Waste, recycling & environmental services
Books and taxes for tire recycling companies.
Tipping fees charged per tire, a shredder turning stockpiles into crumb rubber and fuel, and a fire-risk stockpile that needs its own insurance line. Your bookkeeper keeps it straight, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
July cleared $15,000. A cement kiln order for tire-derived fuel came in heavy, so I kept that apart from the tipping fees you collected from tire shops.
- Tire shop tipping feesTipping fee income
- Cement kiln TDF orderFuel sales
- Shredder blade replacementEquipment maintenance
- Stockpile fire insuranceInsurance
- State hauler permit renewalCompliance fees
Why your books are different
Tire recycling books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and a fuel bill. Your business charges by the tire coming in and sells by the pound or ton going out as crumb rubber or fuel, while a stockpile sitting on the property carries a real fire risk. Blend it and you cannot tell what the yard actually earned.
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1
Tipping fees and product sales use different units
Tire shops pay per tire dropped off, but crumb rubber and tire-derived fuel sell by the pound or ton. Blended into one revenue line, you cannot see whether intake or processed sales is actually carrying the month.
What we doKeeps tipping fee income and processed product sales in separate lines, so each side of the business shows its own number. -
2
Stockpile fire risk hides inside general insurance
A tire stockpile carries real fire risk and usually costs more to insure than an ordinary yard. Lumped into one general insurance line, you lose sight of what carrying inventory outdoors actually costs you.
What we doKeeps stockpile and fire-related insurance costs on their own line, so the real cost of holding tires outdoors is visible. -
3
The shredder looks like a repair bill
A tire shredder or grinder can run well into six figures. Filed as yard maintenance, it wrecks that month's number and misses a real write off.
What we doFlags a shredder or grinder purchase the day it shows up, logs it as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how to write it off. -
4
Tires waiting to be processed go untracked
A big collection month can pile up tires that have not been shredded or sold yet. Left untracked, that month can look like a loss for material that just has not turned into revenue yet.
What we doKeeps a running sense of tires on hand awaiting processing, so an intake month reads as inventory, not a loss.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a tire recycling yard.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Tipping feesWhat tire shops, dealerships, and the public pay per tire dropped off.
- Crumb rubber salesProcessed rubber sold to mulch and playground surface makers.
- Tire-derived fuel salesShredded tire fuel sold to cement kilns and industrial boilers.
- Municipal collection event feesWhat a city or county pays for a scrap tire collection event.
Money out
- Shredder and grinder maintenanceBlades, fuel, and repairs for processing equipment.
- Truck fuel for collection routesFuel and upkeep for trucks hauling tires in from accounts.
- Stockpile fire insuranceCoverage specific to the fire risk of storing tires outdoors.
- State hauler permits and manifestsCompliance fees many states require for scrap tire haulers.
- Yard crew wagesPay for staff running the shredder and sorting material.
What we watch for you
- Intake versus processed sales
How much of the month came from tire intake versus selling processed rubber or fuel.
- Cost per ton processed
What it costs to turn a stockpile into sellable crumb rubber or fuel.
- Tires on hand
How much collected material is still waiting to be processed at month end.
- The set-aside
What you will owe on tipping fees and processed sales together, tracked every month so April is never a scramble.
Ask Gus
Things tire recycling owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
It should not, and I keep it from reading that way. Tipping fees show up as intake, and the tires waiting to be shredded count as inventory, not a loss.
Yes. Stockpile and fire-related insurance sits on its own line, so you can see what holding tires outdoors actually costs.
Usually it can. I logged it as equipment, not yard maintenance, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your whole year in view.
The tax side
The tax side of a tire recycling yard.
Most of what goes wrong here is units and timing. Tipping fees and product sales on different scales, and equipment filed like a repair.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Shredders and processing equipmentA tire shredder or grinder can usually be written off the year you buy it. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025. Whether to take it all now depends on the year you are having.
- Yard crew worker classificationAn operator running the shredder or sorting tires on your schedule and your equipment is almost always an employee, even if paid a daily rate.
- Quarterly estimated taxWith income that can swing on fuel and rubber demand, taxes are due April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15, rather than one bill in April.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operated tire recycling yards can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions tire recycling companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Shredder and grinder blades
- Truck fuel and repairs
- Stockpile fire insurance
- State hauler permit fees
- Safety gear and gloves
- Scale calibration
- Yard fencing and fire lanes
- Uniforms for the yard crew
- Phone for route dispatch
- Business licenses
- Baling wire and equipment
- Conveyor belt repairs
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A tire recycling year, kept every month.
Tires come in year round, but seasonal driving habits shift the flow. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the tire year
Last year's return gets started and you get a monthly set-aside, so April is already handled before spring tire changeovers bring in more loads.
- April
Filed and behind you
The return is signed and sent in, whatever fuel and rubber prices did this year. The set-aside had it covered, so nothing shows up as a surprise.
- July
Midyear tire check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether summer fuel and rubber demand changed the number.
- October
Before winter tire season
Drivers switching to winter tires bring a fall surge in scrap tire intake. Gus looks at equipment you might need and anything worth doing before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for tire recycling companies. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions tire recycling owners ask first.
Can Gus keep tipping fees separate from crumb rubber and fuel sales?
Yes. Each sits in its own line, so you can see whether intake or processed sales is actually carrying the month.
Our stockpile insurance costs more than a regular yard's. Is that tracked separately?
Yes. Fire-related insurance for the stockpile sits on its own line, so you can see what carrying tires outdoors actually costs.
We took in a lot of tires but have not shredded them yet. Does that hurt the month's numbers?
It should not, and Gus keeps it from reading that way. Tires waiting to be processed are tracked as inventory, not a loss.
Do I write off a new shredder all at once?
Often the whole cost comes off the year you buy it, though for a big purchase spreading it out can be the smarter play. Gus flags it the day it shows up, and the accountant makes the call against your full year.
My books have never separated tipping fees from product sales. Is that fixable?
Yes. Turn over whatever bank statements you have, intake and product sales all mixed in. Gus untangles the backlog, the accountant checks it, and you will know where you stand within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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- Wetland & environmental permitting consultants
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever