Tim Danhamn writes "SmartPlanet.com, a green-focused Web site, has put up an article about the best way to recycle your old tech, including local recycling centers and reusing old technology in other ways. I'm about to upgrade to a new PC and I have a lot of old radios, MP3 players and other electronic goods lying around the house. The article though is mostly about solutions in the UK, so I want to know - what is the best way to recycle old tech in the US?"
Realistically....I generally pile it all up with the rest of the trash for the garbage men to pick up. But, I leave it on top, in plain sight. Usually by morning...someone has come along and grabbed most of what is good...and the rest...goes in the garbage truck.
I don't think I've ever had a monitor or computer make it through the night without a 'dumpster' diver type grabbing it for themselves....
Some friends of mine worked in a retail store, and had an old dot matrix printer that still worked, but they were done with. They put it out by the dumpster with a "free" sign on it. It sat by the dumpster for weeks, until one of them went out and put a "$10, inquire inside" sign on it, and it walked off within the hour.
OK, admittedly off topic, but in a very similar vein and for your amusement:
Years ago, I was doing some HVAC work at an apartment community. This complex was made up of many buildings with several townhomes in each, all side by side. The electric meters for each townhome were grouped together on the back porch of one of the townhomes in each building. The particular condensing unit we were working on happened to be on the back porch where all the power meters were. While we were fixing it, the lady who lived in the house came out and asked us:
"Is there any way to make that meter run slower? My "light bill" is too high."
At this point, the other guy working with me (a real wise ass from NY) doesn't even skip a beat and says very matter of factly:
"Oh yeah, just put a brick on top of the meter"
Now it's all I can do to keep from laughing in her face at this point, but somehow I manage. She seems satisfied and goes back inside.
About a week later, I go back to the same unit to check it out and make sure it's still working fine and EVERY SINGLE METER had a brick on top of it. I bet I laughed for an hour.
You do realize that the reason you're supposed to recycle your electronics properly is to keep heavy metals out of the environment. You mention that dumpster divers take most of the stuff, but anything they don't take ends up in the landfill. I'm not trying to harp on you, but if you throw out old electronics this way out of laziness, you should know the consequences on the environment.
I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but when we process ore to get those materials (chrome, lead, etc.), they are pretty much never in that concentrated of a state in the environment. It's not that they don't exist in the environment, it's that they don't exist in high concentrations, or that they were previously locked in ore that groundwater wasn't being filtered through. Which is the main issue... heavy metals really fuck up kids, and to a lesser extent adults. So we don't really want them in the water supply. You're either a good troll, or slightly ignorant, in which case I hope I've aided in your edification:)
You have some nerve telling people about how science works after making such a stupid comment.
Uranium, beryllium, and mercury come from the environment, too. I suppose you'd have no problem with someone dumping a load of them into your backyard, then?
Yep, chrome, lead, etc definitely DO NOT from the environment
I know you're trolling, but for anyone reading this and wondering;
The metals mentioned don't exist in nature*. Galena, Chromite, Cassiterite etc are ores which do exist in the environment and from which chrome, lead and tin etc are produced. They're relatively safe because they're locked in host rock and largely insoluble in water.
* Except crystalline lead in very rare circumstances.
I know you're trolling, but I feel like I need to correct your ignorance before it infects other casual readers...
Your heavy metals go into the landfill, and no landfill is 100% leak proof for all of eternity. The metals seep into the groundwater below said landfill. This water flows into the main water sources of the area, where your municipality DOES get it's water. This is a middle-school level physical science concept.
what is the best way to recycle old tech in the US?
EBay.
Seriously, what better way to not trash something by getting what life (or parts) are left in it?
People get some good money for hardly working/not working tech on EBay just for parts alone. And hell, you may have no use for that old P350 but someone else on there just might. Why not let them have it for a few bucks+shipping?
Good idea, but is it cost-effective if you only have a few items to sell? Can I be certain that I won't end up paying listing fees and failing to get rid of the equipment? Not to mention the hassle arranging shipping for bulky items. No doubt a million people will post this but a good solution which gets the equipment to people in the local area is Freecycle [freecycle.org].
If Ebay isn't cost effective for you, then you can always try Craigslist [craigslist.org], if a subnet exists for your area. It's free to post ads, and you get the benefit of dealing locally. I've sold or given away hardware this way before to ensure it doesn't wind up in a landfill. Your contact info is anonymous (until you reply to responses). It's good to be able to make the exchange face-to-face rather than over email only. Of course, the usual "Don't be Stupid" rules apply to scams and jerks, etc. I highly recommend it.
