What we buy
Ranges we buy on this page
After an insurer has paid a claim for a failed transformer and taken ownership of the salvage, removal becomes a claim-file task as well as a lifting job.
| Phase | kVA | Voltage | Fluid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-phase | 10 - 333 kVA | up to 25 kV | Liquid or dry |
| 3-phase | 75 - 20,000 kVA | 46 kV | Liquid or dry |
Who we buy from
Six kinds of seller
- Recyclers
- Electrical contractors
- Equipment dealers
- End users
- Demo contractors
- Distributors
Fast offers
A written offer the same business day, based on your photographs.
Dedicated logistics
Our own crew, trailer and crane, not a brokered haul.
No broker fees
One buyer from first call to cleared pad, with nothing skimmed.
How it works
Six steps from photograph to payment
- 01
Take pictures
Photograph the nameplate, the inside of the cabinet and the tank from both ends. Four frames on a phone are enough to price most units.
- 02
Send them to us
Email or text the photographs with the site address and whether the unit is still energised. We reply the same business day with questions or a number.
- 03
Review the offer
The offer names the unit, the site, the price and the pickup window. It is written, dated and good for thirty days unless the unit changes hands.
- 04
We schedule freight
A crew, a trailer and a crane if the pad needs one. You get the date and the arrival window, and the site does not have to close for it.
- 05
Testing on arrival
Winding resistance, insulation resistance and a turns ratio check, plus oil analysis where the unit is liquid-filled. Results travel with the unit.
- 06
Get paid
Payment is released against the signed bill of sale and the scale ticket, by check or ACH, with the paperwork copy left on site.
What we handle
The parts sellers dread
Rigging
Crane, skates and a route survey for anything that will not roll onto a trailer.
Oil containment
Pans, absorbent and a spill plan before a drain plug is touched.
Bill of sale
A document that clears a lien, a lease or a bankruptcy file, not a handwritten note.
PCB paperwork
Testing and manifesting for pre-1979 oil, handled before the unit moves.
On the ground
What happened
The insured facility may still have the failed transformer on its pad even though the insurer now owns the salvage. A winding fault, lightning strike or tank fire can leave the unit disconnected but physically attached to cables, grounding conductors and containment equipment.
Ownership and physical custody are separate.
Before anyone opens the tank or removes a bushing, the adjuster should confirm whether the transformer remains evidence in the claim investigation.
Photographs of arc damage, relay records and an inspection report may be needed to distinguish an internal electrical failure from damage caused by an outside event.
Local reality
How Insurance Claim affects value
The salvage assessment belongs in the claim settlement record, so the insurer needs a documented evaluation rather than an informal description from the yard.
That evaluation should identify the specific transformer, its failure condition and the assumptions used, including whether the core, windings, tank and radiators remain together.
A burned 13.8 kV transformer with a breached tank presents different recovery conditions from a sealed unit removed after a protection trip. Missing bushings, drained fluid, fire debris and restricted crane access affect the assessment.
Any written finding should distinguish observed damage from details supplied by the facility or adjuster.
Around the site
The paperwork
Start with the claim reference, the adjuster's contact and the unit's condition report. Include a readable nameplate photograph and the failure date if recorded.
These details connect the physical transformer to the correct claim file, especially where a North Carolina facility has several similar units on adjacent pads.
The file also needs written confirmation of salvage ownership and authority to release the transformer. An insurer's payment does not, by itself, give a demolition contractor permission to load it.
Preserve the applicable settlement documents, release instructions and any restrictions on dismantling, sampling or transferring components before pickup.
Where it sits
Liabilities to settle
A failed tank can leave oil in the containment basin, stained gravel beside the pad or damaged gaskets around a radiator flange. The insurer and facility should establish who handles those conditions before removal.
Buying the transformer does not automatically transfer responsibility for existing contamination or site cleanup.
Fluid identification and any available PCB test records should accompany an oil-filled unit's condition report. If the fire investigation requires retained samples, specify who takes them and where they remain.
Written responsibilities should also cover loose debris, disconnected cables and any damaged concrete left after the tank is lifted.
On the ground
The clock
The pickup date should follow the adjuster's evidence release, not merely the arrival of a replacement transformer. Moving a failed unit too early can interrupt inspection or destroy useful evidence.
Keep the claim reference attached to scheduling instructions so a dispatch change does not bypass an unresolved investigation hold.
At a hospital or operating plant, the failed transformer may occupy space needed for replacement equipment or temporary power cables. Explain that constraint to the adjuster early.
A crane reservation, access permit or planned outage can shape the removal window, but none replaces written authorization to release the salvage.
Local reality
Our process for insurance claim
Transformer Buyers NC reviews the claim reference, adjuster contact, condition report and equipment photographs before planning a purchase and pickup.
Questions focus on identifiable conditions: whether the tank leaks, whether the bushings remain installed, whether fluid testing exists and whether the insurer has released the unit from investigation.
Once authority is confirmed, removal planning addresses the transformer dimensions, verified lifting weight, lifting points and route from the pad to the truck. The claim file should retain the agreed equipment description and pickup record.
A unit with fire-damaged lifting lugs needs a reviewed rigging plan, not an improvised lift.
Around the site
Your first step
Assemble one claim packet before arranging work at the pad: claim reference, adjuster's name and contact details, condition report, nameplate photograph and ownership confirmation. Add photographs showing the failed tank, radiator bank and truck approach.
Identify any investigation hold directly instead of assuming everyone has read the settlement correspondence.
Name the person authorized to approve release and the facility contact responsible for safe site access. Those may be different people. If cables remain connected or fluid is leaking, record that condition in the packet.
Clear instructions let the insurer, facility and pickup crew work from the same claim record.
Get started
Get an offer in minutes
Five fields is all it takes. Photographs help, but a nameplate and a town are enough to start.
No fee, no obligation. We reply the same business day.
Tell us what you have
We reply the same business day.
Questions
Straight answers
Equipment types
Who can authorize pickup of insurer-owned transformer salvage?
The insurer or its authorized representative must approve release when the insurer owns the salvage. The facility contact can coordinate access, but that role alone does not establish ownership authority.
Service area
Can the transformer move before the investigation ends?
Movement should wait for instructions from the adjuster or investigator responsible for preserving evidence. A damaged bushing, relay record or oil sample may still matter to the claim. If the pad must be cleared urgently, obtain written directions covering relocation and evidence preservation first.
Payment
What records are needed for a leaking transformer?
Provide the condition report, photographs of the leak, available fluid identification and PCB test records, and any containment or cleanup instructions. The claim packet should identify who is responsible for leaked fluid and affected ground.
Logistics
The clock: what should a seller know?
The pickup date should follow the adjuster's evidence release, not merely the arrival of a replacement transformer. Moving a failed unit too early can interrupt inspection or destroy useful evidence.