Rotary metal scrap drive a chance to clear out junk, support community projects

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

It’s time to go digging through your basement, garage, shed, shop, back 40 or anywhere else you might have scrap metal lying around that can be recycled and the funds used for community projects.

The Charles City Rotary Club is holding a scrap metal drive again this fall, running from Saturday, Oct. 9, through Sunday, Oct. 17.

Persons with scrap metal to donate are urged to take it to Tynan’s Recycling, 1100 13th Ave., and place it in the bin identified as the Rotary Scrap Drive.

Pick-up service by Rotary members will also be available inside the Charles City limits from Monday, Oct. 11, to Thursday, Oct. 14, by calling L&J Industries Inc. at 641-228-1753 to set up an appointment.

Chris Garden, the president of L&J Industries and the Rotary Club’s service project committee chairman, said he especially urges businesses and manufacturers to consider if they have unused metal equipment or parts that could be donated to the drive.

“I received a call from Winnebago and they are going to donate some obsolete machines,” Garden said.

The list of items that will be accepted is lengthy and includes most things made mostly of metals such as steel, iron, stainless steel, aluminum, copper and lead.

Vehicles such as cars, trucks, farm implements, garden tractors, wagons and trailers will be accepted, as will batteries, wheel rims, radiators, heater cores, catalytic converters, hubcaps, shocks, transmissions and other mostly metal vehicle parts.

Tires will not be accepted.

All appliances and electronics will be accepted. TVs will also be accepted, but there is a $10 charge because that’s what it costs to dispose of them.

Metal doors and window frames will be accepted, but without any glass. Other metal home items such as gutters and downspouts, chain link fencing, pipes, electrical wiring, metal lamps and light fixtures, steel or aluminum siding and metal roofing will be accepted at Tynan’s or collected by the Rotary.

Outdoor power equipment such as mowers and snow blowers will be accepted, but they should be drained of fluids.

Garden said scrap metal prices are high right now, so this is a good opportunity for people to get rid of metal scrap and benefit the community.

Funds raised by the Rotary Club through the scrap drive will go to support club community projects. Past projects have included planting more than 100 trees around the city, and giving away free home fire extinguishers, first aid kits, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to community households and infant safety kits to day cares and homes with young children.

Here is a list of metal and mostly metal items that will be accepted:

• A/C condensers
• Appliances
• Auto batteries
• Auto rims
• Auto rotors & drums
• Bakery trays/carts
• Barrels
• Bed frames
• Bicycles
• Brake linings
• Buckets
• Bullet shells (empty)
• Bumpers
• Cabinets
• Canoes/boats
• Cans
• Canisters
• Cars/trucks
• Car radiators
• Carbide bits
• Carbide shanks
• Cast aluminum
• Catalytic converters
• Chairs/furniture
• Chain link fence
• Chimney pipe
• Chimes
• Computers
• Condensers
• Copper sheet
• Crutches/walkers
• Doors (no glass)
• Door knobs
• Door knockers
• Downspouts
• Drill bits
• Electric motors
• Electrical wires/cords
• Electronics
• Fan blades
• Farm equipment
• Faucets
• Fence pipe
• Fenders/hoods
• Figurines
• Fittings
• Flag poles
• Frying pans
• Furniture-metal
• Furnaces
• Grills
• Gutters
• Heater cores
• Hinges
• Holiday lights
• Hubcaps
• Ladders
• Lamps
• Lawn furniture
• Lawnmowers (no fluids)
• Light ballasts
• Light fixtures
• Litho plate
• Lockers
• Metal tables
• Motor housings
• Musical instruments
• Nails
• Ornamental fencing
• Outboard motors (no fluids)
• Ovens
• Padlocks/keys
• Pipes
• Plates
• Plumping pipes
• Pot belly stoves
• Posts
• Pots/pans
• Radiators
• Romex wire
• Roofing
• Screws/nuts/bolts
• Serving trays
• Siding
• Signs
• Sinks
• Steel
• Swing sets
• Shocks
• Shovels/rakes
• Snow blowers (no fluid)
• Telephone cable
• Toys
• T-posts
• Trailers (no tires)
• Transmissions
• Tubs
• Wagons
• Waffle irons
• Water heaters
• Wheel weights
• Window blinds
• Window frames (no glass)
• Window weights