How To Responsibly Recycle Your Old Computers And Other Electronics

We all buy several electronics and computer items over a lifetime and getting rid of them is not easy. Mostly we trash them, today we look at some good ways of getting rid of old electronics. These methods are environmentally responsible manner. With the new tablets and laptops, there is an abundance of cheap computers in the market, you may find yourself stuck with your old computer and you are thinking what to do with it. We will talk about ways how to securely remove and destroy data from your old hard drive, concepts for repurposing and how to get rid of these things in an environmentally safe manner.

Ensure Data Is Destroyed

The most important concern when getting rid of your old computer is making sure your private and important data doesn’t get into the wrong hands. Simply removing files and emptying the recycle bin won’t suffice. If you hire a IT recycling agency they will remove your private data safely and destroy your old computer in an eco-friendly manner.

What Happens To E-Waste?

Even with the right intentions and bringing your old laptops and computers to the IT Recycling centers, it’s pretty shocking that our nation is still able to develop more dump. Monitors and computers contain toxic levels of lead, mercury, cadmium, beryllium and arsenic which are very harmful to the environment. The e-waste that goes in the recycling centers is carefully analysed materials that can be recycled for reuse are separated and the ones that are no longer of any use are destroyed.

Alternatives to Recycling

Just because a computer seems to be an old school machine to you it doesn’t mean, it won’t fit any other person’s needs. There are many donation programs of electronics, that are old but are still working you can give your old machine in such places where it can be used for a better cause instead of giving them to an IT Recycling company. One thing you can do is delete and destroy your data and upgrade a fresh version of Windows or Linux and it to a thrift shop.

Other Options

• Sell it, if you have an old computer which still has some value left you can sell it on craigslist or e-bay for some money. 
• Re-purpose it. You can find some new way of using your old machine. Install light version of Linux like Puppy Linux to breathe new life into it, change it into a firewall, or give it to your grandparents or children for web browsing, playing games or just doing simple typing work on it. 
• Keep it for spare parts. You can do some computer repair from your home and it has been awesome having extra cash, hard drive and NIC cards. 
• Keep it. If your other machine for some reason is not working keep your old computer as a spare one. You can also use it to try new things that can ruin your current system. 

If you have private data like security number, credit cards, even your favorite pictures on your hard drive it is essentially important to make sure you delete it. If you need to recycle it, ensure that you hire a credible and reputable IT Recycling company.