I know I’m supposed to recycle a monitor, but I can throw out I hard drive. Or is that the other way? How do you know what’s safe to put in the trash, and what has to be recycled? Help!
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wow, 48 responses and nobody’s actually answered the question yet.
the “safe to throw out” decision boils down to whether the component contains environmentally hazardous substances that can leach out of the device in a landfill.
some typical offenders are lead, mercury, cadmium – highly toxic metals that can cause long-term environmental damage by seeping into groundwater; polybrominated biphenls (PBBs) that are highly toxic; chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) that contribute to ozone loss; and many many others.
so anyway, how to determine which components have these toxic chemicals and which don’t? well, here is a short list from the first link in the sources section:
- computer circuit boards containing heavy metals like lead & cadmium
- computer batteries containing cadmium
- cathode ray tubes with lead oxide & barium
brominated flame-retardants used on printed circuit boards, cables and plastic casing.
- Poly Vinyl Chloride(PVC) coated copper cables and plastic computer casings that release highly toxic dioxins & furans when burnt to recover valuable metals
- mercury switches
- mercury in flat screens
- Poly Chlorinated Biphenyl’s (PCB’s) present in older capacitors & transformers
however, without taking something apart or knowing a LOT about the specific manufacturing of the product, you cannot make any blanket statements. for example, hard drives are not on this list, but most hard drives have a small circuit board inside the casing that controls the drive. so that qualifies as a printed circuit board and should be recycled.
so, altogether, i think you should recycle pretty much any kind of electronics you need to get rid of. this includes cell phones, video games, and ESPECIALLY older electronics. the older some piece of electronics is, the more likely it has some toxic materials used inside it. as time goes by manufacturers switch to cleaner technology, but old equipment is chock-full of bad stuff.
in fact, even if the thing isn’t an environmental hazard, it still takes up space in a landfill and we are all much better off if we reuse things instead of just throw them away.
and i want to concur with what other people have said:
first, try to reuse the thing.
second, give it away to someone who could reuse it. (you could join a community like freecycle, see link below)
third, recycle it.
cheers!
well take it all apart and that recycle the parts
You can call somebody to help you think about it or do what you think
id throw it in ur neighbors yard
you can never recycle a computer component.
computers are not a recycle thing it is just trash when it does not work.
all you have to do is make sure you seperate certain things in piles.
when the component is unuseable and you are unsure of how to dispose of the component go to your local recycling center or computer/office supply store, then ask weather the part is recyclable or not.
WHO KNOWS. As far as I am concerned, THROW IT ALL OUT.
Check with stores like Office Max, Staples,etc… Most components have heavy metals and will seriously damage the environment. Don’t chuck it, recycle!!
Call the tech support people and ask them. Unfortunately, they are often unreliable. Dell Tech once told me that I had a corrupted hard drive. Turned out to be my motherboard…total waste of a hard drive and $80. Then I had to buy a new PC too.
Your best bet is to find a computer store.
You should not throw out your hard drive or CPU unit if there are any important documents on it. Others would be able to set the CPU unit up and retrieve your personal information. Some schools take computer donations. They will clean the hard drive and set it up for use in a class room.
whenever you want…….
It sounds to me like you are a very honest person that just wants to do the right (and legal) thing. Especially when you might be fined for throwing out something your not suppose too. For instance, I had asbestos in some trash bags and was told that it was illegal to throw it out in the garbage. If someone caught us doing so, we could serve jail time, get fined, or both. So, it’s always good to check these things out even if it’s something simple like computer components. True you can always check out your local computer equipment supply store (i.e. staples, etc.) they may know. Also, try a local environmental agency or local dump. One of these places should know for you.
When there is no pictures on the screen and wait until the component cools down if it is too hot to handle. Plus you can get a new component a.s.a.p.
When its not working right.
Look up “Donate Used Computer” on the internet.
Third world nations have great need for these in schools and many other places. They also have people who can fix them up.
if you do throw away your computer, all your information is still there even though you “deleted” them, you should try to contact one of your friends who knoes about computer, and they can really delete them. also if you dont delete the information, some one can use the computer you just thrown out to get your information.
Throw it if it is broken b/c you dont want to be a junky, but then again recycle it if it doesn’t have any major electronic parts such as a hard drive or a mother board.
dont throw it …. sell it haha
r u a pakistani??????noone can be so dumb other than them???? if u want it back then why the hell in the world did u deleted them?????
