The short answer is, ‘no, we can do it for $125.’
However, there is a lot more to it than that. Not long ago, there were a number of companies advertising free appliance removal. Those ‘scrappers’ would collect, disassemble, and salvage, recycle, or sell the parts to make money. Most of them are no longer doing that. Why? The price of scrap metal has dropped over 90%.
At less than a penny per pound, it does not even cover the cost of fuel to pick up and deliver an appliance to the salvage yard. Add wages, insurance, vehicle maintenance, and other business costs to the mix, and it quickly becomes a losing proposition to try to make money from scrap metal and appliances.
That said, we still feel an obligation to conserve resources and recycle as much of what we collect as possible to keep it out of the landfill. We are at the salvage yard at least 2-3 times a week and sometimes that often in the same day. It is not profitable, but it is still the right thing to do.
So – how do we cover our costs? We charge for our services. We bring a big truck, tools and skilled employees to remove whatever you need to have gone. We only charge you for the portion of the truck that is full. Our rates start at just $125 which includes our trip, labor, hauling, and disposal fees. Now, if you only have a dishwasher to get rid of, $125 sounds like a lot. It is. We can take up to 1/8 of our truck for that amount so consider having us take any junk, yard debris, or boxes in your garage or side yard while we are there.
If you need to get rid of a fridge, $125 is a bargain. Consider what it would cost to do it yourself:
$20-$50 -Rent for a truck or trailer at Home Depot or Uhaul
$10 -Rent an appliance dolly if you don’t have one
$30-45 -Freon removal to make fridge safe for disposal
$30-40 – Value of your time for 1-3 hours to run the errand and make the necessary stops
$30-50 -Disposal fee at landfill or transfer station (unless your city provides a voucher) (You can save this part by removing the compressor yourself once freon is evacuated – then it can go to the salvage yard)
We take care of all of these items for you – you just point. We do the lifting, loading, hauling, and all of the proper handling. $125 is a sweet deal.
…and that is why we can’t haul your fridge away for free.
P.S. -if it still works, you can place an ad on craigslist and someone else may want to come get it for free. If not, give us a call and we will be happy to help.
You can click the ‘Schedule a Pick up’ button at the top of the page right now and we will take care of everything else! 🙂
