Home › By item › Scrap metal › New Orleans
A public resource guide
Free scrap metal removal in New Orleans, LA
Every free and paid way to get rid of scrap metal in New Orleans, verified October 2026.
Checked against City of New Orleans
Home › By item › Scrap metal › New Orleans
A public resource guide
Every free and paid way to get rid of scrap metal in New Orleans, verified October 2026.
Checked against City of New Orleans
311
Request Large Item Pickup; collected free on your regular collection day
24 hours
maximum time items can sit out before collection
4
tires per request at the curb
Every route for scrap metal in New Orleans, checked in October 2026 against the city’s current rules and the drop-off sites named. The full New Orleans guide covers every other item.
Here is how each route works in New Orleans, starting with the city program and ending with paid pickup.
New Orleans bulky waste pickup by 311 request: scrap metal
Free, with a step firstMetal items are bulky waste by 311 request, or go to a scrap yard.
Who qualifies: Residential addresses with city sanitation service (collected by Richard's Disposal, IV Waste, or Waste Pro depending on area). Small businesses are not eligible.
How to schedule: Submit a Request Large Item Pickup through 311 (nola311.org or dial 311). Collection comes on your regular solid waste day, free. White goods, sofas, mattresses, up to 4 tires, and e-waste are all requested the same way.
Limits: Up to 4 tires per request. No published volume cap for ordinary household bulky items.
Set-out: At the curb no more than 24 hours before your scheduled collection day (after 4 p.m. the evening before, out by 4 a.m. in early-collection areas). Setting bulky waste out earlier can be fined.
Freemoval (free pickups through partner organizations)
FreeFreemoval funds free junk removal and cleanouts for households referred by trusted partner organizations, such as nonprofits, housing programs, and senior services. Families don’t apply directly. A partner submits the request and vouches for the need.
Status in New Orleans: Not yet available. Freemoval currently serves metro Atlanta and plans to expand nationwide.
How it works where it operates: One free pickup per household, covering scrap metal, furniture, appliances, and bulk household items within standard LoadUp marketplace service. Funded by LoadUp customer round-ups and direct contributions, spent at standard LoadUp rates.
If you run a nonprofit or housing program in New Orleans: you can start the conversation now through the For partners page.
New Orleans residents have free bulky waste pickup by request through 311, plus twice-weekly trash collection. The French Quarter and Downtown Development District get daily collection 365 days a year. This page walks through every option in order from free to paid, with the specific rules that apply across the city’s three sanitation contractors.
The New Orleans rule for scrap metal: Metal items are bulky waste by 311 request, or go to a scrap yard.
Program basics: Up to 4 tires per request. No published volume cap for ordinary household bulky items. At the curb no more than 24 hours before your scheduled collection day (after 4 p.m. the evening before, out by 4 a.m. in early-collection areas). Setting bulky waste out earlier can be fined.
What the city will not take: Construction debris, household hazardous waste (HHW Day at the Recycling Drop-Off Center), and anything from a business.
How we checked this. The rules on this page were verified in October 2026 against: City of New Orleans: Trash Collection (bulky waste), City of New Orleans: Recycling Drop-Off Center. Programs change; confirm fees and limits before you go.
Hazardous and regulated components in New Orleans. New Orleans hosts periodic Household Hazardous Waste collection events. Check nola.gov for current dates and locations. The city does not operate a year-round HHW facility, so retailers fill the gap for many items: Home Depot for batteries and CFL bulbs, AutoZone for motor oil and car batteries, Best Buy for electronics, and most pharmacies for unused medications.
Why scrap metal are different from ordinary bulk. Most household scrap is mixed. An appliance is a steel shell around a copper motor and aluminum fins; a bike is a steel or aluminum frame with rubber and plastic. Yards accept mixed items at the steel rate, so sorting pays only if you have enough non-ferrous metal to make it worth the time. A magnet and ten minutes usually tells you.
Three mistakes that get scrap metal left at the curb:
Paid options barely exist for metal, except when the metal is attached to things that are not metal.
Mixed loads to a transfer station
$20 to $60If metal is mixed into a larger cleanout, transfer stations charge by weight for the whole load. Pull the metal out first and give it to a scrapper; it reduces the fee and keeps metal out of the landfill.
Most transfer stations have a free metal pile. Ask before you tip.
LoadUp paid scrap metal pickup
$80+For households who need same-week service, have items the city won’t take, or live in apartment buildings over 4 units, LoadUp offers professional removal in New Orleans with upfront pricing. Independent loaders in the marketplace handle pickup, loading, and licensed disposal.
What’s included: Loading, hauling, and licensed disposal of your scrap metal. No prep needed beyond pointing out what goes.
Pricing: Starts around $80 for a single item; full-truck pickups range from $300 to $600 depending on volume.
If you can pay for a pickup, your booking helps fund free pickups for someone else. Every paid LoadUp customer can opt in to round up at checkout, and 100% of round-ups go directly to Freemoval’s subsidized jobs.
Book scrap metal pickup in New Orleans with LoadUp → Round-up option appears at checkout. Optional, opt-in only.
Rules change at city limits. If you are outside New Orleans proper, start with the guide for your own city:
Related guides: the complete New Orleans junk removal guide (every item type, city services, hazardous waste, and how to report dumping) and the national scrap metal disposal guide with rules for all 117 cities we cover.
Other free removal guides for New Orleans: mattress, couch, refrigerator, washer and dryer, furniture, tv and electronics, dresser, bed frame and box spring.
Does New Orleans pick up scrap metal for free?
Yes, after a 311 request, or a scrap yard.
How much does paid scrap metal removal cost in New Orleans?
Through the LoadUp marketplace, a single scrap metal pickup in New Orleans starts around $80 to $100 with upfront pricing, and full-truck loads run $300 to $600 depending on volume. For households who need same-week service, have items the city won’t take, or live in apartment buildings over 4 units, LoadUp offers professional removal in New Orleans with upfront pricing. Independent loaders in the marketplace handle pickup, loading, and licensed disposal.
Will someone pick up scrap metal for free?
Yes. Independent scrappers in every metro collect appliances, grills, frames, and other metal from the curb free, usually the same day you post it, because they sell it by weight. Many city bulk programs also collect metal.
How much does a scrap yard pay?
Steel pays a few cents per pound; a washer or water heater might bring a few dollars. Aluminum pays several times more, and copper and brass pay the most, often a few dollars per pound. Prices change weekly with commodity markets.
How do I tell what kind of metal I have?
Use a magnet. If it sticks, the metal is ferrous (steel or iron) and pays the base rate. If it does not, it is aluminum, copper, brass, or stainless and worth sorting out. Copper is reddish, brass is yellow, aluminum is light and silver, stainless is heavy and silver.
Can I scrap a refrigerator or air conditioner?
Yes, but the refrigerant must be recovered first by a certified technician or by the yard if it has recovery equipment. Do not cut the lines. Many yards accept sealed units and recover the gas themselves; call first.
Is this New Orleans page maintained?
Yes. Freemoval maintains this page as a public resource alongside the full New Orleans guide. We update it when programs change rules, fees, or contact methods. Last updated October 2026. If you find outdated information, let us know.