How To Dispose of Your Unwanted Household Electrical Appliances

Disposing of used household electrical appliances needs to be done responsibly. How easy it is will depend on whether the appliance is still in working order, or if it is broken and can no longer be used.

Unwanted, broken appliances cannot go out with your regular garbage. But with a bit of effort and preparation, there won’t be too much difficulty in disposing of them responsibly.

How Does Incorrect Disposal of Old Appliance Affect the Environment?

Electronic waste, which includes electrical appliances, is the fastest-growing solid waste stream in the United States. Unfortunately, only about a quarter of this waste is recycled, while the rest is incinerated or gets placed in our landfills.

• Electronics contain toxic materials such as mercury and beryllium which are harmful to the environment.
• Materials like plastic, glass, and aluminum which are used in the manufacture of electronics take energy to mine and manufacture. Extensive mining leads to the degradation of the environment. Mining for these metals is much more expensive than processing recycled materials from discarded electronic appliances. When considering the mountains of unwanted electronic equipment it becomes even more essential to dispose of these items properly so that they can be recycled. Recycling electronic appliances will help conserve natural resources by saving virgin materials from being extracted by mining. It will also cut down on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. This can only be of benefit to our environment.
• Toxic chemicals from electronic waste end up contaminating the soil and the waterways around our landfills. These chemicals include those CFCs that leaked from fridges leading to the destruction of the ozone layer during the second half of the 20th century. Some of these chemicals have been banned, but much of the damage has been done.

How to Dispose of Your Old Electronic Appliances Sustainably

The primary objective is to keep these out of landfills. Start donating, recycling, or repairing! 

If the equipment is still in working order, consider donating it to a charity, to a needy friend, or to an organization that will make sure it finds a good home. Most charities will be only too happy to accept your unwanted electronic appliances. Some charities may even collect your unwanted TVs, washing machines, or fridges from your home free of charge so you won’t even have the responsibility or the expense of moving them.

Previously loved electronic appliances are in great demand so you may be able to sell them online and recoup some expenses.

If possible, repair your electronics instead of throwing them away. You will save money by going this route instead of investing in new equipment. 

Recycle Your Old Appliances

Consider all your options when it comes to recycling your electronic equipment. There are recycling banks where you can drop your appliances. Some of the large retailers will collect your appliances either for a small fee or will take the old ones away when they deliver your new ones. There may even be a collection point at your local supermarket for items such as fridges, freezers, washers and driers, and TVs. 

If you need assistance with the removal of these appliances Little Green Junk Company can assist you. We will collect the appliances and remove them with minimal disruption to you. We know the rules pertaining to the disposal of old appliances and we make sure we do it in an environmentally friendly way.

Why is Recycling Old Appliances Important?

• Electrical appliances are manufactured using valuable materials including gold, aluminum, and copper. By recycling your appliances you conserve the use of new materials and join the circular economy which makes new products from recycled materials.
• Electrical appliances contain toxic substances. They contain heavy metals such as lead and mercury which should be kept out of landfills as they leach into the surrounding soil and waterways and eventually land in our food and drinking water.

Because of the danger posed by the irresponsible disposal of electronic appliances and the fact that they are such a fast-growing waste stream, over half of the U.S. states have electronic recycling regulations in place that either ban electronics from landfills or focus on setting up processes for recycling.

What Are the Benefits of Recycling Electronic Appliances?

• Recycling results in a cleaner environment by preventing the pollution caused by the heavy metals and other toxins in our discarded appliances and devices.
• Manufacturing goods from recycled materials uses less water and energy than when they are manufactured from scratch. Production costs are reduced when using recycled materials. 
• Reusing the components that are extracted in the recycling process for manufacturing new items is the goal of recycling, and this leads to energy and resource savings. Major electronic companies such as Apple have recycling facilities that are set up for this purpose. Hopefully, this is the way all electronic companies will go in the future as this will make the process of recycling for consumers much easier.

Little Green Junk Company Will Dispose of Your Old Electronic Appliances

We at Little Green Junk York PA are your local licensed trash removal company committed to looking after the health of our environment while we remove all types of household trash or business waste.

We recycle as much of the trash we collect as possible, otherwise, we dispose of it in an environmentally friendly way.

When you need to dispose of any waste please contact us for a free, no-obligation quote. Our pick-up times are flexible, and we will fit into your schedule. If you need an after-hours pickup or if you are only available over the weekend for the removal of your trash, we can assist you. In certain circumstances, we even offer same-day waste removal. We clean up after ourselves and we pride ourselves in our customer relations.

We follow the strict rules that are in place about disposing of any electronic waste because it is for the good of everyone who lives here. We are committed to keeping our environment safe not only for us but for future generations.  

We look forward to hearing from you.

Email: inquiries@littlegreenjunk.com

www.littlegreenjunk.com