Just found out how much copper is actually in an old water heater

I was stripping down a junk water heater from a 1980s house in Cleveland last Tuesday, and I decided to weigh the copper lines and valve assembly out of curiosity. It came to 4.7 pounds of clean copper, which at scrap prices is around $18 - way more than I expected from something that small. Has anyone else ever weighed the copper out of an old appliance and been surprised?

4 comments

4 Comments

susan811d ago

Honestly, $18 ain't exactly life-changing money though.

phoenix_martin401d ago

Have we really gotten to where $18 isn't a big deal anymore? It's funny how we'll chase coupons for savings that small but shrug when it lands in our lap.

rodriguez.mia1d ago

My buddy Mike stripped an old fridge compressor once and got almost 2 pounds of copper out of the little coil inside. He was bragging about it for a week, said it was like finding free money in the trash. That junk really adds up if you save it up.

mark_chen621d ago

Is it really that big of a deal though? Like, yeah, $18 is something but it's not like he found a gold bar or anything. @susan81 kinda nailed it when she said it's not life-changing money.

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