---
title: "Rust Recycle Chart: Component Yields at Every Recycler (2026)"
description: "What each Rust component gives at 40%, 50%, 60% and 75% recyclers after the Power Trip changes, plus the server settings. From the Sept 2026 game files."
url: "https://www.gameserverkings.com/knowledge-base/rust/rust-recycle-chart/"
category: "Rust"
category_url: "https://www.gameserverkings.com/knowledge-base/rust/"
published: "2026-09-28T04:25:11.247Z"
updated: "2026-09-28T04:25:11.247Z"
source_format: "markdown"
site: "GameServerKings"
---

# Rust Recycle Chart: Component Yields at Every Recycler (2026)

This Rust recycle chart shows what every common component gives back in a recycler, and how that changes between the four recycler setups the game has had since August 2026. Most older recycle charts assume one fixed rate. That stopped being true with the *Power Trip* update. Recyclers now run at 40%, 50%, 60% or 75% depending on where they are and whether the Power Plant is running.

All numbers here come from the Rust dedicated server files: the public build dated 22 September 2026, which is after September's *Breach and Clear* update. We read each item's crafting recipe and the recycler settings from those files, then applied the same formula the server's recycler code uses.

## The Four Recycler Types

| Recycler | Where | Efficiency | Seconds per cycle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Inside safe zones | 40% | 8 |
| Green (unpowered) | Outside safe zones | 50% | 5 |
| Green (powered) | Outside safe zones, with 4+ heavy fuses in the Power Plant | 60% | 5 (4.5 with all 18 fuses) |
| Red | One at the Power Plant, works only at maximum power (18 fuses) | 75% | 4 |

Facepunch's *Power Trip* notes put it like this: "Green recyclers (the ones outside of safezones) have received a 10% nerf to their baseline efficiency of 50%, being restored to 60% with sufficient power from the power plant." The Power Plant has four power stages, reached at 1, 4, 10 and 18 heavy fuses. Green recyclers get their 60% at stage 2 (4 fuses) and the faster 4.5-second cycle at stage 4 (18 fuses). The red recycler only switches on at stage 4.

The upshot: on a fresh wipe, before anyone has fused the Power Plant, a monument recycler gives you 50%. The safe-zone recycler is still the worst of the four, but it's the one nobody can shoot you at.

## Rust Recycle Chart: Components at a Green Recycler (50%)

This is what one item returns at an unpowered green recycler, the most common case:

| Item | Scrap | Metal fragments | HQM | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rifle Body | 25 | | 1.5 | |
| Tech Trash | 20 | | 1 | |
| Electric Fuse | 20 | | | |
| SMG Body | 15 | | 1.5 | |
| Semi Automatic Body | 15 | 75 | 1.5 | |
| Gears | 10 | 12.5 | | |
| Metal Spring | 10 | | 1 | |
| Sheet Metal | 8 | 100 | 1 | |
| Metal Pipe | 5 | | 1 | |
| Road Signs | 5 | | 1 | |
| Metal Blade | 2 | 15 | | |
| Empty Propane Tank | 1 | 50 | | |
| Tarp | | | | 50 cloth |
| Rope | | | | 15 cloth |
| Sewing Kit | | | | 10 cloth, 1.5 rope |
| Duct Tape | | | | 2.5 cloth, 0.5 glue |
| Targeting Computer | | 50 | 1 | 2.5 tech trash |
| CCTV Camera | | | 1.5 | 1.5 tech trash |
| Empty Can Of Beans | | 10 | | |
| Empty Tuna Can | | 8 | | |

### What the half numbers mean

The recycler doesn't round. For each item it works out the exact share (a rifle body's 3 HQM recipe × 50% = 1.5), gives you the whole part, then rolls for the fraction. A rifle body therefore gives 1 HQM half the time and 2 HQM the other half, and averages 1.5 over a stack. Gears average 12.5 metal fragments: 12 or 13 each. Scrap works a little differently. Fractions of scrap are saved up in the recycler and paid out once they add up to a whole scrap.

