Discarding TV's, Electronics

[imoldernu]

Old soldiers never die, they just fade away. ~ General Douglas MacArthur

How do you do dispose of old electronics?

 

[gauss]

Salvation Army donation/resell center.

-gauss

 

[Walt34]

Electronics recycling center. State law requires it, heavy fines for dumping elsewhere. We have a burned-out printer awaiting a trip there.

 

[MichaelB]

Electronics recycling center. State law requires it, heavy fines for dumping elsewhere.

Yup. Here's a link that will help you locate a nearby facility Art & Entertainment | Earth911.com

 

[powerplay]

We have various electronic recycling events throughout the year. There is one this Saturday and I have an old printer and cell phone to drop off.

We also have FreeGeek where you can drop off most electronics for recycling although they do ask for a donation. They also rebuild computers and offer them to schools and nonprofits as well as individuals who can volunteer and earn a computer.

 

[travelover]

Best Buy takes electronics including computers and printers. If it works, there is FreeCycle or Craigslist.

 

[Jack_Pine]

Still working and run mid-corp IT shop. We have a service come to the corp center that takes all our old stuff. All my personal stuff goes in that bin.

In a couple of years I am going to have to go to one of the periodic events at the local college.

 

[razztazz]

If it still works and I'm just upgrading: Goodwill or some other place that can use it

If it's something that's required to be recycled: Take it to a recycle place

If it doesn't require recycling and it's just dead: Put it out by the curb with the other trash

 

[imoldernu]

Yup. Here's a link that will help you locate a nearby facility Art & Entertainment | Earth911.com

A good try. This may help some, but the one location nearest to us... is 30 miles, and accepts electronics only for their own town residents. There is one about 70 miles away, but they don't accept CRT Televisions, only LEDs. Chicago is the closest (95) miles and two recycling locations are shown.

None of our local resale stores accept TV's, and the one in the next town that does accept TV's, but only after they have been checked to be in working condition.

We have one day a year where our town provides for disposing of electronics, but there is a limit of three items.

We DO have substantial fines for illegally disposing of electronics, but the town offices don't have any suggestions for disposal.

Am thinking that there may be thousands of electronics buried in back yards all across the nation.

Just watched a TV show that told the story of plants in India, hiring young people to recycle electronics that come from American Recycling companies. Young people who are dying from the toxic metals and gases that come from the reclamation process.

Interesting that we pay a disposal fee when we buy tires or lead acid storage batteries, but none when buying electronics.

 

[Alan]

A good try. This may help some, but the one location nearest to us... is 30 miles, and accepts electronics only for their own town residents. There is one about 70 miles away, but they don't accept CRT Televisions, only LEDs. Chicago is the closest (95) miles and two recycling locations are shown.

None of our local resale stores accept TV's, and the one in the next town that does accept TV's, but only after they have been checked to be in working condition.

We have one day a year where our town provides for disposing of electronics, but there is a limit of three items.

We DO have substantial fines for illegally disposing of electronics, but the town offices don't have any suggestions for disposal.

Am thinking that there may be thousands of electronics buried in back yards all across the nation.

Just watched a TV show that told the story of plants in India, hiring young people to recycle electronics that come from American Recycling companies. Young people who are dying from the toxic metals and gases that come from the reclamation process.

Interesting that we pay a disposal fee when we buy tires or lead acid storage batteries, but none when buying electronics.

sorry to hear that it is made so difficult for you.

Old working electronics we donate to charity, and old broken electronics we take to a recycling center 1 mile from our home. However, it does cost. I recently took a broken HP printer/scanner to the recycle center and it cost $5. That is cheap enough for me but I wonder how much illegal disposal goes on. In California the disposal cost is built into the purchase price just like tires.

 

[W2R]

Imoldernu, it's terribly hard to learn the more obscure public and private services a community may provide when you don't really live there year 'round, and I sympathize with your situation.

Addressing the problem of getting rid of a worthless, broken, huge CRT television without paying a big fee, based on what is available in my own community:

(1) I got rid of my last CRT television when I bought my first flat screen TV, several years ago. I bought the flat screen TV from a local appliance store that advertised (at that time) that they would remove and dispose of the old television as well as deliver the new one. I don't know if stores do that any more, but it might be worth asking if you plan to buy locally.

(2) Here's another solution. Call your local city or county, whichever oversees trash collection in your area. Ask them how to get rid of an older television. Here, if you just put a big CRT TV at the curb separate from your other trash, it will be picked up for recycling on one of the two weekly trash collection days. Frank did that just last year.

