Will a scrap yard pay me for an old refrigerator?

Possibly a few dollars for the metal, Angi says, but you have to get it there yourself, and the yard may want doors, shelves and drawers out first. The yard also needs proof the refrigerant came out before it takes the unit. For most people the drive and the lifting cost more than the scrap pays.

Can the hauler disconnect the ice maker line?

Ask first. Some crews will close the valve and cap a simple plastic line; others leave plumbing alone. Angi puts a water disconnect at $60 to $140 when a plumber does it. If the shutoff valve is stuck or the line is copper, book the disconnect before the pickup.

Do I have to defrost the freezer before it's picked up?

Empty it and unplug it ahead of time, then lay towels down for the meltwater. Ice left inside adds weight and drips on floors and stairs during the carry. Take out loose shelves, bins and drawers too; Angi notes that stripping them makes the appliance lighter to move.

Refrigerator Disposal in Winston-Salem, NC

Haul-away price: $50 to $200 for one fridge in the national guides.
Refrigerant surcharge: often $35 to $60 per fridge, freezer or AC unit, sometimes more.
Window AC units: about $50 to $100 to remove.
On-site time: one ground-floor appliance can be out in 20 to 60 minutes.

Winston-Salem Junk Co. forwards your call to a local hauler who wheels out the old fridge, freezer or window unit for recycling. Ask where it's headed: anything holding refrigerant has to reach a place that can recover it. Mention the model size, the floor it's on and whether a water line runs to it, and the hauler can price it before arriving.

Refrigerators, Freezers and AC Units on the Pickup List

Old almond-colored side-by-side refrigerator strapped to an appliance dolly in a dated kitchen, its doors taped shut

Kitchen refrigerators

Most calls are a full-size kitchen fridge being swapped for a new one. A side-by-side or French-door model is wider than many interior doors, so the doors may have to come off the fridge, the house, or both. Tape the fridge doors shut for the carry. Angi also points out that older fridges can hold mercury switches and insulation foam made with ozone-depleting chemicals, one more reason they go to an appliance recycler and not the trash.

White chest freezer with its lid propped open in a garage, empty except for a few frost-covered baskets

Chest and upright freezers

Garage and basement freezers are the ones that get forgotten until they quit. A chest freezer is low but long, and it often sits at the bottom of the basement stairs, which is the slow part of the job. Measure the stairwell and any turn at the top. An upright freezer carries more like a fridge: tall, narrow and easier on stairs.

Small black mini fridge and a glass-door wine cooler side by side on a carpeted floor near a desk

Mini fridges and wine coolers

Small doesn't mean refrigerant-free. The EPA's "small appliance" category covers home refrigerators and freezers holding five pounds of refrigerant or less, so a dorm fridge falls under the same disposal rules as a kitchen one. Even one small item pays a hauler's minimum charge (the homepage has those figures), so add a mini fridge to a bigger pickup rather than booking it alone.

Two dusty window air conditioners and a portable dehumidifier lined up on a concrete basement floor

Window AC units and dehumidifiers

Window air conditioners and dehumidifiers sit on the same EPA small-appliance list. Pull window units out before the crew comes if you can do it safely, and close the window behind them. A dehumidifier's water bucket should be empty and dry.

Gloved worker carrying an old wooden kitchen chair down brick porch steps toward a white pickup with another chair in the bed

Why Winston-Salem homeowners call Winston-Salem Junk Co.

Your request goes to a single independent hauler
Hear the all-in figure before anything is carried out
Calling is free; the hauler bills only the job you OK
Mention stairs, a gate code or a hot tub when you call

Refrigerator Disposal Cost

National cost guides are the only published figures; none are specific to Winston-Salem. They split into the haul-away itself and a refrigerant fee on top:

Refrigerator haul-away
$50 to $150 (Angi) or $50 to $200 (HireAHelper).
Window AC removal
$50 to $100 (Angi).
Refrigerant surcharge
HomeGuide lists $35 to $60 per fridge, freezer or AC unit. HireAHelper gives two ranges on one page, $20 to $50 and $50 to $150 per Freon appliance, so ask how your hauler handles it.
Stairs
A basement freezer or a second-floor apartment fridge takes more time and hands than a kitchen pickup on the ground floor.

Where an Old Fridge Goes in Forsyth County

State law keeps refrigerators out of North Carolina landfills: each one counts as a white good, and federal rules require its refrigerant to be recovered before it's scrapped. The appliance removal page covers both rules and Forsyth County's free white-goods drop-off at Hanes Mill Road. Ask the hauler whether your unit goes to the county appliance area or a scrap recycler.

Working fridges have other routes. Retailers often take the old unit when they deliver a new one, sometimes free, so ask the store before booking anyone. Goodwill doesn't accept refrigerators, and the ReStores refuse appliances more than ten years old; donation pickup has their full rules.

See appliance removal for washers, dryers, ranges and water heaters.