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 Post subject: Pricing
PostPosted: Wed Feb 21, 2018 9:51 am 

Joined: Thu May 15, 2014 11:10 am
Posts: 7
I've hauled a lot of cpu boards, etc. to Boardsort and I've noticed that the pricing of power supplies with wire keeps dropping. Now copper is going up in price along with aluminum and, metal scrap has almost tripled since the last few years. Why doesn't Boardsort pay a better price for the power supplies?


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 Post subject: Re: Pricing
PostPosted: Wed Feb 21, 2018 12:48 pm 

Joined: Fri Jan 31, 2014 12:53 pm
Posts: 467
Probably because it is not very profitable for them.

It's a very real possibility that the psus that they get get sold to scrap yards and their profit might come from volume.

They deal mostly with printed circuit boards, so they probably don't want to deal with scrap yard material nor keep money tied up with low value items.

That's just my guess anyway


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 Post subject: Re: Pricing
PostPosted: Wed Feb 21, 2018 6:19 pm 
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Joined: Tue Feb 03, 2015 6:57 pm
Posts: 9748
Location: Low DOS
There’s a few things to look at here and mls hit one of them head on.
Let’s first address copper prices. If you look at iScrapapp dot com you’ll find some discussion on this issue as well.
The rising numbers you see are for feed stock copper. That is clean 98.5% or better pure.
And that has skyrocketed. Other 90+% copper has gone with that, such as rod and turnings, dust etc.
On the other hand many of the alloy materials (like tin, silver, and pewter mixes) have all tanked. As has the plastics values making all those coatings far more expensive to remove and store.

Copper makes up very little of the overall weight in a power supply. One of the yards I’m lucky to use is a tier 1 recycler. That means they are a final source, as buyer and seller, for
Scrap. They don’t sell to other recycling companies, they sell to refineries and manufacturers. And they buy by the truck and train load from other recycling yards. These companies deal in megatons annually.
Here’s some various copper rates from Monday and Tuesday including the smaller markdown they often give me for having a relationship with them.
Copper sheet $3.90
Copper rod $3.90
Copper #2 $2.50
Copper #3 $1.70
Dirty copper $1.00
Copper transformer 50% $0.75
Copper transformer 20/80 $0.25
Copper power supply $0.15
Copper electrical parts $0.15

The last two are where most computer power supply units fall.
Add to that that power supplies are big bulky hunks that are heavy... and not a staple for boardsort the pricing makes sense. The need to intake, inventory, store...!
Most of the value by weight in a power supply is dirty steel and carbon quantity from ceramics.
They’re rarely broken down and are usually shredded and used as a carbon booster for making low grade steel.

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 Post subject: Re: Pricing
PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:03 pm 

Joined: Thu May 15, 2014 11:10 am
Posts: 7
Thanks for the input and I didn't mean to call out Boardsort specifically. I find their prices are good and average out against any other company. But bottom line, scrap prices are up but power supplies keep dropping. I guess things just happen like that. Beyond our control. Thanks to Chris &Melissa. And a big shout out to the guys that are always helpful at the shop in Wickliffe !


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 Post subject: Re: Pricing
PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2018 4:26 pm 
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Joined: Tue Feb 03, 2015 6:57 pm
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Location: Low DOS
Power supplies, like welded transformers, are not really profitable for anyone.
Dissecting then is a chore. The boards are small and cramped, filled with many sharp pointy objects. The easiest way to scrap a power supply is the most expensive as well. Reflow desolder. And it’s more expensive than the component value in energy cost.
My understanding from the yard I use is power supplies are trimmed of external tail, and with most other cu/electrical scrap are shredded along with high grade automobiles.
Copper and aluminium are easily recovered separately, anything magnetic is pulled out and sold as shredded feed stock, any anything left is burned as fuel.
Whatever solids that remain from burning including ash and soot are also sold as carbon mix.
That long winded reply is generally meant to display there’s really very little value in these things. I agree prices are going up (and down and up and ...), but unfortunately the recycling methods don’t change.
Power supplies are like used cooking oil. They’re worth something. But cost more than they’re worth to get at the value.

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