(3) And finally, here's a third solution. After Hurricane Katrina, we didn't have trash collection so with some effort I located a trash hub of sorts about 4-5 miles from here where I had to take my storm debris. It still exists and is easily available to residents, free, and in a convenient location, although again, few know about it so it is not so busy now as it once was. It's not a dump, but is run by the trash people and has many many large dumpsters which when full are taken to the dump. It also has a corner just for old refrigerators, and a corner for CRT televisions, and so on. I took my gargantuan 1980 microwave there after Katrina and was directed towards a pile of other microwaves. All you had to do was show your drivers' license and a utility bill to prove residence, and they would direct you as to where to put your CRT television. They didn't want this stuff mixed in with the regular trash, because disposal procedures had to be followed.

 

[MichaelB]

A good try. This may help some, but the one location nearest to us... is 30 miles, and accepts electronics only for their own town residents. There is one about 70 miles away, but they don't accept CRT Televisions, only LEDs. Chicago is the closest (95) miles and two recycling locations are shown.

Sorry to hear that. We also spend time in Illinois and Florida, but in both locations have multiple options for getting rid of stuff.

(2) Here's another solution. Call your local city or county, whichever oversees trash collection in your area. Ask them how to get rid of an older television. Here, if you just put a big CRT TV at the curb separate from your other trash, it will be picked up for recycling on one of the two weekly trash collection days. Frank did that just last year.

(3) And finally, here's a third solution. After Hurricane Katrina, we didn't have trash collection so with some effort I located a trash hub of sorts about 4-5 miles from here where I had to take my storm debris. It still exists and is easily available to residents, free, and in a convenient location, although again, few know about it so it is not so busy now as it once was.

+1

 

[travelover]

If nothing else works, put it on the curb with a sign that says, " For Sale $100". Don't lock it.

 

[Amethyst]

First, you have to be able to move it. We have 2 gigantic 1990's CRT TVs in the basement, which the two of us can't budge, let alone bring upstairs, let alone fit into our little car to take to the landfill. They only got downstairs in the first place because they were stored during our overseas stint, and movers moved them.

Hate to pay somebody $150-plus just to haul 2 TVs for us, but that's what things are coming to...we pay, and pay, and pay for things we can't do ourselves.

Amethyst

If nothing else works, put it on the curb with a sign that says, " For Sale $100". Don't lock it.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

I've used the Best Buy service -- free disposal of up to three TVs per day at Illinois Best Buy stores. Recycling: Mobile Phone Recycling, Computer Recycling - Best Buy

 

[Theseus]

Hate to pay somebody $150-plus just to haul 2 TVs for us, but that's what things are coming to...we pay, and pay, and pay for things we can't do ourselves.

Yeah, I get the part about not being the workhorse of a young man I used to be. Kind of a combination of getting lazier, maybe even smarter, but certainly a bit less able bodied I guess. What I've found works wonders for getting that old freezer or whatever removed the basement is to wait until a purchase of something big enough to warrant home delivery comes around (with an offer of free delivery of course), and ask the new generation of able bodied fellows doing the delivery if they could do the heavy lifting thing. If they oblige they will be leaving with some extra cash for their efforts. A $20 tip for a few minutes of work can make for a great day for a couple of guys probably not making that much in an hour.

 

[eytonxav]

Best Buy takes electronics including computers and printers. If it works, there is FreeCycle or Craigslist.

+1 and they took our old 27" tube TV. What a boat anchor that was.

 

[mystang52]

I had a fully functional older-version 35" TV. I put it on my curb, with the remote, and a sign that said:
"Free. Excellent condition." Literally, it was gone in under an hour.

 

[photoguy]

I think people in silicon valley must have more valuable electronics junk. It seems like every few months we get notices from various "charities" that they are doing a neighborhood recycling run and that you can leave out all sorts of electronics goods on the curb and they will pick them up and recycle it for you.

Apple used to give (maybe they still do) out a free prepaid shipping mailer that you could use to recycle old computers. I sent in a 50lb+ CRT monitor :>

 

[Gotadimple]

Try this site, it has more options that the other one that was posted. This is about donating your electronics to charities, that either refurbish and 'rehome' them, or tear them apart for parts.

Where to Donate Your Old Computers & Electronics to Charity

 

[kcowan]

Good Will for big stuff (Salvation Army)
Cell store for old phones and accessories
Drug store for old batteries

I have tried the secure parking garage of our apartment but found no takers for the big stuff. We also sort our bottles, cardboard and newsprint in the parking garage. The bottles that have deposits often get "picked" before collection day. (The secure garage door will not keep pickers out because of the high level of in/out activity each morning & evening.)

 

[Mulligan]

We do not have a collection center nearby. If I have something big I put it out on curb on the fall and spring trash collection day.


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