The Pre-Demolition Scrap Walkthrough Checklist.

Bring a camera and walk the whole building — every floor, the basement, the roof, and especially the electrical and mechanical rooms. Photograph:

• Panel schedules and main service equipment
• Feeder runs, risers, and bus duct
• Every transformer — with a clear shot of the nameplate
• Motors and HVAC equipment, with motor nameplates where visible
• Anything that looks like it was added later — renovations often leave the richest copper behind

Note the building’s square footage and age while you are at it. Those two numbers plus your photos are the entire estimate.

Mark it before anyone swings anything:

• Hazmat conflicts — asbestos, lead paint, or PCB-era equipment near the metals you want
• Oil-filled transformers — specialist handling, not the demo crew with a saw
• Refrigerant equipment — recovery by a certified tech before removal
• Anything the owner is keeping — confirm in writing, not by memory

One contaminated load can poison the value of a clean one. Flag first, strip second.

The most expensive demolition argument is the one about who keeps the copper. Settle it in the contract before mobilization: owner, general contractor, or sub — and what happens to high-value metals specifically. Experienced hands put it bluntly: the only scrap worth arguing over is copper, and smart subs negotiate the demo price down in exchange for keeping it.

If you are the one selling the copper, get it in writing. Handshake deals about scrap have ended more jobsite friendships than weather delays.

Use the walkthrough to build a real estimate, not a hope:

• Copper wire and cable — commercial buildings often plan around 15 to 25 pounds per 1,000 square feet as a rough range; adjust up for industrial and down for retail
• Transformers and switchgear — count them individually from your nameplate photos
• Motors — count and photograph nameplates; roof units count too
• Steel and mixed metals — the bulk tonnage, priced accordingly

Send the package — photos, square footage, age — to your buyer before demo day. A buyer who can see the electrical rooms gives you a straight read instead of a guess.

The single biggest driver of scrap revenue is segregation, and it has to be planned — not improvised:

• Copper goes in the copper pile or the copper container. Never in the mixed debris.
• Separate ferrous from nonferrous, and label containers clearly — color-coding works.
• Keep transformers and motors intact until you know whether any are worth more as equipment.
• Brief the crew: one mixed load prices at the lowest grade in it. Everybody on site should know that.

Container placement is logistics, and logistics is money:

• Put metal containers as close to the work as practical — every long carry is crew time burned.
• On multi-story demos, stage to minimize vertical haul; chutes beat stairs.
• Never block emergency egress or fire lanes.
• Use lockable containers for copper. Jobsite copper theft is real, and a locked box plus scheduled pickups is the standard defense.

Metal sitting on site is metal at risk — of theft, of getting mixed into debris, of blocking the work. Set a pickup schedule with your buyer before demo starts: full container out, empty container in, on a rhythm that matches how fast the crew strips. Ironcrest’s container program runs exactly this way — roll-offs and collection containers at the demolition site with scheduled pickup while work continues, anywhere in the country.

The checklist ends where the money starts: photos of the material, the quantities, and the job location go to Ironcrest. You get today’s price and a pickup plan built around the job — sell the copper outright, put a roll-off on site, or both. Start with the demolition copper page →

What should I look for in a pre-demolition scrap walkthrough?

Every electrical room, panel schedules, feeder runs, bus duct, transformers with nameplates, motors, and mechanical rooms — all photographed. Note square footage and building age, flag hazmat conflicts and specialist-removal items, and settle scrap ownership in the contract before mobilization.

Who owns the scrap metal in a demolition contract?

Whoever the contract says owns it — which is why it must be in writing before work starts. Owner, GC, and sub should agree explicitly on high-value metals like copper. Verbal understandings about scrap are the most common source of jobsite disputes.

How do I keep copper from getting mixed into demolition debris?

Plan segregation before demolition starts: dedicated labeled containers for copper, placed close to the work, with the crew briefed that mixed loads price at the lowest grade in them. A container program with scheduled pickups keeps sorted metal moving off site instead of piling up where it can get mixed or stolen.

What size container do I need for a demolition job?

It depends on how fast the crew generates metal and how often pickups run — a fast strip with weekly pickups needs less container than a slow one with monthly pickups. Tell your buyer the job size, the material mix, and the schedule, and the container gets sized to the job instead of guessed.

How do I stop copper theft on a demolition site?

Lockable containers for copper, scheduled pickups so metal never sits long, and containers placed where the crew can see them. The standard defense is simple: locked up, picked up often, and never piled in the open.

Can Ironcrest set up containers before our demolition starts?

Yes. Ironcrest’s container program places roll-offs and collection containers at demolition sites with scheduled pickup while work continues — and Ironcrest runs nationwide, so the job does not need to be near Chicago. Send the job location and material mix to set it up.