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Service · Inbound
You are storing money in that corner of the yard.
Empty totes stacked behind the building are not waste, and paying someone to haul them away is the worst available outcome. We buy them — clean, stained, cracked bottles, bent cages, bare frames — quote on prior contents and count, and collect. Most sellers turn a line-item disposal cost into a payment on the same day the yard gets cleared.
Short answer
Send prior contents, count and ZIP code. We quote a purchase price plus collection, usually within one business day, and pay on collection or receipt.
- Condition
- Any
- Minimum
- ~1 pallet
- Quote time
- 1 business day
- Payment
- On collection
Form 01 · Spec request
Get a purchase quote.
Put your count in the quantity field, what the totes held in the message, and pick 'Sell my totes to you' as the service. Photos help — describe what you see and we will follow up for images.
How it works
Four steps, and only one of them is yours.
- 01
Tell us what you have
Count, size, prior contents and where they are. A rough count is fine; we reconcile on collection and pay on the actual number.
5 minutes - 02
We quote
A per-unit price by grade, plus the collection arrangement. If your load justifies a dedicated truck we say so; if it should ride an existing lane we say that instead.
1 business day - 03
We collect
Our driver arrives with straps and a plan. We can stage, sort and wrap on site if your team would rather not touch them twice.
48 hr – 1 week - 04
You get paid and documented
Payment plus a purchase record with counts and grades, and a diversion statement if you want the reuse figures for reporting.
On collection
Valuation
What moves the price up and down.
No mystery and no haggling theatre. These are the variables, in the order they matter.
| Factor | Raises the price | Lowers the price |
|---|---|---|
| Prior contents | Documented food grade, clean industrial fluids | Unknown, hazardous or aggressive chemistry |
| Bottle condition | Clear, unstained, no crazing, no odour | Cracked, heavily stained, permanently deformed |
| Cage condition | Straight bars, intact galvanising, sound welds | Bowed, rusted through, failed welds |
| Pallet type | Plastic or steel base | Split wood, missing deck boards |
| Quantity in one place | Full or partial truckload | A handful on a remote site |
| Access | Dock or forklift on site, wide yard | Hand-ball loading, tight access, no equipment |
| Fittings | Valve, cap and lid present | Missing lids and valves |
| UN plate | Legible and recent | Illegible or absent |
We buy
What comes through the gate
- 275 and 330 gallon composite totes, any grade
- 550 gallon and oversize units
- Bare cages and pallets with no bottle
- Stainless steel IBCs, at working value rather than scrap value
- Damaged and cracked bottles for reclaim
- Loose valves, lids, adapters and cage bars
- Mixed pallets from plant clearances and line changes
Tell us first
Things that need a conversation
- Regulated or hazardous residue of any kind
- Containers that held pesticides or restricted-use chemistry
- Totes stored outdoors with rainwater and unknown contents mixed in
- Sites with no forklift, no dock and no hard standing
- Loads with a hard removal deadline — we will tell you honestly if we can hit it
Questions
Selling to us, answered.
01What do you pay for a used IBC tote?
It depends on four things: prior contents, bottle condition, cage condition and how many you have in one place. Documented food-grade and clean industrial totes are worth the most; unknown contents are worth the least because they can only go to reclaim. Send the details and we will quote per unit, delivered or collected.
02Do you buy totes with damaged bottles?
Yes. A cracked or crazed bottle in a sound cage is still worth real money to us because the cage goes into rebottled production. We also buy bare cages with no bottle at all.
03What if I do not know what was in them?
We can still take them, but they go straight to reclaim rather than reuse and the price reflects that. If you can find a label, a plate photograph or an old bill of lading, it materially changes the number.
04Is there a minimum quantity?
About a pallet for collection to make sense on its own. Smaller counts can ride along on an existing lane, so tell us where you are and we will check the schedule.
05How do I get paid?
On collection for regular sellers and on receipt-and-count for first-time sellers. We issue a purchase record with counts and grades, which most accounting departments need for asset disposal anyway.
06Do you take totes that still have residue?
Heels and residue are normal and we are set up for them. What we cannot take without notice is regulated or hazardous residue — tell us in advance and we will arrange the compliant route rather than surprising a driver.
Preparation
Two hours that reliably change the number.
