrap copper also has different prices, depending on their quality. A new shiny clean copper has the higher price. Copper wires that have a decent thickness, no smudges of paint or solder are the next higher value. The one with the lowest value is the coated wires, meaning coaxial cables, phone cables that are just too difficult to strip. Sorting scrap copper before recycling is important, otherwise, the recycling center will rate it at the lowest value. 

There are several considerations in the copper recycling process. When the scrap copper is made up of only one alloy, it’s easier to melt and turn into a good quality product. If it’s contaminated or mixed with other materials, like solder, adjusting its composition in the final product will be more difficult, especially when copper buying wholesalers have certain quality specifications. If it’s just added tin or lead, the composition can still be adjusted to a particular level of quality. If the scrap copper has been contaminated to a much larger degree, the only way to turn it into an acceptable quality is to refine it back to pure copper with the use of metal refining techniques.  In copper recycling, higher quality copper goes through a furnace where it’s melted and turned into ingots and billets, while lower quality copper is first refined through electroplating in a sulphuric acid bath.

The brass industry relies on brass recycling since producing new copper and zinc materials is more costly and wasteful. Making brass products out of recycled materials is the more sustainable and cost-efficient approach. The more useful properties of brass are usually its attractive color and easy shaping and bending qualities. They’re used in car radiators because of its high thermal conductivity. There also have been experiments where brass bolts and handles in doors are less conducive for germs and bacteria compared to their steel counterparts.

One of the most common is the yellow brass is used in faucets and household plumbing. Another type is the red brass used in sprinklers and valves, is the most commonly recycled, although it has lesser use than other brass products. The reddish tint is due to the higher concentration of copper and smaller tin or lead in its composition. The semi-red brass is the more common and cheaper form of red brass. There is also the gold-colored brass seen in door bolts and handles, buttons, zip fasteners, and light fittings. Aluminum is added to the alloy to improve resistance to corrosion while manganese, iron, tin is added for strength.

These objects have valuable properties that cannot just be thrown away because they can also serve other purposes after they’ve been recycled. The discarded parts of taps, faucets, pipes or brass ornaments can be sent to a scrap metal recycling center where they will be sorted and processed for other uses. Brass recycling is one of the sustainable ways of reducing materials ending up wasted on a landfill. Brass, like any other metal, can be recycled over and over and still retain its valuable composition.

The price of brass depends on its weight. There are brass recycling centers which arrange pick up and offer additional payment for larger volumes of scrap material. These prices still change depending on their market value. Brass recycling centers may be mandated by local and state laws to keep records of all recycled products that goes through their facilities.