Paid on pickup
The 20-Minute Inspection Checklist
A working guide for Ohio sellers: what decides the number and how the unit leaves.
What we buy
What we buy here
What follows is the working version of The 20-Minute Inspection Checklist used on Ohio sites rather than the textbook version. A unit described honestly sells faster than one described optimistically, because the second one gets renegotiated. A demolition pickup is fast, dirty and often the most profitable, because the alternative is a unit in a rubble pile.
Start with the tag, then the oil, then the tank, then the paperwork, and do not skip ahead. A number is only as good as the description behind it, which is why the questions are short and specific. Remanufacturing keeps the footprint, and the footprint is often the reason the unit cannot simply be replaced.
Who we buy from
Six kinds of seller, one desk
- Recyclers
- Electrical contractors
- Equipment dealers
- End users
- Demo contractors
- Distributors
Fast offers
A nameplate photo is usually enough to price a unit the same day.
Dedicated logistics
We arrange the crane, the permits and the flatbed, not you.
No broker fees
You are dealing with the buyer, so nothing is shaved off the offer.
How it works
Six steps from your yard to the money
- 01
Take pictures
The nameplate, the cabinet interior and the tank in daylight. Three photographs are usually enough to place a unit in the right class and the right price band.
- 02
Send them to us
The form on this page, a text or an email all reach the same desk. Include the city, the access and any deadline the site is working to.
- 03
Review the offer
A buyer reads the photographs, asks one or two questions and sends a written offer with the assumptions stated, so nothing changes on the day.
- 04
We schedule freight
Crane, flatbed and permits are booked around your access. You get a date and a window, and we carry the cost of getting it right.
- 05
Testing on arrival
Winding resistance, megger and turns ratio, plus oil analysis where the unit is liquid filled. The results decide the final number, and you see them.
- 06
Get paid
Payment is released on the agreed terms once the unit is received and tested, by check or ACH. No retention, no sixty-day terms.
What we handle for you
The parts sellers dread, done for you
Rigging
Crane and forklift arranged around your access, not the other way round.
Oil containment
Bunds, absorbent and disposal handled before the unit moves.
Bill of sale
A clean title document for your records, signed on collection.
PCB paperwork
Pre-1979 units get the testing and the manifest they need.
Guide
Before you touch anything
Confirm the unit is de-energized, locked out and grounded, and do not open a cabinet until somebody has proved it. Photograph the nameplate, the cabinet and the surroundings before anything is moved. Note the pad condition, the drainage and the distance to where a truck can stand.
A buyer who has seen the site will always beat a buyer who has only seen a form, which is why the visit is free. A transformer is heavy, oily, regulated and awkward, and every part of the process reflects that.
The cabinet and the tank
Check the doors, the hinges, the latches and the paint at the base, because that is where water enters. Look at the radiator fins for crushing, the bushings for cracks and the gauge set for damage. Look for oil staining on the pad, on the tank and under the bushings.
A purchase is a handover of risk as much as a handover of metal. Every county in Ohio has a slightly different way of doing things, and a buyer who works statewide learns them all.
The electrical record
Read the tap position, the fuse holder condition and the presence of elbows and connectors. Ask for the last oil test, the service record and any fault history. Note anything that has been modified, because modification always needs explaining.
A buyer who turns up with a torch and a tape measure is not there to argue about the paint. A buck-boost unit is almost always misapplied rather than worn out, and the diagram inside the cover explains why.
The logistics
Measure the gate, the turn radius and the overhead clearance. Identify who can open the gate on the day and who signs the paperwork. Photograph the approach from the road, because that is the view the driver will have.
Checklist for the 20-minute inspection checklist
Questions about the 20-minute inspection checklist
Related guides
Get started
Get an offer in minutes
Five fields and a phone number is all we need to start. We reply the same business day, and a firm number follows the nameplate photo.
(614) 715-3047or send the form and we will call you.
Questions
What sellers ask before they call
Equipment types
Does the 20-minute inspection checklist change what a transformer is worth?
Read the tap position, the fuse holder condition and the presence of elbows and connectors. Note anything that has been modified, because modification always needs explaining.
Service area
Where does a seller start with the 20-minute inspection checklist?
Photograph the nameplate, the cabinet and the surroundings before anything is moved. A transformer that is still bolted down belongs to the building until somebody unbolts it, and that is a decision.
Payment
Is the 20-minute inspection checklist part of what a buyer checks on site?
Measure the gate, the turn radius and the overhead clearance. Photograph the approach from the road, because that is the view the driver will have.
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