What Happens to Recycled Metals?

During these unprecedented times, we take our role as an essential service provider seriously and we remain open to service our customers. We understand that everyone is very concerned with the potential spread of the Coronavirus. We’re following the guidelines put in place by the federal government, local governments and the CDC.

Below are some of the safety precautions we’ve implemented to protect our team and our clients:

We’re offering discounts for our customers who are able to stage their items outside of their property for pickup
We’re vetting our customers before scheduling appointments and while en-route to make sure they’re not showing signs and symptoms of illness
If the customer has access to masks or face covers, we ask that they wear them (if masks are unavailable, please maintain a safe distance of 6 feet at all times)
We are sending home any staff member exhibiting any symptoms of illness for the recommended period of time established by the CDC
All team members have been assigned masks and gloves
We are not assigning more than two team members to a truck
Our trucks and equipment are being disinfected daily
We’ve shut down our office from outside visitors and anybody who can work virtually is being encouraged to work from home
The company continues to hold regular team-wide virtual meetings to emphasize transparency and keep the lines of communication open
The decision to come to work remains 100% voluntary

Once 123JUNK hauls away items from our clients’ homes and offices, we sort through and remove any metals that can be recycled, and deliver them to our local recycling center. But what happens to those metals after that?

A majority of the materials recycled are scrap metals, and once they are delivered to the recycling center, the metals must be separated. Using large, heavy-duty magnets, the center can divide metals from each other. Then, the particular metals are sent to different processors.

Steel and iron, which are called “prime scrap,” can be melted down at a foundry or mill, and that new product is sold to another foundry or mill to create new steel, generally in the form of pipes, sheets, or beams.

Other metals are shredded into tiny pieces and shipped to a foundry or mill where it is melted in a furnace at high temperatures. It can then be molded into new uses, such as cans.

Recycling Metals Saves Energy and the Environment

When you recycle metal, you are not only helping to save our environment by keeping these metals out of area landfills, you are also supporting the businesses involved in the scrap metal industry, as well as 123JUNK.

What you may not know is that metal is a natural, non-renewing material. Recycling it helps curb destructive mining practices and aids in reducing the energy consumption connected with processing the raw material. Plus, if we don’t keep recycling it, we could end up depleting our supply!

123JUNK Sorts Metals For You

When you call 123JUNK to make a pickup in Northern Virginia, DC or Maryland, you don’t have to sort anything—just point to what you want removed and we’ll do the rest, separating items for reuse or recycling. It’s part of our three-pronged Donate – Recycle – Dispose disposal process.

Got junk? Call 123JUNK today.