• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Odds / What Does the Government Do with Old Money?

What Does the Government Do with Old Money?

May 6, 2020 by Karen Hill

You’d probably like to have the government send it to you, naturally! But the Treasury Department has other ideas. Every day, it collects worn and dirty bills, 4-5 tons of them! Which are too old and worn to be used.

These bills are destroyed in a machine called a macerator, which shreds $1,000,000 a minute into tiny confetti-sized pieces of paper.

Not all damaged money is worthless. If, for example, you have a bill with part of it torn away, you can redeem it.

If you have at least 3/5 of the bill, you can send it to the Treasury Department and get a fresh, new bill of the same value. If you have more than 2/5 of the bill but less than 3/5, you can redeem it for half the value of the bill.

The composition of the paper on which our money is printed is one of the government’s most highly guarded secrets!

Related Facts

  • Where does the word "money" (mint) come from and What does money mean in Latin?
  • Where does the phrase "pin money" come from and What does pin money mean?
  • What Does the Phrase "Pin Money" Mean and Why is it Used For Money Wives Got From Their Husband?
  • How dirty is Money and Does Money spread contagious diseases?
  • Which Countries Made Up the Old Soviet Union Before the Collapse of Its Communist Government In 1991?
  • How Old Is Money?

Filed Under: Odds

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Why Do Some Coins Have Ridges Around the Edges?
Next Post: How Did the Dollar Sign Begin? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2021 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy