Recycling Metals: A Never Ending Process

Recycling matters. Most of us would agree to that. But recycling metals can matter far more than some other waste materials because of its potential.

This is because most metals, especially steel and aluminum, are infinitely recyclable. And the process of recycling these metals uses far less resources than producing raw materials.

In America we have been recycling our plastics, paper, cardboard, and glass waste for decades. But, when in comes to recycling metals, most of us are only familiar with recycling our empty soda and beer cans.

But the realm of metals recycling is far more extensive than aluminum cans!

The State of Metals Recycling

As a nation, just how good are we at recycling the steel, copper, aluminum and other metals we use and dispose of each year?

Here are a few metal recycling statistics from an article at The Balance Small business,  

• In 2018, only 34% of metal in U.S. municipal waste facilities was recycled.
• Around 69 percent of crude steel in the United States in 2019 was made of recycled materials.
• Steel and iron are the most recycled materials.
• The most recycled container in the world is the aluminum can.

So Many Metals, So Much Metals Recycling Potential

Metal, as a substance, comes in two basic types or categories: ferrous and non-ferrous. Typically, all ferrous metals contain iron, which makes them magnetic. The most well-known today is probably steel, which we know from experience is magnetic.

Ferrous metals also include include mild steel, carbon steel, stainless steel, cast iron, and wrought iron.

Non-ferrous metals, on the other hand, are all the other non-magnetic metals. A brief list of the most common non-ferrous metals includes:

• Silver 
• Platinum
• Gold
• Copper
• Bronze
• Brass
• Nickle
• Palladium
• Platinum
• Titanium
• Aluminum
• Tin
• Lead
• Zinc

Yet, even though almost every type of metal can be recycled over and over again without losing the integrity of their properties, only about a third of all metal waste is currently being recycled. However, some types of metals are recycled in far greater percentages than others.

According to figures reported by the EPA,

The recycling rate of all materials in appliances, including ferrous metals, was 59.8 percent. Overall, the Agency estimated the recycling of ferrous metals from durable goods (large and small appliances, furniture, and tires) to be 27.8 percent (4.7 million tons) in 2018.

EPA estimated the recycling rate for steel cans to be 70.9 percent (1.1 million tons) in 2018. Additionally, the analysis found the recycling of approximately 510,000 tons of other steel packaging that year, including strapping, crowns and drums. The recycling of ferrous metals included material collected through recycling programs, as well as metal collected at combustion facilities. The total amount of MSW ferrous metals combusted in 2018 was 2.3 million tons. This was 6.7 percent of all MSW combusted with energy recovery that year.

As of 2018, landfills in the US were loaded up with 10.5 million tons of steel, a quantity of waste material that made up over seven percent of all Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) landfilled that year.

Metal Recycling: An Easy Process for Anyone and Everyone

Everyone has things and uses things that are made of some type of metal.

So, it stands to reason that everyone tosses out metal things or that contain metal. But these things shouldn't go into our household or office trash bins. Almost every metal product is infinitely recyclable. And that means that our disposal default should be to recycle them.

Although metal recycling is not a particularly difficult task, there are a few steps that everyone can follow to make sure that the metal recycling process is done properly. 

With that in mind, we offer this graphic checklist to walk you through the basics of proper and efficient waste metal recycling. 

Metal recycling is one of the most efficient and beneficial process we can participate in. Because so many commonly used metal in our consumer goods can be recycled almost without end, it stands to reason that none of it should end up in a landfill.

However, a few cans or discarded products is one thing. But when you have boxes or bins full of metal scrap and waste, or large appliances, it helps to have a resource for removal and proper disposal.

Which is why Junk King specializes in junk hauling recyclable waste materials.

Whether it's metals, plastics, glass, or paper waste, Junk King has been dedicated to this ideal from the beginning of our company. And we firmly believe that the more we can recycle, reuse, or repurpose, the more we do to preserve our neighborhoods and our planet.

Junk King: Your Recycling Partners and Junk Removal Pros

At Junk King, we don't simply talk about environmental responsibility - we are wholly committed to recycling as much of the junk we pick up as possible.

In fact, we founded Junk King as the first recycling-based junk removal operation back in 2005 and everything we to today, from pick up to hauling to disposal, is done with the goal of recycling everything and anything we can.

As our trucks travel throughout the country picking up unwanted items, our teams pack the trucks so that the items can be unpacked quickly and efficiently.

The goal is to be efficient in our operations, and to keep our landfills free of unnecessary waste metals and other recyclable items.

Our courteous, professional, and insured junk removal team will call 15 to 30 minutes before we arrive and, once we're there, we can give you a free estimate based on how much room your junk takes up in our truck. You just point and we will haul your recyclable waste and other unwanted junk items to a proper waste facility - and all without any hidden fees.

So, ready to get rid of some junk metal or other waste? It’s as simple as 1, 2, 3.

You can make an appointment by booking online above or by calling 1.888.888.JUNK (5865)