So if there is enough gold on earth for each of us to own five golden rings, have you gotten yours yet? I am not joking, because if you devote some time and energy to acquiring gold, you can get to that five-ring, .76 troy ounce figure more quickly than you expect. Where can you find that gold? For starters, in places like these that you might be overlooking. . .

When you send us old catalytic converters, sputtering targets, dental scrap or other items to be processed, we recover precious metals from them that were mined from the earth years ago. Those same metals will then be reused in new applications that can include jewelry making, medical technologies, electronics manufacturing, and many more. What could be more efficient?

So, what are palladium salts? They are compounds of palladium and other chemicals that are most often used in the production and testing of stainless and other steels. Some palladium salts are also used as catalysts in the production of other chemicals. Here are some common forms of palladium salts that are used in industry, and that you might come to own if you acquire a chemical business or an old industrial site . . .

More and more towns and cities across America are holding recycling day events to collect old electronic devices. Electronic recycling days provide a needed service to individuals, who often do not know how or where to responsibly recycle old electrical devices. Whether you are a company that already has stockpiles of electronics to recycle or a company that wants to do something good for your community, you should consider getting involved. By doing good, you could also have an opportunity to earn income.

If you go shopping at antique malls or estate sales, you will discover a number of items for sale that are made of gray metal. How can you tell if they are made of silver, white gold or platinum?

Chances are that you only find small quantities of the valuable secondary platinum group metals (palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium, and osmium) hiding in recyclable items that you think are made only of platinum. How can you tell if these rarer metals are present?

Someone called one of our expert consultants at 800-426-2344 last week and asked, “Is lithium a precious metal?” He had a lot of old printed-circuit boards that had batteries attached to them and was wondering if he would get paid for the lithium that they contained if he sent them in to be recycled.

On average, quarters minted in 1964 or before contain 18% pure silver that is worth more than $3.25. In 1984, everything changed. That was the year when the U.S. Mint started making copper-nickel clad quarters for circulation. They contain no silver.  

If you walk into an estate sale or antique shop, chances are good that you will find trophies, class rings, beer steins and tabletop cigarette lighters. They all found their way into many American homes in years gone by. Those items are so common that it is easy to forget that they often contain significant quantities of silver and gold that are well worth recycling.

Because platinum wasn’t used widely in jewelry or industry until about 100 years ago, it seems like a “new” precious metal. That’s not really true.  In about 700 B.C., Egyptian artisans were using it to make ornamental objects, like the famous and mysterious Casket of Thebes.  And at the same time, pre-Columbian artisans in South America were fashioning it into small trinkets. Those are only a few fascinating facts about this beautiful, tarnish-resistant, and durable precious metal. Here’s a quick timeline of its fascinating history.

The lesson for real estate developers is to make sure to recover precious metals from appliances – or at the very least, to work out a deal with the scrap metal recycling company to share the value of precious metals.

Can silver be profitably recycled from printing ink? The answer to that question is yes, silver can be obtained from many printing inks. When you introduce the right chemical into them, the silver precipitates and falls to the bottom.  But here is some additional information you need to know.

What emerging technologies will impact on the prices and demand for precious metals in the coming year? Here are five trends to watch.

If you’re looking to buy a business that could have untapped quantities of precious metals, which businesses should you be looking at? That question is well worth asking, because when people dispose of businesses they often do not take the time to diligently assess the value of the assets that they are selling. Sometimes they are selling because they are in financial distress. Sometimes they have lost interest and simply want to dispose of a business. Sometimes they are selling businesses that belonged to relatives who became too infirm or old to run them. Sometimes owners have passed away and lawyers want to sell businesses quickly to settle estates.

We have reached a tipping point where tremendous numbers of products that contain precious metals are being discarded or recycled. If you are an alert investor or speculator, you can buy quantities of them at rock-bottom prices, recycle them, and earn a big return on your investment. Some of these products include...

How valuable are the precious metals in a single toaster? How about in a coffee maker or a toaster oven? In reality, you won’t find more than a few cents’ worth of precious metals in small appliances like those. But when the quantities of small appliances increase, things can get more interesting – and more profitable. Here are some interesting variables that can have a big impact on the potential value of quantities of smaller appliances . . .

Yes, it is true, according to data compiled by 911Metallurgist.com. In fact, a ton of used iPhones contains 324 times more gold than a ton of gold ore does. A ton of iPhones also contains 13 times more copper than a ton of copper ore does, and 6.5 times more silver than a ton of silver ore does. So the message seems to be that as demand for precious metals remains high, recycling phones is a practice that is not about to go away.

We get many calls at Specialty Metals Smelters and Refiners from people who have cellphones, catalytic converters, computers, remote control devices, and other items that contain precious metals that can be extracted and refined. The first question that those callers ask is usually, “How much are they worth?” And the first question that we usually ask them is, “How many do you have?”

Recycling precious metals like gold, silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium can be a complicated business. There could be treasure hiding in the most unusual places, and businesses and consumers alike are always on the lookout for tips, tricks and advice. Our top blog posts, as determined by our readers, represent a collection of knowledge you may find just as worthwhile to read as they have.

...Yet there is a compelling reason why business brokers should slow down a little and take a close look at the businesses that they are listing for sale: Many businesses contain sources of gold and other precious metals that can be profitably recycled with a qualified precious metals refinery like ours....