Creative Ways to Get Rid of Old Electronics
By Sarah Parsons, Inhabitat
Before ditching expired electronics
like laptops, cell phones and televisions, know this: All those gizmos are loaded
with toxins like cadmium, mercury and lead. When those electronics sit
around in landfills, substances can leak out into soil and waterways, wreaking
havoc on ecosystems. As for recycling programs, much of consumers' electronic
waste, or e-waste, gets shipped to developing nations with lax laws. Workers
disassembling the devices expose
themselves to all kinds of noxious poisons. But just as e-waste's dirty
secrets continue to come to light, many safe, eco-friendly disposal options
also appear. Read on for the best ways to get rid of old electronics.
Try Fixing It.
It's easy to get seduced by the bells and whistles shiny, new products provide, but oftentimes it's better for the environment to repair old electronics rather than purchase new ones. But how do you know if an item is salvageable? Instead of throwing money at an expert, try checking GreenerChoices.org's "Fix it or Nix it" site. The site lists common problems associated with TVs, computers and cell phones and provides tips on how easy or difficult it is to fix the issue. If a problem can't be fixed, the site refers folks to recycling, donating and selling tips.
Find a Recycling of Take-Back
Program.Throwing old electronics in the trash in the worst thing consumers can do, but locating responsible recycling or manufacturer take-back centers can be tricky. MyGreenElectronics.org and Earth911.com let consumers find recycling options near them by typing in their zip codes. You can even conduct product-specific searches, so you'll know where to take an old TV and where to bring expired computers.
Donate Products to Charities.
You may not want that four-year-old laptop anymore, but there are tons of charities out there that either give your used products to those in need or recycle them for you. Reconnect, a partnership between Dell and Goodwill, accepts and recycles most computer equipment, including printers. CollectiveGood takes cell phones and iPods. The National Cristina Foundation takes used computers, software and peripherals and directs them to the disabled, at-risk students and impoverished people. Call to Protect refurbishes and sells old cell phones, with proceeds going to combat domestic violence. Close the Gap and World Computer Exchange accept computer donations, refurbish them and direct them to Africa and other developing nations.
Create an External Hard Drive
If a computer konks out, oftentimes it's just one piece of hardware that's malfunctioning. For example, if the hard drive is still usable, you can remove it and add it on to your new computer. That external hard drive can provide some much-needed extra storage. If other pieces of hardware still function properly, consider removing them and reusing them with another computer or selling them on eBay. You'll help someone else find a piece they need and divert that waste from landfills.
Believe it or not, you can turn dead electronics into some seriously useful new devices. The "62 Projects to Make With a Dead Computer" book and Facebook page provides step-by-step projects to turn old electronics into household items. Learn things like how to make coasters from computer cables, turn a laptop into a video projector or make a first-aid kit out of an iPod.
Do you have any creative and green tips on how to get rid of electronics? Let us know below.
=========================================================================By Sarah Parsons of Inhabitat, an online magazine devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and design towards a smarter and more sustainable future. Written by a young tech-savvy team designers and design journalists, Inhabitat delivers fresh content daily, showcasing emerging work from the cutting-edge of the global design community.
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