Written slightly against our own interest. We would rather buy a well-presented load at a fair price than a badly presented one at a low one.
| Action | Time | Effect on price | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Find one piece of prior-contents paperwork | 20 min | Very high | Undocumented stock can only be reclaimed |
| Sort by size | 30 min | High | A sorted load can be graded before it arrives |
| Group known from unknown contents | 30 min | High | Mixing drags the load to the worst unit |
| Photograph stacks and one legible plate | 10 min | Medium-high | Converts a range into a firm number |
| Keep lids and valves with the containers | 0 | Medium | Missing caps are a direct deduction |
| Stage in one place with forklift access | 30 min | Medium | Collection time is collection cost |
| Cap containers before storage | 0 | Medium | Prevents the rain-plus-unknown category |
| Wash them | Hours | Almost none | Buyers with a wash line price on history, not appearance |
What we buy
Everything that came off an IBC, including the parts people skip.
| Item | Bought? | Valued as | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|---|
| 275 / 330 gal composite totes | Yes, any grade | By grade and prior contents | Assuming stained means worthless |
| 550 gal and oversize units | Yes | By condition, may need flatbed | Not mentioning access |
| Bare cages, no bottle | Yes | Rebottling stock, well above scrap | Selling them to a metals merchant |
| Stainless IBCs | Yes | Working value, not scrap value | Scrapping them by weight |
| Cracked or crazed bottles | Yes | HDPE reclaim, cage separately | Skipping them entirely |
| Loose valves, caps, adapters | Yes | Sorted and reused where serviceable | Throwing them in a general skip |
| Replacement pallets and deck sets | Yes | Repair stock | Discarding with the container |
| Mixed pallets from a clearance | Yes | Graded on arrival | Letting them mix with site waste |
Payment and paperwork
What settlement looks like.
How it works
- Quote within one business day of receiving count, prior contents and postal code.
- Quotes hold for seven days; used-container stock and freight rates both move.
- Payment on collection for regular sellers, on receipt-and-count for first-time sellers.
- Counts reconciled at collection — we pay against the real number, not the estimate.
- Purchase record issued with counts and grades, which most accounting departments need for asset disposal.
- Diversion statement on request, showing what actually happened to the containers.
What lowers a quote most
- Unknown prior contents — the single largest factor, and usually fixable from a filing cabinet.
- Containers stored outdoors uncapped, now part-full of rain and something.
- Missing lids and valves across the load.
- A pile mixed with general site waste, which turns a saleable load into a disposal job.
- No forklift and no dock, discovered on the day.
- A hard removal deadline that forces a dedicated truck.
Extended FAQ · 8 questions
More questions, answered
01What do you pay for a used container?
It depends on prior contents, bottle condition, cage condition and how many are in one place. Documented food-grade and clean industrial stock is worth the most; unknown contents the least, because those can only go to reclaim. Send the details and we quote per unit.
02Do you buy containers with damaged bottles?
Yes. A cracked or crazed bottle in a sound cage is still worth real money because the cage goes into rebottled production. We also buy bare cages with no bottle at all.
03What if I do not know what was in them?
We can still take them, but they go straight to reclaim rather than reuse and the price reflects that. If you can find a label, a plate photograph or an old bill of lading, it materially changes the number.
04Is there a minimum quantity?
About a pallet for a collection to make sense on its own. Smaller counts can ride along on an existing lane, so tell us where you are and how flexible your dates are and we will check the schedule.
05How and when do I get paid?
On collection for regular sellers and on receipt-and-count for first-time sellers. We issue a purchase record with counts and grades, which most accounting departments need for asset disposal anyway.
06Should I clean the containers first?
No — and please do not rinse them. Rinsing removes the residue that would have told a grader what the container held. Drain them, cap them, and leave the evidence where somebody can read it.
07Do you take containers with residue still in them?
Heels and residue are normal and we are set up for them. What we cannot take without notice is regulated or hazardous residue — declare it in advance and we arrange the compliant route rather than surprising a driver.
08Will you buy from another yard or a broker?
Yes. A meaningful share of our inbound comes from other operators who would rather see containers reused than shredded, and we document the outcome so they can report it.
Next step
Count them. Send the number.
A rough count and a ZIP code is enough to start. Most sellers have a price the next morning.