Actually, they are right smack dab in the sweet spot for classic PC gaming, which are notoriously difficult to get running under windows or in emulation programs because they heavily direct access to video hardware, dos interupts, and required as much of that 640kb main memory as you could possibly give it [I recall having autoexec/config setups that dropped support for the CDrom, and used an 8kb mouse driver to run a particular game that actually came on CD. I had to do a full install of the game from CD, and then run the game without CD support in order to have enough RAM. These games were also pretty cpu clock sensitive.
I keep series of early PCs around for precisely this reason. Getting games like XCOM, Masters of Orion II, Might and Magic IV, Star Control II, Echelon, Privateer I/II, Wing Commander I/II/III, etc, etc can excruciatingly hard to get going without sound issues, with the proper framerate, with multiplayer (null modem) support etc...
I can be almost impossible unless running on real hardware from the era.
A P166 would make a good platform for late dos era games, and early win95 games.
Here's a better way: http://www.wwcs.org/site/PageServer?pagename=cr_home [wwcs.org]. They use the stuff to train at-risk youth in the tech trades. Drop-offs are free, pickups have a small fee ($150 for a semi-load -- they even palletize for you!). I send about 3 semis worth to them each year. The link is to a place in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They might be able to help you find a similar program in your area.
Scarily enough, even "recyclers" may not be doing the right thing here. I've enclosed an interesting link from the NPR series "Consumed" which talks about how the US sends vast electronic garbage to China, and how some of the materials may be finding their way back here, in a not-so good way.
Most recyclers will take circuit boards (PCB's) and give you decent money for them. They melt them down to get all the copper out. Copper is not cheap.
The Electronics Takeback Coalition [computertakeback.com] runs a computer takeback campaign and maintains a list of electronics recyclers [computertakeback.com] who they have deemed "responsible" based on a pledge the listed recyclers have signed onto. The pledge includes no exporting, no sending to prisons (where labor safety standards are often nonexistent or unenforced), and not sending it to landfills or incinerators.
Here in San Francisco, I regularly bring recycling to Computer Recycling Center [crc.org] dropoffs. They even do pickups if you have at leas
And FreeGeek in Portland is where I take my old stuff. If there's lots of electronics somewhere and some people who care, it's not impossible to get rid of most of it in a good way.
I was in Tokyo this summer and met a woman from Hong Kong who was giving a presentation at the university on how polluted areas of China are getting because of all the computer trash. The United States and Japan are the two worst offenders of this.
China's idea of "recycling" is having lower income people burn the old parts in open drums to reclaim the metals. This process dumps tons of burned plastic residue, PCB's and metals such as mercury all over the local landscape. There are areas of China that are becoming almost inhabitable. Birth defects are increasing. The study she did went so far as to measure the significant increase in these chemicals in breast milk.
For most of these chemicals they were tracking, the only places in the world that higher concentrations in the environment were in areas of Taiwan where a lot of this is manufactured.
From a financial perspective US companies that are moving manufacturing to China are not really saving any money on the manufacturing costs. (My wife worked in the finance department for a major power tool manufacturer and others have shared similar stories) Where they are saving money is in not having to provide all the controls and filters that the EPA is requiring at their facilities. The Chinese government has been willing to sell the future health of the country in the name of economic progress. And American companies are all too willing to oblige.
One great way is just to give it away to anyone who wants it.
Try this link to Freecycle [freecycle.org], where there's a list of groups for areas within the US and around the world.
by Anonymous Coward
on Friday November 16 2007, @02:54PM (#21382901)
Freecycle is unbelievable.
Every time we have listed something, I said to myself "there is no way anyone wants that crap." And every time we immediately get multiple takers.
We listed the plants in a flowerbed we were going to pave over and within a couple of days someone came to our house, dug them out and carted them off.
There was an old Saturday Night Live sketch, mocking the then-current New York City advertising campaign for its trash bins: "Keep New York Clean". The SNL version was "Keep New York Clean (dump your trash in New Jersey)" which is, of course, where New York City trash goes.
by Anonymous Coward
on Friday November 16 2007, @02:44PM (#21382763)
Freegeek [freegeek.org], in Portland, Oregon, is the best recycling option around. They recycle old monitors and equipment in an environmentally safe way. They use functional equipment to train people to work on hardware and install open source operating systems. Volunteers earn a refurbished system after volunteering 24 hours of time.
