appliances · British Columbia

Where to sell appliances in Vancouver

3 businesses in and around Vancouver that buy used appliances from the public — what each takes, and whether you are offered a purchase, a consignment or a loan.

Verified 2026-09-24 from each organization's own website. We are not affiliated with anyone listed here, nobody pays to be included, and we receive nothing if you sell to them.

Two things decide what happens when you turn up with an appliance: whether it still runs, and whether it has a sealed refrigerant system — and if it is a fridge, freezer, air conditioner, dehumidifier or heat pump that no longer runs, you are not selling it, you are paying to be rid of it.

How to tell what you have got

Before you call anyone, two minutes with the object settles most of it. None of this needs an expert — it needs a flashlight and a look at the back.

  • A working washer, dryer, dishwasher or range under about ten years oldFind the model and serial plate before you call anyone. On a washer it is usually under the lid or on the back; on a range, inside the storage drawer or along the door frame. Age is the first question you will be asked, and a guess will not do.
  • Dead appliances with no refrigerant — washers, dryers, dishwashers, ranges, range hoodsYour routes are municipal collection, a metal recycler, or a scrap hauler. Call three, ask each whether they charge a trip fee or pay anything for the metal, and get the answer in writing before anything moves.

Rarely worth anything

Not a rule, and not a reason to bin something without asking. These are the things people most often expect to be worth money and find are not.

  • A dead fridge or freezer
  • Any home appliance ten years old or more, as a donation
  • Window and portable air conditioners and dehumidifiers
  • Anything with mould in it
  • A single orphan appliance from a broken-up set
  • The copper and the compressor, to you
Refrigerant must be recovered before an appliance is scrapped, crushed or buried — and the rule that applies to your house is provincial, not federal Canada-wide, set province by province

The Federal Halocarbon Regulations, 2022 reach only systems owned by the Crown, systems owned by a federal work or undertaking such as a railway, port authority, airport, telecommunications company or bank, and systems located on federal or Indigenous lands. An ordinary household is governed by its province's regulation instead. Do not rely on anything written for the United States: their rules, certification and disposal requirements are different.

Read the rule →
No dismantling, recycling, incinerating or landfilling until a certified person has attached a no-refrigerant notice Ontario

O. Reg. 463/10, s. 41(1). The notice required by s. 32 must carry the date, the person's name, their certificate number and expiry, their employer, and a statement that the unit no longer contains refrigerant; only a person certified under s. 34 may make that determination, and a copy must be kept for two years. "Refrigeration equipment" is defined to include air-conditioning, heat pump, refrigeration and freezer units. Note carefully what the section does not say: the duty is on whoever dismantles or buries the appliance, not on you for placing it at the curb. That is why Toronto will collect your fridge while a scrapyard may turn it away untagged.

Read the rule →

3 places in Vancouver that take appliances

ABC Recycling

Paid by weight Bring it to them
Buyssteel, cast iron and wrought iron, copper, brass, aluminum, stainless steel, lead, zinc and nickel alloys, household appliances, car parts, end-of-life vehicles
The dealYou drive in, staff direct you and help weigh the load, and you are paid by weight at the day's rate for each metal. No appointment needed. Their own advice is to separate your metals as much as possible, because "collective loads are paid for the lowest commodity" — a mixed load is paid at the rate of the cheapest thing in it. Cash is paid in $5 increments, and they state they always offer the full amount by cheque as an alternative.
Where8081 Meadow Ave, Burnaby, BC V3N 2V9
You must drive in with a four-wheel vehicle and produce a valid driver's licence or other government-issued ID — bicycles, motorcycles and taxis are not allowed, so you cannot walk or cycle a load in. Prices move with global metal markets and are not published in advance, so phone for the day's rate before driving across town. Sorting copper, brass and aluminum out of a mixed load before you go is the single biggest thing that changes what you are paid.
Visit their site →604-522-9727

Richmond Steel Recycling (Sims)

Paid by weight Bring it to them
Buyscopper, steel and iron, aluminum, brass, lead, zinc and nickel, old appliances, air conditioners and water heaters, metal lawn equipment, metal fencing and shelving
Won't takerefrigerated appliances whose refrigerant has not been removed
The dealOpen to the public with no appointment needed; they weigh the load and pay on the type and weight of metal. Warehouse hours are weekdays 7:00am-4:30pm and Saturday 8:00am to noon, with drop-off available Saturday and Sunday 7:00am-3:30pm. Payment method — cash or cheque — is not stated on their page, so ask when you call.
Where11760 Mitchell Road, Richmond, BC V6V 1V8
Their stated rule: "All material suppliers will be required to provide a valid government issued photo ID (valid driver's license or other official form of ID) to sell scrap metal to us." Turning up without one is a wasted trip. Fridges, freezers and air conditioners need the refrigerant removed before they will accept them, which is a cost you pay first.
Visit their site →604-324-4656

Roath's Pawn Shop Ltd.

