At least here in the PNW (don't know if they're nationwide), many grocery stores have a coin counting vending machine called Coinstar.

I've been saving pennies, nickles, etc for a whopping 9 years in a large cup, & had been planning on converting to cash. At least around here, the banks will no longer count change, & the coinstar machines charge 9.3%, so I've been holding off.

Today I decided to go use the machine. I discovered they now waive the 9% charge if you take a gift certificate, & one that they offer is Amazon! So I turned 9 years of pennies into a $31 Amazon gift cert that will likely go towards the Hendrix box (or the expanded Metropolis).

I also discovered that rubber bands decompose if left in a large cup with coins for 9 years...........!

I've used that method many times, Geff. It's perfect for me - I swap all my change for an Amazon gift cert as soon as my big plastic peanut tub gets full (that usually translates into about $125 or so). I'm all ready to cash in for the Hendrix box, Band on the Run etc in a couple weeks. Perfect way to avoid the crazy 9% fee to count change.

I thought the $31 over 9 years was alot., guess I don't use much cash! The clerk at the grocery store also said that she did about $125 a year.

Did not know this and I have a good size jar with a lot of coins.

Please don't forget IMWAN/ICE when you use your Amazon gift certificates! We benefit from your purchases even if you pay with a giftcert, so long as you enter Amazon.com through one of our specially-tagged links, such this one:

http://www.amazon.com/?tag=imwan-20

Just be sure it's an actual Coinstar machine as I don't believe the other brands have the Amazon deal.

My bank (TD Bank) has been doing that for years with no fees at all. It's one of the only things they do right.

Yep. Me too!

Chase will not count coins. When they were Wa Mu, they would, but Chase sucks big time.

I've been using Coinstar to support my Amazon CD habit for years. Also, a few times a year, Coinstar has promotions like "cash in $40, get $10 free".

Our old bank made us put the coins in wrappers ourselves, which was totally not worth it.

Yep, that's what Chase does. I'd rather pay CS the 9%; the Amazon gc @ no charge was a nice surprise.

Does anyone know if Amazon USA gc's will work with Amazon.UK? I'm probably going to spend part of it on the Eureka Metropolis as it doesn't appear that I'm getting a reviewer's copy.

Sorry, Geff, they'll only work on the USA site. Amazon UK has its own set of GC codes, and so does Amazon Canada.

Not what I wanted to hear, but thanks!