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Scrap yards are the biggest crooks on the planet. I won't apologize for that - there's good reason why most of the expensive property in downtown Portland, Oregon is owned by the largest scrapper (Schnitizer). it isn't because they honest.
Okay, so how to fight it. I'm sure Deaf Bob will pipe in here, but this needs to be both started and published.
Scrap yards make money by underpaying you for your material. I don't know how many times I've seen people throwing brass and aluminum on the tin pile. Tin pays the absolute least - and it's easy to tell the pile, it's the one with refrigerators in it.
So you sort, but most don't get that things like cast iron manifolds, engine blocks, and such are a higher value of cast iron then 'pig' iron which is unclean cast.
On top of that, if you sort the steel out, you'll double or even triple what you'd get if you just remove those.
Clean - scrap yards will deduct if you have things like paint cans, or unclean stuff - e.g. a radiator which is both brass and copper. If at all possible, especially on non-ferrous metals, break them apart enough to 5% 'dirty'
Aluminum. Right now aluminum is nearly gold at the scrap yard but here's where you really get their scam game - they find magnetic anything, and they'll call it dirty and you'll get barely above tin prices. How bad is that, $70/ton for tin, $30 EACH for aluminum wheels...
Cats. if at all possible, don't use the scrap yards but sell them to the guys on the internet.... yeah, they're crooks too but those crooks will pay you $50-$200 EACH for cats, where you might get $10/ea from the yards. Another classic there is the gypsies will see a newb in the yard and convince them to sell them their cats for $20 "as a favor".... they know you're a newb when you're throwing 4340 steel in the tin pile.
Aluminum cans. If you're going to the yard anyway, recycle them there.... but get a crusher because those things take up a lot of cargo capacity for not much weight.....
Some don'ts, though.
1) don't carry liquid waste into the yard (motors still full of oil, etc).... just don't do it
2) the person giving you the money didn't scam you, and they're not scamming you by telling you they're sending you a check.
3) follow directions. they need to: first, weigh you, second, once you're off the scale, direct you, third weigh you at least once if not several times more depending on how thoroughly you sorted your material.
4) they know you're a newb, ask lots of questions. Strangely, most of the guys in the yard love sticking it to their employer and they'll help you.... that isn't true at where they buy the non-ferrous metal.... I swear those guys get a commission because I've heard all manner of lies from them.... and been victim of them, now I love the sound of the bus running over them and will do it every time....
If you want to sell your metal but don't want to deal with the yards - some wrecking yards are pretty good to deal with and buy scrap. I have a U-Pull-it that is VERY competitive on stuff I bring them.
That said, when a scrapyard sends you to the tin pile, that's when you unload all your old, full paint cans. let them pay for that toxic mess.
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