IBC·RecycleReuse · Recondition · Return
Livonia, MI · Est. 2009Contact Us

We buy your totes

Stop paying to
throw away
your inventory.

Empty totes behind your building are not waste, they are stock. We quote them by grade, pick them up with our own trucks, and pay you — which is the opposite of what a disposal company does.

Get a buyback numberQuantity, last contents and your ZIP

* requiredPhone & postal code: US or Canada onlyQuantity 1–10,000

No phone calls from us — we answer by email from sales@ibc-recycle.com. Privacy

How it works

Five steps, no site visit required

Most buybacks are quoted from four photographs and a sentence about what was in them.

  1. Send the form

    Quantity, format, last contents, condition, your ZIP. If you have photos, say so and we will reply with an upload link.

  2. We quote within a business day

    A per-unit number by grade, plus whether freight is on us or on the load. No “call for pricing”.

  3. You confirm and we schedule

    Two to four business days inside our core radius. We work around your dock hours, not ours.

  4. We load and count together

    Counted and graded on your pavement, in front of you. Disputes get resolved before the truck straps down, not after.

  5. Payment on weigh-in

    ACH or company cheque, issued the day the load lands in Livonia.

What lifts your price

Five things worth real money

  • Documented food-safe last contents
  • Clear, unyellowed bottles with no bulging
  • Straight cages with intact feet and welds
  • Twenty or more units staged and stackable
  • Lids and valves still present

Five things that cut it

  • Unknown or undisclosed last contents
  • Residue left standing in the bottle
  • Cut-open bottles or drilled cages
  • Units stored in direct sun for years
  • Loose, unstaged units we have to hand-load

We still want the bad ones

Cracked bottles and rusted cages are scrap value, not zero. We would rather take a mixed load and sort it here than leave you with a disposal invoice.

Scrap price sheet →
Rows of reconditioned IBC totes stacked two high across the yard under a clear sky
Everything here arrived as somebody's empties, and was paid for rather than charged for.

Indicative bands

What drives the number

We publish bands rather than a fixed price list because resin, scrap steel and freight all move. The quote you receive is firm for fourteen days.

ConditionBottleCageBandNotes
Food-grade, documentedClear, soundStraight, soundTopOur scarcest intake. Always wanted.
Washable technicalSound, stainedStraightHighThe bulk of what we buy.
Unwashed, known contentsSound, residue presentMinor damageMidDisclosure is what keeps it in this band.
Unknown contentsSoundAnyLowBottle goes to regrind; we pay for the steel and the resin.
Cage onlyNoneStraightLow-midExcellent for firewood crates and rebottling.
ScrapCracked, cut or bulgedRusted, bentScrapStill paid. Still not landfill.
Freight is netted against the load value. Inside our core radius, twenty or more units usually ships free.

Seller questions

Asked by every first-time seller

Do I have to clean them first?
No, and please do not pressure-wash them into a storm drain. Drain them as completely as you can, cap the valve, and tell us what was inside. We have a wash line; you probably have a parking lot.
What paperwork do you need from me?
The product name of the last contents, and a safety data sheet if it was anything other than food, water or a common agricultural or cleaning product. That single document is the difference between a mid-band and a top-band price.
What is the minimum load?
Four units for a scheduled pickup inside our core radius. Fewer than that, you are welcome to drop them at the Livonia yard during hours and we will pay on the spot.
Can you clear a whole site?
Yes. Totes, drums, cages, pallets, loose wrap — say 'site clean-out' in the message field and we will quote the entire job as one number rather than nickel-and-diming the mixed material.
Do you buy outside Michigan?
Regularly, across the lower 48 for loads of twenty or more. Smaller out-of-region lots only work if you can get them to a freight terminal, and we will tell you honestly whether the arithmetic favours you.

Keep reading

Selling your totesA seven-step checklistOpen →TransportHow pickups are scheduledOpen →Scrap price sheetBands by conditionOpen →

How many are sitting out there?

Send a count and a last-contents note. You will have a per-unit number inside a business day.

Get a buyback number Contact us