A little further south, in Eugene, Oregon Geeks Without Borders [gwob.org] does a similar thing, with a more international focus.
And, for actual junk, Nextstep Recycling and Computer Re-Use [nextsteprecycling.org] in Eugene will take almost anything, though they charge a fee for monitors, as just about everybody does.
Disclaimer: I helped found Geeks Without Borders, and currently sit on the board. I also helped with the startup of MacRenewal, the predecessor organization to Nextstep Recycling.
As much as I like recycling. There are collectors for EVERYTHING. Please do a minimum search, even on eBay to see if someone would like to buy your "junk" before you consider sending it to get recycled. I collect old DEC computers (PDP & VAX) and I've seen too many good old "classic" computers get recycled that lots of people would probably enjoy tinkering with. Old radios are probably the same. One mans junk is another mans collectable
DVD / DVD rw drives are still useful in new systems.
Your old floppy drive will still work in your new system.
Older HD can go in to ext cases or be used as a temp / swap disk in new system as well.
Old mac G4 and G5 parts sell good on ebay like the cpus with HS, MB as well the PSU's and cases also DDR 1 ram is still used in many systems older but still in use systems.
High end sounds that a 1-2 years old are still better then todays on board sound.
Other pci cards that you used in the past likely will still work in your new system.
You use also reuse a old case and the fans from it in a new system as well.
by Anonymous Coward
on Friday November 16 2007, @02:53PM (#21382875)
" what is the best way to recycle old tech in the US?""
Give it to a pack rat. They'll pile it up with their other...treasures. Soon you'll read about the guy who couldn't get out of his house because the doors and windows were blocked.
I have a process for getting rid of old crap. The nice thing is I usually break even (or so).
Step 1: Find a local hamfest. Hamfests are held all around the country. Keep an eye out for the bigger ones. There's one in my town once a year, and it's one of the bigger ones around. I nab a table for $10, load it up with old crap, and try to sell it cheap. Minus the cost of the table and gas, I usually make a hundred here. Don't get excited yet. You'll need that money.
Step 2: Find a local recycling program. It just so happens that the county I live in has a recycling facility, and since their focus is not making money as much as it is proper disposal, they're the cheaper option. What I don't sell at hamfest gets taken there. Usually I ring up a good size bill, so financed by option 1 is a good thing.
Step 3: Find food. With the $20 or so left over after all expenses are paid, go eat. Now you just emptied the basement, did so responsibly, and got pizza out of the deal.
Yeah, but I also get to attend the largest hamfest in the state. Not a complete waste of time. Of course the danger is spending the money from step 1 before you reach step 2, which is part of the reason there's so much crap in my basement to begin with:-)
Our organization uses Intercon Recycling http://interconrecycling.com/ [interconrecycling.com] We've recycled several tons (metric) of IT equipment with them.
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with them. We choose them solely because they guaranteed in writing that all of the IT waste would be processed in the US (not shipping to China) and that none of the IT waste would hit the landfill waste stream (everything is smelted down and recycled).
If you're a member, Costco now has a recycling program [greensight.com] through Greensight. Shipping is free at the moment, and newer items may qualify for a trade-in value (paid via a Costco CashBack card).
Freecycle [freecycle.org] has already been mentioned elsewhere.
Just throw it away, i.e. put it a properly sealed landfill. Someday someone will come along with a Plasma Gasification rig (google it) and distill it into its component materials safely and efficiently. Recycling is just a waste of time and money, whether its your time and money or someone else's.
Staples stores accept big stuff, like computers, for $10, and small stuff, like batteries and cell phones, for free. I've done this for a few months now. Check on the staples.com website.
If you have old equipment that you'd like to donate to a charity, we'll put linux on it (if it's a PC) and ship it to poor kids in a developing nation.
If you're interested, feel free to email me at zavPublic (at) mac (dot) com
Wierd Stuff Warehouse in Mountain View, CA offers free electronics recycling. If it works, they'll put it up for sale; if not, they'll scrap it properly.
Good place to get CRT monitors cheap, if you want one.
