Collect Bottles and Cans for Deposits: Ways to make money

[Alan_MoneySanity]

We recycle too. We do it more for the environment than any financial gain, as the "profit" is only a few dollars a month for us.

[CCCFree]

yeah I knew somebody who used get like $200 for a whole garbage can filled of crushed cans.

[AtoZ]

I'm a runner and I can't help but notice now that the snow has all but gone here in the northeast that the sides of the road are covered with bottles and cans. My runs now have a second purpose. I'll be collecting those cans a few at a time this week. Money is just laying there waiting to be picked up. ha, ha.

[Starlight529]

Save my bottles and cans for a year, then cash them in.

[lorraineb]

If you live in any of these states and are willing to pick up any type of event, you can make some extra cash. Just look in your local newspaper on events happening in your area and there is a good chance that you can make a bit of money while enjoying the event as well.

[debtfreeme]

For CA this is not quite correct

If you happen to live in a state that collects a container deposit surcharge when you purchase anything that comes in a can or bottle, you can collect these to earn a bit of extra money. It's the same concept of as recycling the cans and bottles for money, but the container surcharge makes it more profitable. Most states collect a deposit of 5 cents while Michigan collects a deposit of 10 cents.

California - $0.05

While we pay the CRV when we purchase the items, only if you take the bottles back to a "reverse vending machine" recycler or ask them to count the bottles (CA law is less than 50 of a particular kind) will you get the CRV back. Otherwise your bottles or cans are weighed and you are paid what the weight is times the going rate. I have never seen a store in CA have the in-store redemption facilities hat I found living on the east coast (Vermont and NY). Ours are usually in a parking lot.

For the best bang, bundle them in groups of 50 for each CRV amount (.05 or.10) or take to reverse vending machine recycler.

I just took to the machine and 4.40 with a mixture of the two amounts.

Types of containers redeemable: beer, malt, wine & distilled spirits coolers, all non-alcoholic beverages, except milk. Excludes vegetable juices over 16oz.

Containers Covered Aluminum. glass, plastic and bi-metal. Exempts refillables.

[Mesem]

Another idea is to pick up scrap metal, though that may be a bit heavy.

[caterpillar]

This is actually benefitial for the person who does it and the environment. So it's possible to make it bigger than just 1 dud collecting bottles, a real company or smt. That's actually first step to a libertarian economy, where the Government doesn't provide such services, but ppl do.

[caterpillar]

I wonder how this works in EU

[astanjay909]

Yes...This Is a Good Idea

If you happen to live in a state that collects a container deposit surcharge when you purchase anything that comes in a can or bottle, you can collect these to earn a bit of extra money. It's the same concept of as recycling the cans and bottles for money, but the container surcharge makes it more profitable. Most states collect a deposit of 5 cents while Michigan collects a deposit of 10 cents. Here are the 11 states that currently pay you when you return bottles and cans to the store:

California - $0.05
Connecticut - $0.05
Delaware - $0.05
Hawaii - $0.05
Iowa - $0.05
Maine - $0.05
Massachusetts - $0.05
Michigan - $0.10
New York - $0.05
Oregon - $0.05
Vermont - $0.05

While this won't make you a ton of money, it's an easy way to make a bit of money quickly, especially if there is a large event in your area where lots of bottles and cans will be left behind.

And even better still, it's TAX-FREE!