Buys or lends Not stated — ask
Buysgold, silver and platinum jewellery, diamonds and precious stones, laptops, gaming consoles and LED TVs, power, hand and air tools, generators, power washers, boat motors, guitars and amplifiers, ATVs, motorcycles, jet skis, boats
The dealTwo separate transactions, and the difference matters. They buy outright — their site says they purchase gold, diamonds and watches for cash — and they make pawn loans. Their own words on the pawn side: "If the customer does not want a loan, they can also choose to sell their item to the pawnbroker." The pawn loan is secured credit. They publish loan principals between $10 and $100,000 based on collateral, no credit check, a term running 0 to 90 days with payment due at 3 months, a flat rate of 7.5% per month, a stated APR of 90%, and a one-week grace period on loan items. Their own loan calculator example shows a $100 loan over 3 months carrying a monthly interest charge of roughly $7.50. If a pawn loan is not repaid, the item is forfeited and the shop keeps and resells it — a pawn is not a sale, and you do not receive the balance of the item's value.
Where13573 King George Blvd, Surrey, BC V3T 2V1
The 90% APR is the cost of borrowing, not a discount on the item. They also buy outright, so you can ask for both numbers — the loan offer and the purchase price — and compare them before deciding. In-house staff include a gemologist and a goldsmith.
Visit their site →604-584-4010
MUNICIPAL RULES ARE WHAT ACTUALLY AFFECT YOU. I could not verify the claim that British Columbia has no pawnbroker statute in force, so that claim has been removed rather than published. What is confirmed is Vancouver's Secondhand Dealers and Pawnbrokers By-law No. 2807, consolidated for convenience to 16 September 2025 (amended to include By-law No. 14443), read directly from the City's own consolidated text at https://bylaws.vancouver.ca/2807c.pdf. BRING PHOTO ID OR YOU WILL BE TURNED AWAY. Both secondhand dealers (buying outright) and pawnbrokers (lending) must confirm your identity by "picture identification" and record a complete description of it and the name of the authority that issued it (ss. 2.2(b), 3.2(b)). The by-law defines picture identification (s. 1.2) as one of the following, bearing a photograph of the holder: a valid driver's licence issued by a Canadian province or territory; a BC Services Card or other photo identity card issued by the Province of British Columbia; a passport issued by a legitimate government; a certificate of Indian status; a certificate of Canadian citizenship; a conditional release card issued by Correctional Services Canada; or a valid Canadian permanent resident card. A credit card, a bus pass or an expired licence does not qualify. The dealer must also record your name, residence or street address and birth date; a complete description of the property including make, model and serial number; the price paid or the amount advanced; the precise date and hour; and any identifying marks (ss. 2.2, 3.2). Other confirmed by-law facts: - You must be at least 18. A dealer must not purchase from, and a pawnbroker must not take a pawn from, anyone under 18 (ss. 2.15, 3.15). - No evening deals. A dealer must not purchase property, and a pawnbroker must not take property in pawn, between 6 p.m. of one calendar day and 6 a.m. of the next (ss. 2.13, 3.13). A shop may be open, but it cannot take your item in. - Anything whose serial number or other identifying marking has been wholly or partially tampered with or removed will be refused outright (ss. 2.14, 3.14). - Police reporting is daily. Shops on electronic registers transmit entries to the Chief Constable electronically (ss. 2.11, 3.11); shops on handwritten registers must hand-deliver a photocopy to the Chief Constable at the Vancouver Police Department, 3585 Graveley Street, between 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on each business day (ss. 2.10, 3.10). Registers are kept within BC for seven years after the last entry (ss. 2.9(b), 3.9(b)). Selling second-hand goods in Vancouver is a recorded transaction, not an anonymous one. - Holding period. A shop cannot repair, alter, dispose of or remove an item for the longer of 35 business days (electronic register), 49 business days (handwritten register), or the number of business days the police direct, not exceeding 90 days (ss. 2.19, 3.20). If you pawned rather than sold, s. 3.19 preserves your right to reclaim the item inside that window by paying the debt and interest owing. - A shop licensed as both must physically separate purchased goods from pawned goods and individually tag each item to show the date and whether it was purchased or taken in pawn (s. 2.21) — a useful sign of a properly licensed operator. - In the Downtown Eastside, both secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers may only remain open from 6:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. (ss. 2.23, 3.21). Burnaby, Surrey and Richmond license under their own bylaws, so holding periods and reporting hours differ there; I did not read those bylaws, so call ahead if your shop is outside the City of Vancouver. SCRAP YARDS ASK FOR ID TOO. Richmond Steel Recycling states all material suppliers must provide valid government-issued photo ID to sell scrap metal. ABC Recycling requires a valid driver's licence or other government-issued ID and that you drive in with a four-wheel vehicle — bicycles, motorcycles and taxis are not allowed.

Not sure what you have got?

Photograph it and we will tell you what it is and what it is worth — including when the honest answer is that it is worth nothing.

See what it's worth Donate it instead → Everything in Vancouver →

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