Yes, old electric motors are worth money as scrap. If your workshop, factory or plant room has a pile of them gathering dust, a scrap yard will pay for them. Each motor holds copper, steel and aluminium. The catch is that motors sell by weight, and the rate per kilo sits well below clean copper.
So should you strip them first? Only if you have the time, the tools and enough volume to cover the labour. For most businesses, selling them whole is the better call. This guide explains what’s inside a motor, what it’s worth and how to decide before anything leaves your site.
The short answer for businesses holding old electric motors
Old motors have value, but stripping is rarely the easy win it looks like
A whole motor is a mixed metal item. The copper windings are the part a yard really wants. The steel core, shaft and housing add weight, but they pull the average rate down. That’s why a 40 kg motor will never earn what 40 kg of bright copper earns.
Many business owners notice that gap and think about pulling the copper out themselves. Sometimes it pays off. Often, though, wages, cutting discs, injury risk and the leftover steel eat most of the difference.
Picture what that looks like in practice. A business spends a few afternoons cutting open small motors. It then arrives at the yard with a few kilos of copper and a heap of steel that still needs moving. The copper earns a better rate, but the hours behind it rarely add up.
Who this guide is for
We wrote this for Melbourne businesses that replace motors as part of their normal work, including:
- Electricians and electrical contractors swapping out burnt out motors on call outs
- Mechanical workshops and machine shops
- Factories and manufacturers upgrading production lines
- Pump and irrigation contractors
- Facilities and maintenance teams looking after HVAC fans, lifts, compressors and plant equipment
If old motors come off your jobs every month, a simple system for sorting and storing them will more than repay the effort.
What’s inside an old electric motor
Electric motor recycling is mostly about recovering three metals: copper, steel and aluminium. How much of each you get depends on the motor’s design, size and age.
Copper windings: where most of the value sits
The copper windings sit inside the stator, which is the fixed outer part of the motor. Larger industrial motors often have heavy, tightly packed windings. The copper is coated in enamel or varnish to insulate it. Until it’s processed, it isn’t the same product as bright, clean copper wire.
Some smaller or cheaper motors use aluminium windings instead. At a glance they look much the same, but they’re worth noticeably less. It’s an easy mix up to make, so it pays to check before you call for a quote.
Here’s a quick test you can do yourself. The enamel coating can be red, green, brown or clear, so the outside colour tells you very little. Look at a cut or broken end of the wire instead. Copper shows a reddish orange colour, while aluminium is silvery grey. A magnet won’t help here, because neither metal is magnetic. If you still can’t tell, our team can check when you bring the motors in.
Steel laminations, rotors and shafts
The stator core is built from stacks of thin steel sheets called laminations. The rotor, the part that spins inside, is mostly steel too, often with aluminium bars cast through it. The shaft is solid steel. Together these parts make up a big share of the total weight, and steel trades far below copper.
Aluminium and cast iron housings
Many modern motors have aluminium housings with cooling fins. Older, heavier industrial motors often sit in cast iron frames. Cast iron adds plenty of weight but very little value per kilo. That’s one reason two motors of the same size can be priced quite differently.
Non metal parts that pull the price down
Anything that isn’t metal is dead weight to a scrap yard. The usual culprits are:
- Plastic fan covers and terminal boxes
- Timber mounting bases or pallets bolted to the motor
- Oil left in gearboxes
- Rubber mounts, hoses and seals
- Insulation, paper and varnish around the windings
You can’t remove some of this by hand, such as the varnish on the windings. Most of the rest comes off quickly, and taking it off gives you a cleaner load.
What old electric motors are worth as scrap
Why a whole motor earns less per kilo than clean copper
Our most recent published rates, from July 2026, were up to $11.80 per kg for bright copper and up to $11.20 per kg for heavy copper. A whole motor won’t get near those figures, because only part of its weight is copper. The rest is steel, cast iron, aluminium and non metal parts.
For comparison, the same July 2026 rates put HMS steel at $0.30 to $0.42 per kg. HMS means heavy melting steel, the general grade for thick offcuts and structural scrap. Aluminium was $1.80 to $2.80 per kg. Scrap electric motor prices land somewhere in that mix, and usually much closer to steel than to copper.
Keep in mind those figures are now a few months old, and rates change daily with the market. Use them to see how the grades compare, not as today’s price. You can see our current categories on our scrap metal prices page.
The three factors that move the price
The rate you get generally comes down to three things:
- Motor type. Sealed compressors, starter motors, alternators, small appliance motors and large industrial motors can attract different rates. Mention each type when you call so the quote reflects what you have.
- Copper content. A big three phase motor with dense copper windings is worth more per kilo than a small one with a heavy cast iron frame or aluminium windings.
- Sorting. A load sorted by type and size is easier to grade. A mixed load of everything usually gets priced at the lower end.
In short, value depends on what’s inside each motor and how you present the load, not just on weight.
