· The ScrapTally Team · What's It Worth? · 3 min read
How Much Copper Is in an Electric Motor? (And Whether to Break It Open)
Between 6% and 12% of a motor's weight is copper winding — more in small motors, less in big ones, double in DC. Here's the math on selling whole versus tearing down, with a calculator.
Every scrapper accumulates motors — they’re in washers, fans, pumps, power tools, compressors, and half of everything else with a plug. And every scrapper eventually asks the same question while holding one: how much copper is actually in this thing, and should I crack it open? Here are the real percentages, and the honest math on when a teardown pays.
The percentages, by motor size
Copper content scales inversely with motor size — the housing and steel laminations grow faster than the windings do:
| Motor class | Copper (% of weight) | Typical examples |
|---|---|---|
| Fractional HP (under ~1/3 HP) | 8–12% | Fan motors, blower motors, small pumps |
| Small / general purpose (1/3–5 HP) | 6–9% | Power tools, washers, medium pumps |
| Large / industrial (5+ HP) | 4–8% | Compressors, industrial pumps and blowers |
So a 20 lb blower motor holds roughly 2 lb of copper; a 100 lb industrial motor holds maybe 6 lb — more copper in absolute terms, but a smaller share of what you’re lifting. Figures are cross-checked against published yard guides (Sahd, Okon, iScrap App) and sit at the conservative end.
The DC exception: DC motors — golf carts, forklifts, older automotive — run much richer, commonly 15–18% copper, because they carry more winding relative to housing. If the nameplate says DC, mentally double the estimate.
Run your own numbers
Pick the size class, enter the weight and your yard’s prices, and compare whole-motor price against the copper inside:
Your motor
Typical range 8–12%. Under about 1/3 HP. Small appliance and HVAC blower motors — proportionally the most copper of the three classes.
Indicative default — enter your yard's price. Saved for next time.
Indicative default — enter your yard's price. Saved for next time.
Indicative default — enter your yard's price. Saved for next time.
Sell whole or break it open?
Yards buy motors whole at an “electric motor” grade — indicatively around $0.25–0.30/lb — precisely because of the copper inside. That price already assumes average copper content, which frames the teardown question: opening a motor only pays you the difference between the copper’s separate value and the whole-motor price you gave up — minus your time.
And motor teardowns are slow. The windings are wedged into steel lamination slots, varnished in place, and have to be cut on one end and pulled from the other — realistically 15–30+ minutes per motor with hand tools for a pound or two of copper. Run that through the same logic as the Strip or Sell calculator and small motors almost never justify it. Where teardowns can make sense:
- Large and DC motors — more absolute copper per teardown minute.
- Broken-open motors — if the housing is already cracked, half the work is done.
- Winter-bench work — if the alternative use of your time is zero, the math changes.
One grading note: motor winding wire is coated in enamel, so it typically grades as #2 copper, not bare bright — factor that into the math. See #1 vs #2 Copper for where yards draw the line.
Where the good motors hide
Fractional-HP motors (the copper-richest class) are in furnace blowers, bathroom and ceiling fans, range hoods, dishwashers, and dryers. Bigger paydays come attached to washing machines, AC units (fan motor + sealed compressor), and pool pumps. Any appliance sold at shred price with the motor still inside is copper you gave away — pulling the motor before the yard trip is usually the single best five minutes in appliance scrapping.
Related
- The Electric Motor Value estimator on its own page.
- Is a Washing Machine Worth Scrapping? and Is an AC Unit Worth Scrapping? — the two most common motor donors.
- Price a mixed haul with the Scrap Lot Deal Analyzer.
- All the What’s It Worth? guides.