I donated my old computer to a church school. Make sure you run a “wipe” program to make all your data go bye bye!
Throwing monitors in the trash is a No-No, about everything else is fair game. I don’t throw out hard drives, there’s people out there that get them and mine info off them. There is all kinds of info on your computer that is stored that you don’t even think about that can be used to steal your identity. There is a place here in Charlotte, N.C.called Scantec that buys anything computer related no matter how old for anywhere from a penny a pound up. My company sold them like 2 tons of stuff last year. It saved us from having to pay someone to haul it off and we made a couple of bucks and it was better for the environment. If anyone is in the Charlotte area the number is 704-599-3373 They recycle every bit of it that can be recycled.
hw many pts do i gt 4 answerin dis
hue are u it hink u r hot. Just test the component on a new computer.
bye hotty and how old are u
You can sell the computer component, look for save on surplus company.
Put it in a van.
This is actually a major problem these days, with so many obsolete machines sitting in garages & basements.
Most parts of a computer are recyclable. And many are toxic to living things & the planet.
Seek a recycling center for computers. Here’s a good site to start: http://www.freegeek.com/
I recycle computer componets. Mother boards contain a verity of precious metals. Gold, Plantium, Plediulm. ETC. SEll It on ebay is on option under GOLD Recovery. Contact local lanfill. Most lanfills have establiblished a recycle progam.
I saw a news special, on dateline one time, and it said that computers that usually get thrown out end up in a foreign country, and you still have all your memory in it… which can be very unsafe! Try researching on different companies, and see how they recycle..
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you have to take it to one of those throw out places..
you can recycle or throw out your computer when the computer technician certified that the computer is cannot be safe or repair.
Ask in the internet.
see is other batter busted
Try freegeek.com. They list some resources for recycling computers. Also check locally. Sometimes there are programs that will take the components and fix them to use in local schools.
you can dispose of the harddrive after you take a sledge hammer to it.
every thing should be reused.
you are not working in the military to worry about where your stuff goes eventually..
well first of all the computer components mostly have a recycle sign when its safe to recycle and if it doesnt have it then you can probably throw it out.
i dont know!
I always try to donate old equipment to the Salvation Army or to a program that offers computer equipment for schools. Before donating a computer, though, I’d take out the hard drive. You can often install it as a secondary (“slave”) drive in a new computer; that way, you’ll have all your old files without the hassle of transferring them. Good luck.
COMPUTERS are not safe to go in the regular garbage. most communities in my area have computer recycle days where they collect old ones & dispose of them properly
Take it to your local computer geek store, nothing like Comp USA or Office Depot who will charge you for a disposal fee. You local Computer Geek, mom and pop shop will properly dispose of it for you without charge, or they’ll extract whatever porn sites your husband or children had been surfing to use as blackmail. But it’s still free.
Just after you finish blowin it up
many office stores (Office Depot, Office Max) have computer recycling programs. you might check for one in your area and find out what they will take.
When it is really old and blows up!!
I agree with Templar_Knight. If you can reuse a piece yourself, reuse it. Then, don’t feel obligated to it if you decide you want to upgrade.
If you can’t use it, or can’t be bothered, see if any of your parents or siblings want it. Then, when they say they already own a better system then you, you will know your piece is truly obsolete.
At that point, you can ask if anyone at your church is still running an old computer and ask them if they would like the pieces. Many, many times we have given pieces to someone who puts together old computers.
If no one wants it, you have more than tried. Junk it. The stuff goes out of date so quickly that most people won’t be bothered with the old parts, anyway. I think we are the only family in town who built our original arsenal of 9 computers, now older than dirt, with everyone else’s castoffs!!! We KNOW that when our junk quits it’s time to throw it out!!
well that depends, if your compuer can manage the component you might use it.
IE. When we buy a computer most of its features are based upon its mother board, if your mother board can support your new component you might use it as long as you have the device drivers, if its doesn´t you might sell this unwanted part to some other in need of it.
Once you have decided to trow it away, most of the bigger devices are sent to recycling but the smaller ones are just trown to the garbage, once they are useless.
Find somebody’s truck parked somewhere and put it in the bed. Then it’s their problem! It’s safe to throw it in there when the own3r’s not around and nobody’s looking. Likewise if there’s something in there you want (like a gas can) you can take it.