AA CopperRecycling Call 0435 805 124

For HVAC & refrigeration

Scrap collection for air conditioning and refrigeration trades.

A changeover season fills a yard with condensers nobody wants. There is copper in the coils and the compressor, aluminium in the fins and steel in the casing, so a stack of old units is a real pile of money sitting in the way of your parking.

  • Units taken whole
  • Coils by grade
  • Commercial fridges taken
  • Seasonal clear-outs
Call 0435 805 124 Request a collection

Nobody in HVAC is short of scrap. The problem is that it is bulky, it looks like rubbish, and it stacks up behind the workshop until it becomes a job in itself. The metal inside it is good though, and the stack is usually worth far more than people assume.

What we buy

  • Split system condensers and heads. Taken whole. Inside is a copper or aluminium coil, a compressor, a fan motor and a steel or plastic case.
  • Ducted units and air handlers. Including the plenum and ductwork if it is metal.
  • Compressors. Bought per kilo. Black compressors off domestic splits sit at their own rate, and bigger commercial compressors are heavier and better again.
  • Coils and radiators. Copper and brass coils pay well, aluminium coils pay less, and the two have to be told apart properly because the difference is large.
  • Commercial refrigeration. Cool rooms, display fridges, freezers, condensing units. Often the best single scrap item a refrigeration business handles.
  • Fan motors. Copper wound, bought per kilo whole.
  • Copper line sets. Off every replacement. Clean, bare, straight to the top band.

Rates

MetalPrice per kg
Copper (clean/bare)$14.00 to $18.00
Brass$7.50 to $12.00
Insulated / wire & cable$4.60 to $9.50
Aluminium$0.90 to $3.00
Stainless steel$0.45 to $0.90
Electric motors$1.20 to $1.50
Compressors (black)$1.00 to $1.20
Radiators (copper & brass)$7.00 to $9.00

Indicative rates, the same ones on the home page. Metal markets move every week, so ring 0435 805 124 for the exact figure before you load up.

Note the gap between copper and aluminium. On a coil that is the whole conversation, and it is why we weigh in front of you rather than calling a mixed pile one grade.

Changeover season

The yard fills fastest across the hot months and again when the first cold snap kills the old gear. Both times, the stack gets to a point where it is blocking the vans. The sensible pattern is a cage on site through the busy run and one collection at the end of it, rather than individual trips to a yard between jobs you are already behind on.

How it works

  1. Tell us your workshop suburb and roughly how many units a month come back.
  2. We work out whether a cage, a bin or a straight truck pickup suits the volume.
  3. Stack them as they come in. No sorting required, though keeping bare copper line sets separate pays.
  4. We weigh by metal type on site.
  5. Paid to the business, weights in writing.

Related

Questions we get asked

Do units have to be degassed before you take them?

Yes. Recovering refrigerant is licensed work and has to happen before the unit is scrapped. We cannot take a charged system.

Do you take the plastic casing too?

Yes, we take the unit as it is. The plastic is not worth anything, but you are not left picking it apart.

Can you clear a stack of fifty units in one go?

Yes. Give us a rough count and photos and we will bring the right vehicle. Big clear-outs are easier for everyone than a trickle.

Is a commercial cool room worth collecting?

Usually yes, especially if the condensing unit is still attached. Those are among the better jobs we take.

Yard full of old condensers?

Send a photo of the stack and a rough count. We will tell you what it is worth and when we can clear it.

Call 0435 805 124