The five gallon water jug of coins is nearing time for turning in.
Does anyone have a favorite free / no fee option, source?
The Coinstar 11.9%(?) ripoff seems a bit steep.
And trying to get around having to roll them too.
I already see the (zero fee) Coinstar gift card option too.
(Don’t know if any of the merchants listed on the card are places I would care to shop at.)
Check with your local bank/credit union.
My credit union has a coin counting machine and it doesn’t have a fee to use it.
PSU
In my area USBank has free coin counting machines in the lobby. But lobby has been closed due to Covid.
Amazon is one of the coupons with no fee.
Rolling isn’t a great idea. A neighbor did that and was off a penny. When they counted the pennies they charged her something in the range of $1 for the mistake.
If you donate to any of the listed charities that could also be an option.
" But lobby has been closed due to Covid. "
well, if you wear a suitable mask, the FBI will never find you.
Howie52
When the door is locked, you may have to break glass. Is that a crime at a bank?
Is that a crime at a bank?
In most jurisdictions? Yep.
But in a couple of really important ones, maybe not.
Witness the daily display of ‘skilled shoppers’ rushing into jewelry stores and high end retailers armed with hammers and crowbars. It’s become a veritable ‘profession’, in some places!
I’ve done both the Coinstar Amazon card and the bank/credit union routes. They both work fine.
If your bank has a machine for free coin counting, that’s my preferred route. It kicks out a slip; take that and a deposit slip across the lobby to the teller; done.
I did try the Coinstar no-commission Amazon approach once, and it worked. Being dubious, I only put in something like $40 of coins, but it did exactly as promised. At the end of the count I selected Amazon, and it generated a slip with an alphanumeric code. I used that at checkout at my next Amazon order and received the full $40 credit.
A five-gallon jug could take awhile. My coin jug holds 2-3 quarts and takes 10 min or so to count (a number of coins need to go through two or more times). Full, it’s about $300 iirc.
HTH
-sutton
who has also found missing keys in there
Well,I dont know the situation in US shops these days (its been nearly 20 years since we moved back to the UK) , but in the UK my local supermarket has a “self scanning” section where you can pay by card or cash. Once in a while - preferably on a “slow” day - I pay for some of my weekly shopping using coins and that gives me a 100% return on my coin stash.
If your bank has a machine for free coin counting, that’s my preferred route. It kicks out a slip; take that and a deposit slip across the lobby to the teller; done.
My bank has the machine, but it is in the back and can only be used by tellers. I haven’t taken in more than a quart, but they have handled it no problem.
A five-gallon jug could take awhile.
I’m not sure how my bank would react to that much. On the one hand there is the coin shortage (still a fact according to google) I used to hear about, but just moving such a container into their secure area might be challenging.
My bank has the machine, but it is in the back and can only be used by tellers. I haven’t taken in more than a quart, but they have handled it no problem.
That’s also the arrangement at my bank. I have just taken a bag of coins to the teller window with a deposit slip; if I don’t choose to wait, they’ll mail me the deposit receipt.
Thanks to all for inputs.
It’s looking like the best route is choosing Amazon on the Coinstar machine. The “full” bottle is likely less than $200, and we order that much via Amazon in a month or two. Several responses have cited the route, with perfectly useful outcomes.
(“Full”: Five gallon bottle is obviously not lipping full. Would need a fork lift to move it if it were. But ~~~20 pounds or so!)
(Charity idea: If we went that route, most direct approach would be to simply hand them a couple of bags, let them do the turn in chore. Wouldn’t get the ‘write off’ [<$200], but that’s not enough to be useful.)
(Other gift card ideas: Don’t know if there would be a place that we would otherwise patronize on their list. Amazon is the known entity.)
Jugs of coins…
Are you sure none of them are valuable – or at least worth more than face value?
Years ago, a friend came to work POed at the local bank. A lady friend of his had a jug of coins her late husband had save for many years, so she dragged it into the bank and a teller smilingly counted them and gave her face value.
Thing is, some of those coins were apparently GOLD coins, unbeknownst to her, and had been stashed there by her late husband since way, way back. IOW, she lost out to a teller who smiled to himself and paid face value for some coins that were worth a helluva lot more, and pocketed the difference!
Just maybe look through them to be sure what you’re tossing into the counter.
Vermonter
Just maybe look through them to be sure what you’re tossing into the counter.
Vermonter
Good point!
I am the only “depositor” to the jug, and I do look at each coin before putting in the jug.
I started collecting back a ‘couple’ of decades ago**, mainly pennies and dimes.
**Well, okay, back around 1955!
I do look at every coin before it goes into the jug. Lotsa coins collected, but still looking for my 1916D dime (264,000 minted). And 1909S-VDB penny. (500,000 minted.)
(Dummy I: I do have the non-S penny, and had a chance to buy the S-VDB for $20. Too much. Passed.)
(Dummy II: Coin shop I frequented. Salad bowl FULL of Indian head pennies. Three cents each. Too much. Passed.)
Gold? Have some. They are NOT in the jug!
Finally, a PS: The is a provision in law about taking advantage of a person who unknowingly ‘sells’ (or gives) you something but who has no knowledge of it’s full actual value. The person who was taken advantage of can claw back the missed value. Is often applied when selling/giving widows are victimized by unscrupulous takers.
I’m not a collector, but I filter out all the wheat pennies, which is the only “good stuff” that still shows up. I have a few steel pennies, a silver quarter, maybe a few silver dimes, other odds and ends. I really should visit a coin shop and get whatever I can for it all. I suspect nobody will deal with it after I’m gone except to spend it as money… or discard it as just pennies. I’m tempted to see what a cashier would do with my $2 bills. I think there is a silver certificate in there too.
RHinCT
I really should visit a coin shop and get whatever I can for it all. I suspect nobody will deal with it after I’m gone except to spend it as money… or discard it as just pennies.
Before you do the coin shop route, take a minute to ensure you have no one in your extended family who has an interest, and would accept gladly. (As a collector, not in taking to a coin shop themselves.)
If you find none, go ahead with the shop route.
$2 bills. They’re quaint, but don’t know if they have ‘collectors’ value.
$2 bill side story: Some years ago, US Navy paid sailors with “lots” of $2 bills cash. Especially in ports where merchants/citizens complained about too many swabbies running around town. The $2 bills quickly found their way into merchants’ cash drawers. Guess what? End of complaints!
BrerBear:
Interesting post. Thanks for sharing.
I have a 1909VDB but no S! Back in the early sixties, a bunch of us used to play penny-ante setback at noon, and I recently came across my beat-up old penny box from then! I should look through the pennies sometime!
Vermonter
I’m tempted to see what a cashier would do with my $2 bills
I try to get $2 bills around the holidays and use them for tips & the entertainment that goes along with that.
peace & fun money
t
Am I the only one that actually just spends my coins?