A rough benchmark from interstate
One interstate yard in Perth publishes a 2026 range of $0.50 to $1.10 per kg for electric motors, depending on type, copper content and sorting. Treat that as a loose reference only. It isn’t a Melbourne price, and it isn’t a national price. Local demand, freight costs and daily metal markets all move rates from city to city.
Why you should call on the day
Metal prices shift every day with global markets. A rate you saw last week, or one a mate quoted from another state, may not match today’s figure. Ring us on the day with a rough idea of what you have and roughly how much it weighs. We’ll give you a current rate before you load the ute.
It also pays to describe your load accurately, because a quote is only as good as the description behind it. Our staff recall a car described as “basically running” that arrived with a locked solid engine. The revised offer came in about 35% below the first quote. That wasn’t a motor job, but the lesson carries straight over. If you’re unsure whether a batch has copper or aluminium windings, say so, and we’ll quote on what’s really there.
Should you strip electric motors before scrapping them?
When selling motors whole makes sense
For most small and medium businesses, selling motors whole is the sensible choice. It suits you if:
- Your motors are on the small side, such as fan, pump or appliance sized units
- You don’t have spare labour, or your staff are billable on paying jobs
- You don’t have a safe work area or the proper cutting tools
- The housings are cast iron or the windings might be aluminium
When stripping can pay off
Stripping copper from electric motors can be worth it if:
- You have a steady supply of large industrial motors with heavy copper windings
- There are quiet periods when staff would otherwise be idle
- You already own the right equipment and have a safe, properly set up work area
- You have a plan for the leftover steel
Doing this by hand at volume is slow going. Before you commit, be honest about how many motors your team could realistically get through in a day.
Sell whole or strip first: a side by side comparison
| Sell whole | Strip first | |
|---|---|---|
| Time | Minutes to sort and load | Hours for a batch, and small units take the longest for the copper they yield |
| Tools needed | Pallet, crate or bins | Angle grinder, cut off saw, chisels, pliers, PPE |
| Likely return | Mixed motor rate across the full weight | Copper rate on the windings, steel rate on the rest |
| Safety risk | Low | Moderate to high: cuts, sparks, flying debris, sharp laminations |
| Best suited to | Most workshops, contractors and maintenance teams | Businesses with large copper rich units, spare labour and a safe work area |
PPE in the table means personal protective equipment, such as gloves, eye protection and hearing protection.
The hidden costs of stripping
Before you hand an apprentice the grinder, add up what the job really costs:
- Wages. Use your own wage rate here. As a simple illustration, if a worker costs you $40 an hour, an eight hour day of stripping costs $320 before super. That’s also a day they weren’t on a paying job.
- Consumables. Cutting discs, blades and gloves wear out fast on steel laminations.
- Injury risk. Laminations are sharp, and grinding throws sparks and debris. A single lost time injury can wipe out whatever you gained.
- Leftover steel. Once the copper is out, you still have a pile of steel and cast iron to store and move.
Safety deserves a proper mention. Under Victoria’s occupational health and safety laws, employers must manage the risks of work like grinding and cutting. WorkSafe Victoria is the state regulator, so check its guidance on machinery, PPE and manual handling before anyone starts.
A worked example you can run yourself
Here’s how we’d suggest testing the numbers, using our July 2026 heavy copper rate purely as an illustration. Say one worker spends four hours stripping a batch at $40 an hour. That’s $160 in wages before discs, gloves or cleanup.
At up to $11.20 per kg, you’d need around 14 kg of copper just to cover those wages. That’s before you count what the same motors would have earned if sold whole. With small motors, the copper you can pull out in an afternoon often falls well short of that figure.
So try it on one or two motors before you tackle the whole pile. Time the job, weigh the copper you recover and compare it with the whole motor rate on the day. In most cases the answer becomes clear within an hour.
How to prepare motors for the scrap yard
Sort motors by type and size before you call
Split your stock into rough groups. Put large industrial motors together, small fan and pump motors in another lot, and starter motors and alternators in a third. Sorting scrap motors this way is a simple route to a fairer rate, and it speeds up weighing on our end too.
Drain oil and remove plastic, rubber and timber attachments
Drain oil from gear motors and gearboxes into a sealed container so it can be disposed of properly. Where it only takes a minute or two, unbolt plastic covers, rubber mounts and timber bases. A cleaner load is easier to grade and weigh accurately.
Separate motors from the equipment they are bolted to
Where practical, unbolt each motor from the pump, fan, compressor or machine it drives. A motor still attached to a cast iron pump body is graded differently from one on its own. If separating them is a big job, ring us first and we’ll talk through the best way to handle it.
Keep simple records of where the motors came from
A quick note of the job, site or upgrade each batch came from goes a long way. It matters more than most people expect, and the next section explains why.
Why we ask where motors and stripped copper came from
What our team asks and why
When something doesn’t add up, our staff ask extra questions. Freshly cut copper wiring is one thing that prompts this, along with items like manhole covers and road signage. If a seller can’t explain where the material came from, we decline it until they can.