Whatever you do, don't just donate it to a school or non-profit charity, like we hear so often. Our need for a Pentium 2 or older P3, or an old G3 or G4 Mac isn't as great as you may think it is.
Yes, there are some places where any bit of hardware would be welcome, but the greater majority of NPOs need decent (read 2-4 year old) PCs, not the dinosaur in the basement. We need to access many of those blasted Flash-based sites, and old hardware just won't cut it like it anymore.
If possible, donate to a third-party refurbisher like this [jaredpolisfoundation.org]. Read through this [techsoup.org] for ideas on what NPOs really need. If you do want to donate an old beast that "runs Linux just fine", I encourage you to donate your time to teach and keep the machine up, too. It's hard to break the MS Charity Licensing habit, but it can be done with your help.
Please do the responsible thing, and don't donate your old tech to avoid paying to have it recycled. We barely have money to buy new parts and equipment, we don't have enough to pay for recycling the old stuff so you don't have to.
I just found ouot about this program [reconnectpartnership.com] started over the summer by Dell & Goodwill in selected areas around the US - apparently, they strip down and sell off basic parts (plastic pellets, copper, etc.) as reclaimed commodities. I'm going to give it a try this week end (I want to get a car in the garage this winter;^)
If you live within a reasonable drive of FreeGeek, you could always drop off your old computer junk. If your computer is working and at least a Pentium II or a PowerPC Mac, they will install free software on it and give it to someone who can use it; otherwise they will responsibly recycle it. The headquarters is in Portland, OR but there are branches elsewhere.
I took a three old laptop batteries to my local Radio Shack where they advertise free recycling for your old rechargeable batteries.
The guy behind the counter said, "That's fine, but if you really care about recycling, just know that if you leave them here, they'll go into the trash. I've never seen the battery recycle bin go anywhere else." I was astounded. I thanked him for his honesty and kept the batteries.
What's your experience with free recycling of batteries and the like at Radio Shack or other retailers?
Damn (Score:2)
Re:Damn (Score:4, Interesting)
I don't think I've ever had a monitor or computer make it through the night without a 'dumpster' diver type grabbing it for themselves....
Parent
Re:Damn (Score:5, Funny)
Some friends of mine worked in a retail store, and had an old dot matrix printer that still worked, but they were done with. They put it out by the dumpster with a "free" sign on it. It sat by the dumpster for weeks, until one of them went out and put a "$10, inquire inside" sign on it, and it walked off within the hour.
Parent
Re:Damn (Score:5, Funny)
Years ago, I was doing some HVAC work at an apartment community. This complex was made up of many buildings with several townhomes in each, all side by side. The electric meters for each townhome were grouped together on the back porch of one of the townhomes in each building. The particular condensing unit we were working on happened to be on the back porch where all the power meters were. While we were fixing it, the lady who lived in the house came out and asked us:
At this point, the other guy working with me (a real wise ass from NY) doesn't even skip a beat and says very matter of factly:
Now it's all I can do to keep from laughing in her face at this point, but somehow I manage. She seems satisfied and goes back inside.
About a week later, I go back to the same unit to check it out and make sure it's still working fine and EVERY SINGLE METER had a brick on top of it. I bet I laughed for an hour.
Parent
Re:Damn (Score:4, Insightful)
Parent
Re:And we all know that heavy metals come from? (Score:4, Informative)
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re:And we all know that heavy metals come from? (Score:4, Informative)
I know you're trolling, but for anyone reading this and wondering;
The metals mentioned don't exist in nature*. Galena, Chromite, Cassiterite etc are ores which do exist in the environment and from which chrome, lead and tin etc are produced. They're relatively safe because they're locked in host rock and largely insoluble in water.
* Except crystalline lead in very rare circumstances.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Your heavy metals go into the landfill, and no landfill is 100% leak proof for all of eternity. The metals seep into the groundwater below said landfill. This water flows into the main water sources of the area, where your municipality DOES get it's water. This is a middle-school level physical science concept.
I know, I know! (Score:5, Insightful)
EBay.
Seriously, what better way to not trash something by getting what life (or parts) are left in it?
People get some good money for hardly working/not working tech on EBay just for parts alone. And hell, you may have no use for that old P350 but someone else on there just might. Why not let them have it for a few bucks+shipping?
list of resources (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I know, I know! (Score:5, Informative)
Parent
Re:I know, I know! (Score:5, Informative)
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
They're outdone by embedded chips in washing machines. No, really.
