Can you crush aluminum cans in california and get full value?

Question

Can you crush aluminum cans in california and get full value?

Answer 1

Not sure if it differs from place to place but here in Southern California, if you feed them into the machines whole..you get 5 cents per can..but if you crush them or do not want to feed them one by one (which takes forever)..you can give them to an attendent, but then you  get paid by the pound..and it comes out to LESS than 5 cents per can because they have to pay the guy to work there and process your cans.  These are recycle places that are outside grocery stores.  Other recycle facilites may pay differently.

Answer 2

well in Michigan if you crush the can or damage the BAR CODE on any deposit-able container it will not be accepted in the automatic return machines they need to read the bar code to confirm a proper unit.Don't know how they take returns in California always best to ask at the centre they accept returns

Answer 3

Yes sir, the value is 5 cents a can. You are taxed that 5 cents when you buy it and given it back when you recycle it. It is a way for the California government to get people to recycle, but to answer your question, it doesn't matter if they are crushed.