PURPOSE: To evenly preheat scrap in a basket while eliminating the need for the interruption of the preheating even during the replacement of basket into which the scrap is held in a method and an apparatus wherein the scrap is preheated by utilizing energy of an exhaust gas of a furnace and fed into a smelting surface.

CONSTITUTION: Baskets 61 and 62 are arranged ratably around the center shaft thereof, and at specified positions 54 and 55, an exhaust gas is sent upward from below through upper and lower hoods of the baskets in series to the plurality of baskets 61 and 62 by the operation of valves 31-38. When the exhaust gas does not flow to one basket by the operation of the valves, that basket is turned and moved to the basket takeoff position 56 and then, to a smelting furnace to feed the scrap. Thereafter, the basket is filled with the scrip at the scrap position and returned to the basket takeoff position. The basket is turned to a heating position and the exhaust gas is supplied in series to a plurality of baskets.