### The other recyclers

Every output scales in a straight line with efficiency, so you can convert the chart above with one multiplier:

| Recycler | Multiply the green chart by | Example: Rifle Body |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow (safe zone), 40% | 0.8 | 20 scrap, 1.2 HQM |
| Green, 50% | 1 | 25 scrap, 1.5 HQM |
| Green powered, 60% | 1.2 | 30 scrap, 1.8 HQM |
| Red (Power Plant), 75% | 1.5 | 37.5 scrap, 2.25 HQM |

So a stack of 10 tech trash is 200 scrap at a green recycler, 160 in a safe zone and 300 at the red recycler. If you have a big pile of components and the Power Plant is fully fused, the trip to the red recycler pays for itself.

## Rules the Chart Doesn't Show

- **Anything without a crafting recipe can't be recycled.** The recycler only accepts items that have a recipe, so glue, bleach and research paper won't go in.
- **Damaged items return less.** For items with a condition bar, like weapons, tools and the Electric Fuse, the efficiency is multiplied by the item's condition (never by less than 0.1). A half-broken rifle in a green recycler returns about 25% of its recipe, not 50%.
- **Recycling returns a share of the crafting cost.** Every material except scrap is the item's recipe × efficiency. Scrap comes from a separate per-item value, which is why tech trash gives 20 scrap even though crafting it costs 50. That's also a quick test for whether to recycle something or keep it: if you'd craft it again, you lose at least half of what it cost.
- **Big stacks go through in batches.** Each cycle takes up to 10% of the item's stack size at once. Tech trash (stack 50) goes through 5 per cycle, gears (stack 20) 2 per cycle, and rifle bodies (stack 10) 1 per cycle. On a server with raised stack sizes, recyclers chew through stacks faster.

## Recycler Settings on Your Own Server

If you run your own server, the new recycler rates are server variables, so you can put them back the way your players expect. These are vanilla commands, no plugin needed:

| Command | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| `powergrid.greenRecyclerFullEfficiencyStage` | -1 | Power stage green recyclers need for 60%. Set it to `0` and every green recycler runs at 60% without the Power Plant |
| `powergrid.simulatePowerPlantFuses` | 0 | Pretends this many extra heavy fuses are in the Power Plant. `18` puts the grid at full power: green recyclers at 60% and 4.5 s, and the red recycler switched on |
| `powergrid.enabled` | true | Turns the whole power grid system off. Green recyclers then stay at 50% |
| `powergrid.status` | – | Prints the current stage, fuse count and settings |

`simulatePowerPlantFuses 18` also counts toward everything else that depends on the Power Plant, such as the drone marketplace and the powerline poles. Use `greenRecyclerFullEfficiencyStage 0` if you only want the recycler change. To make either one survive a restart, add the line to your server config. On a GameServerKings Rust server that's `server/myserver/cfg/server.cfg`, in the **File Manager**:

``` title="server/myserver/cfg/server.cfg"
powergrid.greenRecyclerFullEfficiencyStage 0
```

You can run the same commands live from the panel **Console** or over RCON. [Rust Admin Commands](/knowledge-base/rust/admin-commands/) covers admin access and where commands go, and [How to Make a Rust Server](/knowledge-base/rust/how-to-host-a-rust-server/) covers the setup if you're starting from scratch. For the explosives you'll be crafting from all that scrap and HQM, see the [Rust raid chart](/knowledge-base/rust/rust-raid-chart/).

## FAQ

### What is the best recycler in Rust?

The red recycler at the Power Plant, at 75%. It only works when all 18 heavy fuses are in, so on most servers it's off for much of the wipe. The next best is a green recycler outside a safe zone once the Power Plant has 4 or more fuses (60%).

### Do safe zone recyclers give less?

Yes. Yellow recyclers in safe zones run at 40% and take 8 seconds per cycle. A green recycler outside a safe zone gives 50% (60% with power) and cycles every 5 seconds.

### How much scrap does a rifle body give?

25 scrap and an average of 1.5 HQM at a green recycler. That drops to 20 scrap and 1.2 HQM in a safe zone, and rises to 37.5 scrap and 2.25 HQM at the red recycler.

### How much scrap does tech trash give?

20 scrap and 1 HQM per tech trash at a green recycler.

### Can you recycle glue?

No. Glue, bleach and research paper have no crafting recipe, and the recycler only accepts items that do.

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