[Oconomowoc]

Well, I'm sure it happens of course but many areas exist where this isn't that common. The towns I service pretty much never have that happen. It's pretty rare to have a guy rip out a condenser in a decent neighborhood with decent neighbors. It's not as if every town has a rash of this happening every other home or something.

The scrap yard where I take scrap has cars and people on camera as well as document the drivers license and what they bring in. It's one of the largest in the state of Wisconsin.

Move to the right area and I'm pretty sure this won't happen to you.

I'm in 20 plus homes a week and I have never had this happen. One time in the last 20 years I was on a job where it had stolen material. ONE!

Anyhow, sorry this happened.

 

[DavidC]

It's about time the scrap yards were made to stop this. They are the reason this happens because they let any joe of the street with a bag of copper scrap it. You should have to be in a trade for 1 and show your buisness ID and normal ID and then you have your photo taken.

Practice your response to "papers please" then. I would rather deal with thieving low lives than the results of this type of blanket cure.

Good Luck
Dave

 

[pinwheel]

It's about time the scrap yards were made to stop this. They are the reason this happens because they let any joe of the street with a bag of copper scrap it. You should have to be in a trade for 1 and show your buisness ID and normal ID and then you have your photo taken. They were lucky if they got $20 for that in scrap value :blink: i have seen guys walk in with a man hole cover and no questions asked about where it come from. They even have property off the city stamp on it. The scrap yards don't care as they melt it down to new metal anyway and sell it back to the city as a new man hole cover to replace the stolen one. It's never ending business for the scrap yards.

Around here, ya gotta show photo id & no cash is paid, checks only.

 

[aptpupil]

Around here, ya gotta show photo id & no cash is paid, checks only.

same here.

 

[WarnerConstInc.]

There is a full time Sheriff at the scrap yard down the street.

I hate going there because they have so many cavity searches it takes forever to get 50 bucks for some scrap.

 

[moorewarner]

It's about time the scrap yards were made to stop this. They are the reason this happens because they let any joe of the street with a bag of copper scrap it. You should have to be in a trade for 1 and show your buisness ID and normal ID and then you have your photo taken. They were lucky if they got $20 for that in scrap value :blink: i have seen guys walk in with a man hole cover and no questions asked about where it come from. They even have property off the city stamp on it. The scrap yards don't care as they melt it down to new metal anyway and sell it back to the city as a new man hole cover to replace the stolen one. It's never ending business for the scrap yards.

That's the new routine here. No condensers, liscence etc.

 

[The Coastal Craftsman]

Practice your response to "papers please" then. I would rather deal with thieving low lives than the results of this type of blanket cure.

Good Luck
Dave

In the UK they wouldn't take scrap from people off the street. If they purchased the scrap they were guilty of dealing with stolen goods. They still took our license number, number plate and ID just in case they did buy something hot they could pass the details onto the police.

Just like drugs if you take away the people who buy it you stop the problem. Yep stoping people buying drugs ain't easy but putting laws in place that don't let scrap yards buy blatant stolen materials and make them as guilty as the guy who stole them is a great idea. It's works in places that already ID and so why wouldn't it work in every scrap yard.

 

[rex]

The owner of a scrap yard out here is in major trouble with the feds over bad scales. I wont use that yard anyways, way to many idiots go through there, years ago when I did I would see local cops there all the time making reports.

The yard I use now, they pay by check, require a thumb print, photo ID and license plate number.

 

[DavidC]

My point is that there are already plenty regulations in place to make the act a crime. Adding another layer does not serve to reduce or eliminate the crime. Low lives will still steal and they will simply find another route to sell their spoils, leaving the burden of the law on the innocent to prove they are innocent.

FWIW, my occasional trip to the salvage yard requires only that I have to sign. No ID, license #, etc. Just weigh out and collect the cash. I already know I'm not a thief and don't feel the need to prove it.

Good Luck
Dave

 

[darr1]

same over here houses and churches stripped out for copper and lead , you would not belive the things they are robbing to get the metal

 

[mw31]

You wanna hear something weird, last winter a buddy of mine had three garbage bags of aluminum cans stolen from his garage. Whoever did it didnt touch any of his tools, his four wheeler, nothing else just the cans.:blink:

 

[kiteman]

Police report, insurance?

Called the PD as soon as I got there, got the "Your call is Important to us,please leave your name and number and we'll call you within 36 hours" recording. I did get a call back this afternoon, he took the report, will turn it over to the investigator, blah, blah, blah. :no: Will let the BIL attorney file the claim with insurance.
Here, the stuff they steal in Omaha goes across the river to Council Bluffs and vice-versa. Pretty much the same ID requirements as everywhere else, but how do you trace copper tubing? One place here even takes unstripped romex at half-price. 5 churches have had copper downspouts stolen recently. The kicker is, if you find your stuff at a pawn shop or scrap yard you still have to buy it back from them! Just as well file the claim and let the insurance companies pick up the tab. (Don't get me started about what happened with Ins companies and roofers 15 years ago) It seems like they're taking the hit here.
All that said, if the Korea vet FIL had been there, he'd have pulled the SW out of the coffee table and they'ed be dead:gun_bandana:

 

[kiteman]

Sure, it makes a lot of difference. Price of the home doesn't matter, geography does. Around me this never happens. Go into Milwaukee though and it's a daily occurrence.

It doen't happen in my neighborhood much, either, but you can go 2 miles and find a "low rent" area that has problems, or 1 mile to the new subdivision with half-million dollar homes where they steal new appliances out of garages, doors and windows, installed or not, and raid jobsite trailers. Thats why I keep everything in my truck. Even then the jerks drug a 500 lb truss jib up an 8' bank and once stole the radiator out of "Buddy" when it was parked in a mudhole with 6" of standing water. $.37 a lb for a radiator, but $850 at cost plus air freight and labor, $1950 total to me (and my ins co) and 2 days of use. If they'd just asked me, I'd bought them a six-pack. :drink:

 

[Clarke Carpentry]

How about melting down a $4.5m sculpture for $2250 in scrap value?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2009/may/17/henry-moore-sculpture-theft-reclining-figure

 

[TNTRenovate]

My point is that there are already plenty regulations in place to make the act a crime. Adding another layer does not serve to reduce or eliminate the crime. Low lives will still steal and they will simply find another route to sell their spoils, leaving the burden of the law on the innocent to prove they are innocent.

FWIW, my occasional trip to the salvage yard requires only that I have to sign. No ID, license #, etc. Just weigh out and collect the cash. I already know I'm not a thief and don't feel the need to prove it.

Good Luck
Dave

Then why do you have a drivers licenses? If you already know that you are a good driver why do you feel the need to prove it?

 

[Jaws]

Maybe the POS will get a hold of a high voltage line in one of his escapades and get what he deserves.

 

[TNTRenovate]

We had a 16 unit condo on the southside get hit twice. They pulled the quad 0 feeders twice. Come to find out, it ended up being the owner and his goons. They stole it and all of the copper out of the building, sold it and claimed it on insurance. The guy left the country after he took 5 down payments for the condos, stealing all of the Home theater equipment, TV's and distributed audio systems in two of the model units.

 

[Jaws]

We had a 16 unit condo on the southside get hit twice. They pulled the quad 0 feeders twice. Come to find out, it ended up being the owner and his goons. They stole it and all of the copper out of the building, sold it and claimed it on insurance. The guy left the country after he took 5 down payments for the condos, stealing all of the Home theater equipment, TV's and distributed audio systems in two of the model units.

Wow

 

[Oconomowoc]

I can't believe how high priced copper and brass is. Some weeks I accumulate over $300 in scrap and I just shake my head. I'm just one guy, this high priced scrap is getting out of hand..... as far as the economy is concerned.

 

[greg24k]

I can't believe how high priced copper and brass is. Some weeks I accumulate over $300 in scrap and I just shake my head. I'm just one guy, this high priced scrap is getting out of hand..... as far as the economy is concerned.

Worst possible combination you can get... Economy is down, price of metal is high, and crime is increasing.