The electric motor scrap price comes down to one question: how much copper is inside, and how much work it takes to get it out. A motor is mostly steel, with a valuable winding hidden in the middle.
Quick answer: Electric motors are bought per kilo as their own grade. The rate depends on the winding (copper or aluminium), the size of the motor, what the housing is made of, and whether it is whole, sealed or already stripped. Oil, pumps and gearboxes left attached lower it. Call or WhatsApp for today's rate.
What is inside a scrap electric motor?
Open up an ordinary induction motor and you find the same parts every time. Knowing them helps you understand why two motors of the same weight can get different rates.
- The housing. Cast iron on most heavy industrial motors, aluminium on many lighter and newer ones, and pressed steel on small appliance motors.
- The stator. A stack of thin steel sheets with slots, and the winding wire sitting in those slots. This is where the copper or aluminium is.
- The rotor and shaft. Steel, often with aluminium bars cast into the rotor.
- End covers, bearings, fan and terminal box. Steel, cast iron, aluminium and some plastic.
So the winding is only part of the weight. The rest is ferrous metal, which is worth far less per kilo. That is why a motor is not priced like copper, and also not like plain steel. It sits in between, and where it sits depends on the details below.
Copper or aluminium windings: how do you tell?
This is the biggest single factor. Many motors use copper winding wire. Some, especially cheaper or newer imported motors, use aluminium wire instead. From outside they can look the same, because both are covered in a coloured enamel.
Look at the winding ends
Take off the end cover or look through the vents at the coils where they bend around the end of the stator. Find a spot where the wire is cut or where a lead joins the terminal box. Scrape the enamel with a knife. Copper shows salmon pink. Aluminium shows bright silver.
Other clues
For the same motor size, aluminium wire is usually thicker than copper wire would be, and the motor feels a little lighter. Some nameplates or stickers mention the winding. Do not trust the enamel colour, because both metals are coated in the same red, brown or green varnish. If you are not sure, send a close photo of a scraped wire and we will tell you. More on recognising red metal is in our guide on copper scrap.
Size, housing and sealed units
| Type of motor | Usual housing | What affects the grade |
|---|---|---|
| Large industrial motors | Cast iron | Heavy housing, winding type, oil or grease on the outside |
| Medium motors from pumps, fans and machines | Aluminium or cast iron | Pump body or fan still attached, winding type |
| Small appliance motors | Pressed steel | Plastic parts, mixed with other scrap |
| Sealed compressors from AC and fridges | Welded steel shell | Oil inside, refrigerant not recovered |
| Starters and alternators from vehicles | Aluminium and steel | Usually priced as their own grade |
Size and housing
Big cast iron motors are heavy, and much of that weight is the iron frame. The copper share can be lower than you would expect from the size. Smaller and medium motors in aluminium housings often carry more winding for their weight. Neither is good or bad. They are simply different, so keep big iron frame motors apart from the smaller ones when you can.
Sealed units
Compressors from air conditioners and fridges are motors sealed inside a welded steel shell, with a pump and oil inside. Nobody can see the winding, and there is oil to deal with, so they are normally a separate grade from open motors. If they come straight off an AC system, the refrigerant should be recovered by a technician first. Rules on refrigerant and waste oil in Abu Dhabi are set by the environment authorities, so ask your contractor if you are removing many units.
Whole or stripped: which earns more?
A stripped motor gives you three things: clean copper (or aluminium) wire, a steel stator stack, and the housing. Clean winding wire is worth much more per kilo than a whole motor. So stripping looks attractive.
The catch is the time. Cutting the winding out of a stator and pulling it clean is slow work, and the wire comes out with varnish and paper insulation on it. For one or two large motors it can be worth it. For a pallet of small ones, most workshops in Musaffah find it is not, and they sell them whole.
One firm piece of advice: do not burn the windings out. Burning releases toxic smoke from the varnish, it is the kind of thing the environment authorities take seriously, and burnt wire is a lower grade than clean stripped wire anyway. If you strip, cut and pull.
Other things that lower the rate on whole motors:
- Pump bodies, gearboxes or fans still bolted to the motor.
- Oil and grease dripping from the housing or gearbox.
- Long cable tails, plastic covers and mounting plates.
- Motors mixed in with general steel or other scrap in one pile.
What decides the price per kilo?
The base for the copper part follows the world copper market on the London Metal Exchange, and the steel part follows steel demand. From there, a yard looks at the load:
- Winding metal. Copper wound motors are worth more than aluminium wound ones.
- Size and housing. How much of the weight is iron frame.
- Open or sealed. Sealed compressors sit in their own grade.
- Cleanliness. Oil, attached pumps and gearboxes, plastic.
- Quantity and the day's market. A full load of sorted motors is easier to price well.
We do not publish a fixed number because it would be wrong within days. The rate you get is for your motors, on that day, per kilo. If you also have aluminium housings or end covers already separated, our page on aluminium scrap explains how those are graded.
How to sell electric motors to Scrap Buyer Musaffah
Group the motors by size and type: large iron frame, medium and small, sealed compressors, and anything already stripped. Take a photo of each group and a close shot of a scraped winding. Send them on WhatsApp to +971 52 727 0105 with a rough weight in kg, or use our contact page. You will get today's rate per kilo for each group.
Then bring them to our yard in Musaffah M42, near Bin Mansoor Plastic Factory, Abu Dhabi, where they are weighed in front of you and you read the scale yourself. If the motors are still inside old machines, see our page on motor scrap for how we handle mixed loads. Call or WhatsApp for today's rate.
Common questions
Are scrap motors priced like copper?
No. A motor is mostly steel and iron, with the winding as only part of the weight. It is bought as its own grade, which sits well below clean copper and above plain steel.
Should I strip motors before selling them?
For one or two large copper wound motors it can be worth the time. For many small motors it usually is not, and selling them whole is simpler. Never burn the windings, cut and pull them instead.
Do you buy AC and fridge compressors?
Yes, as a separate grade from open motors, because they are sealed and hold oil. The refrigerant should be recovered by a technician before the units are removed from the system.
Do I need to remove the pump from a pump motor?
It is not required, but it helps. A pump body bolted to the motor is a different metal and is priced lower, so separating them usually gives a better rate on both parts.
Do you buy car starters and alternators?
Yes. They are usually priced as their own grade, so keep them in a separate box rather than mixing them with industrial motors.