Re:I know, I know! (Score:5, Insightful)
I keep series of early PCs around for precisely this reason. Getting games like XCOM, Masters of Orion II, Might and Magic IV, Star Control II, Echelon, Privateer I/II, Wing Commander I/II/III, etc, etc can excruciatingly hard to get going without sound issues, with the proper framerate, with multiplayer (null modem) support etc...
I can be almost impossible unless running on real hardware from the era.
A P166 would make a good platform for late dos era games, and early win95 games.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Here's a better way: http://www.wwcs.org/site/PageServer?pagename=cr_home [wwcs.org]. They use the stuff to train at-risk youth in the tech trades. Drop-offs are free, pickups have a small fee ($150 for a semi-load -- they even palletize for you!). I send about 3 semis worth to them each year. The link is to a place in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They might be able to help you find a similar program in your area.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Your desire to recycle tech is not passed on to your buyer, who is merely looking for cheap stuff.
That is not recycling.
There has to be SOMETHING better than eBay for this.
Send it to China ... It'll come back... (Score:5, Informative)
the US sends vast electronic garbage to China, and how some of the materials may be finding their way back here, in a not-so good way.
link [publicradio.org]
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
The Electronics Takeback Coalition [computertakeback.com] runs a computer takeback campaign and maintains a list of electronics recyclers [computertakeback.com] who they have deemed "responsible" based on a pledge the listed recyclers have signed onto. The pledge includes no exporting, no sending to prisons (where labor safety standards are often nonexistent or unenforced), and not sending it to landfills or incinerators.
Here in San Francisco, I regularly bring recycling to Computer Recycling Center [crc.org] dropoffs. They even do pickups if you have at leas
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Except monitors. They, apparently, are evil.
Re:Send it to China ... It'll come back... (Score:4, Interesting)
China's idea of "recycling" is having lower income people burn the old parts in open drums to reclaim the metals. This process dumps tons of burned plastic residue, PCB's and metals such as mercury all over the local landscape. There are areas of China that are becoming almost inhabitable. Birth defects are increasing. The study she did went so far as to measure the significant increase in these chemicals in breast milk.
For most of these chemicals they were tracking, the only places in the world that higher concentrations in the environment were in areas of Taiwan where a lot of this is manufactured.
From a financial perspective US companies that are moving manufacturing to China are not really saving any money on the manufacturing costs. (My wife worked in the finance department for a major power tool manufacturer and others have shared similar stories) Where they are saving money is in not having to provide all the controls and filters that the EPA is requiring at their facilities. The Chinese government has been willing to sell the future health of the country in the name of economic progress. And American companies are all too willing to oblige.
Parent
"Freecycle" (Score:5, Informative)
Re:"Freecycle" (Score:4, Interesting)
Every time we have listed something, I said to myself "there is no way anyone wants that crap." And every time we immediately get multiple takers.
We listed the plants in a flowerbed we were going to pave over and within a couple of days someone came to our house, dug them out and carted them off.
Parent
What's the best way to recycle tech in the US? (Score:3, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Freegeek! (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
A little further south, in Eugene, Oregon Geeks Without Borders [gwob.org] does a similar thing, with a more international focus.
And, for actual junk, Nextstep Recycling and Computer Re-Use [nextsteprecycling.org] in Eugene will take almost anything, though they charge a fee for monitors, as just about everybody does.
Disclaimer: I helped found Geeks Without Borders, and currently sit on the board. I also helped with the startup of MacRenewal, the predecessor organization to Nextstep Recycling.
Nooooooooo! (Score:2, Insightful)
TDz.
You can still reuse parts from a older system..... (Score:4, Informative)
DVD / DVD rw drives are still useful in new systems.
Your old floppy drive will still work in your new system.
Older HD can go in to ext cases or be used as a temp / swap disk in new system as well.
Old mac G4 and G5 parts sell good on ebay like the cpus with HS, MB as well the PSU's and cases also DDR 1 ram is still used in many systems older but still in use systems.
High end sounds that a 1-2 years old are still better then todays on board sound.
Other pci cards that you used in the past likely will still work in your new system.
You use also reuse a old case and the fans from it in a new system as well.
Well packed. (Score:3, Funny)
Give it to a pack rat. They'll pile it up with their other...treasures. Soon you'll read about the guy who couldn't get out of his house because the doors and windows were blocked.