Copper stripped from motors can look a lot like stripped cable. So if you bring in a large amount, expect a question or two. It’s routine, and a clear answer gets you on your way quickly.
How our second hand dealer registration shapes the process
We hold registration as a second hand dealer with Consumer Affairs Victoria. That registration carries responsibilities, and checking where material comes from is part of how we meet them. It protects legitimate businesses just as much as it protects us.
Paperwork that speeds things up
You don’t need a folder full of documents, but any of these will help:
- Job sheets showing motor replacements
- Upgrade or maintenance records
- Invoices for replacement equipment
- A short email from your site manager confirming the clean out
Clearing motors in bulk from a workshop, factory or site
Example: an electrical contractor clearing a year of burnt out motors
Imagine an electrical contractor who has filled a corner of the shed with dead motors from 12 months of call outs. Sorted onto pallets by size, a stockpile like that could pass 500 kg. Once it does, a free pickup makes far more sense than several trips in the work van.
Example: a factory replacing pumps and fan motors during an upgrade
Now take a factory upgrading its cooling system over a single weekend. It might pull out a dozen large fan motors and several pumps. These are heavy, awkward and often mounted up high. A crew with lifting gear can remove them safely without tying up the factory’s own people.
Example: a small business with only a handful of motors
A small irrigation business with four or five pump motors is usually better off coming to the yard. Load them up, drop them off and get paid while you’re there.
Where industrial scrap metal removal services fit
For scrap motors from workshops and factories, industrial scrap metal removal services save time and a lot of heavy handling. We offer free mobile pickup across Melbourne and surrounding areas for loads of 500 kg or more. There are no call out fees or fuel surcharges on qualifying loads.
Our crew arrives with lifting gear and vehicles, so your team doesn’t have to wrestle heavy motors onto a truck. Find out more about our metal recycling in Melbourne.
Loads under 500 kg
Free pickup doesn’t apply to smaller loads. If you have less than 500 kg, bring it to our yard at 1/9 Braeside Drive, Braeside VIC 3195.
How weighing and payment work
Everything is weighed on the spot on our calibrated on site scales. Payment is made the same day on collection. What we quote is what you receive, with no hidden fees.
Why old motors should not go in the skip
Landfill space and leaching pollutants
Motors that aren’t recycled take up landfill space. Any oil left inside them can also leak into the ground instead of being disposed of properly. Throwing them in a general waste skip costs you twice, because you pay for the skip and you lose the scrap value.
Recovering copper, steel and aluminium
Recycling recovers the copper, steel and aluminium so they can be reused rather than buried. If your business reports on waste or sustainability, documented metal recycling is also a clear, measurable improvement to show.
Frequently asked questions
Are old electric motors worth anything as scrap?
Yes. They contain copper, steel and aluminium, and all three have scrap value. Motors are bought by weight, and the rate depends on type, copper content and sorting. Rates change daily, so call on the day to confirm the current price.
Is it worth taking the copper out of an electric motor?
It can be if you have large motors, the right tools and spare labour. For most businesses, staff time and injury risk outweigh the price gap on small motors. Stripped copper can also attract extra questions about where it came from, so keep records.
How can I tell if a motor has copper or aluminium windings?
Look at a cut or broken end of the winding wire, not the outer coating. Copper looks reddish orange, while aluminium is silvery grey. If you’re unsure, tell us when you call and our team will check at the yard.
Will you collect motors from my business for free?
Free mobile pickup applies to loads of 500 kg or more across Melbourne and surrounding areas. There are no call out fees or fuel surcharges on qualifying loads. Smaller loads need to come to the yard at 1/9 Braeside Drive, Braeside.
Do I need to drain the oil from motors before bringing them in?
Draining oil from gear motors and removing non metal parts gives you a cleaner load. Clean, sorted motors are easier to grade and weigh accurately. If you’re unsure how a particular motor should be presented, call ahead.
Why might you ask questions about where my motors came from?
We hold registration as a second hand dealer with Consumer Affairs Victoria. When something doesn’t add up, such as freshly cut copper wiring, we ask more questions. We’ll decline material until the seller can explain where it came from.
How and when do I get paid?
Your load is weighed on the spot on calibrated scales, and payment is made on the same day as collection. What we quote is what you receive, with no hidden fees.
Turning old motors into a return for your business
Recap
Old motors are a steady and often overlooked source of value for Melbourne businesses. Start by sorting them by type and size, then drain the oil and remove the plastic, rubber and timber. Check whether the windings are copper or aluminium so your quote matches what’s really there. Be realistic about stripping, because for most small motors it isn’t worth your team’s time. Finally, confirm the day’s rate before you move anything.
Get today’s rate or book a pickup
Call Johny Metal Recycling to confirm today’s rate for electric motors. If you have 500 kg or more, book a free pickup and our crew will arrive with the lifting gear and vehicles to take it away. Got a smaller load? Drop it at our Braeside yard, have it weighed on the spot and get paid the same day.