What I do (Score:5, Informative)
Step 1: Find a local hamfest. Hamfests are held all around the country. Keep an eye out for the bigger ones. There's one in my town once a year, and it's one of the bigger ones around. I nab a table for $10, load it up with old crap, and try to sell it cheap. Minus the cost of the table and gas, I usually make a hundred here. Don't get excited yet. You'll need that money.
Step 2: Find a local recycling program. It just so happens that the county I live in has a recycling facility, and since their focus is not making money as much as it is proper disposal, they're the cheaper option. What I don't sell at hamfest gets taken there. Usually I ring up a good size bill, so financed by option 1 is a good thing.
Step 3: Find food. With the $20 or so left over after all expenses are paid, go eat. Now you just emptied the basement, did so responsibly, and got pizza out of the deal.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Alternatively, find an electronics repair store. Drop off that 200lb. Sun CRT to get a repair estimate. Give them a false name. Run.
Caveats: only works once per shop, and the owner reserves the right to beat you mercilessly.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Full-blown recycling that is fairly envirofriendly (Score:4, Informative)
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with them. We choose them solely because they guaranteed in writing that all of the IT waste would be processed in the US (not shipping to China) and that none of the IT waste would hit the landfill waste stream (everything is smelted down and recycled).
Targets (Score:5, Funny)
Costco has a recycling program now (Score:4, Informative)
Freecycle [freecycle.org] has already been mentioned elsewhere.
Just throw it away (Score:4, Interesting)
Plasma Gasification (Score:4, Informative)
and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plasma_arc_gasification [wikipedia.org]
Figured I'd save others the Googling.
Parent
Staples (Score:3, Informative)
One word: (Score:3, Funny)
Donate your stuff. (Score:3, Informative)
Donate your stuff.
Also, check out your city's or county's website. They may have local programs for recycling old hardware.
Oh, yeah, you could also donate all your stuff to me.... :)
Donate to a charity (Score:3, Informative)
If you have old equipment that you'd like to donate to a charity, we'll put linux on it (if it's a PC) and ship it to poor kids in a developing nation.
If you're interested, feel free to email me at zavPublic (at) mac (dot) com
The link below is our first shipment.
http://web.mac.com/zav/iWeb/Zav-O-Matic/Off%20to%20Africa.html [mac.com]
Cheers,
- Zav
In Silicon Valley, go to Wierd Stuff Warehouse (Score:3, Informative)
Wierd Stuff Warehouse in Mountain View, CA offers free electronics recycling. If it works, they'll put it up for sale; if not, they'll scrap it properly.
Good place to get CRT monitors cheap, if you want one.
Don't "just donate it to a school" (Score:4, Informative)
Yes, there are some places where any bit of hardware would be welcome, but the greater majority of NPOs need decent (read 2-4 year old) PCs, not the dinosaur in the basement. We need to access many of those blasted Flash-based sites, and old hardware just won't cut it like it anymore.
If possible, donate to a third-party refurbisher like this [jaredpolisfoundation.org]. Read through this [techsoup.org] for ideas on what NPOs really need. If you do want to donate an old beast that "runs Linux just fine", I encourage you to donate your time to teach and keep the machine up, too. It's hard to break the MS Charity Licensing habit, but it can be done with your help.
Please do the responsible thing, and don't donate your old tech to avoid paying to have it recycled. We barely have money to buy new parts and equipment, we don't have enough to pay for recycling the old stuff so you don't have to.
IDWAANPO: I do work at a non-profit.
Dell/Goodwill have a program (Score:3, Informative)
Ken
Link: www.reconnectpartnership.com
FreeGeek (Score:3, Informative)
http://freegeek.org/ [freegeek.org]
Is there a FreeGeek branch near you? [freegeek.org]
Guidelines for what they will take [freegeek.org]
What they do with the stuff you give them [freegeek.org]
steveha
Radio Shack recycles batteries... Or DO THEY? (Score:3, Interesting)
The guy behind the counter said, "That's fine, but if you really care about recycling, just know that if you leave them here, they'll go into the trash. I've never seen the battery recycle bin go anywhere else." I was astounded. I thanked him for his honesty and kept the batteries.
What's your experience with free recycling of batteries and the like at Radio Shack or other retailers?
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Pays you for phones in good condition. Recycles those that aren't.