New Ways to Earn Cash while Recycling old Electronics
Monday, April 12, 2010
Did you know that eWaste is the fastest growing source of waste stream today? I’ve know about the hazards of electronic waste for some time now…and that is exactly why I have a pile of used gear in my office. I have insisted that my husband not throw any of it away, but that’s the extent of my efforts to recycle it. Now that it’s time to convert my office to a new baby room, I have to find a home for all this eWaste. Luckily I came across a great little article in Family Circle telling me exactly what I can do with all this stuff. In Recycling for the Greater Good, Christina Tynan-Wood tells about how she actually made money while decluttering her house of old electronics. Below are a few of the websites she mentioned.
Gazelle provides an easy, fast, and safe way for you to sell and recycle electronics. Here’s how it works: You enter the details about your gear and a cash bid will pop up on your computer screen. If you accept the deal, just download a free shipping label and drop your item in the mail. Once they receive your used electronics and gadgets (such as used cell phones, used laptops etc.), they’ll inspect them to be sure their condition matches your evaluation. Then they’ll notify you via email once your item has been received and inspected, and again when your payment has been sent. According to their website, the whole process takes about a week once they receive a box from you. As an added bonus, Gazelle recently launched a service called Gazelle for Good that gives individuals and/or organizations the chance to raise money through a gadget drive.
That’s not all, if you know your used electronic is pretty much junk, you can also use Gazelle to locate a local recycler who can help you dispose of some of the items they don’t accept. Just type in your zip code on the site and a list will pop up.
Next Worth works much like Gazelle. You start by finding your product on their website and get an instant quote. If the offer looks good, print the pre-paid shipping label at the end of the transaction and pack up your product to be shipped out. Once they receive the item, they’ll check out the condition, which might take up to 10 business days. If the product matches up to your description, they’ll initiate your payment and it’s as easy as that. Next Worth also has an added bonus…their referral bonus that gives customers a $10 cash reward for every referral that results in a trade of $50 or more!
My Bone Yard is again, much like Next Worth and Gazelle. Once you’ve completed their simple three-step process, a pre-paid shipping label will be emailed to you and you’ll be ready to send in your device. You can also keep track of your device and your rewards by checking your status on-line. Another great part about this site is that they offer an opportunity for non-profit organizations to raise money as well. Customers can choose for their rewards to go straight to their charity of choice. Organizations can register to raise money directly through the site and will be able to track donation activities and earnings report for each month. The site will also provide resources such as an email program, fliers and brochures to jump start a recycling campaign.
According to their website, Call2Recycle is the only free rechargeable battery and cell phone collection program in North America. Just enter your zip code in their site locator and find one of our 30,000 recycling drop-off locations near you. Call2Recycle also has free programs for retailers, businesses, communities, and public agencies that can collect used rechargeable batteries and old cell phones and ship them to their recycling facility with a pre-paid mailing label. They will then reclaim reusable materials: nickel, iron, cadmium, lead, and cobalt from the batteries.
The National Cristina Foundation
The National Cristina Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to the support of training through donated technology. They take your old tech stuff and match it up with needy schools, charities and other organizations around the world. The process is super simple too. Just enter the specifics about your gear and a volunteer will work to find a participating organization in your area. A representative from the organization will usually pick up the gear, but you can also arrange to drop it off as well. Once the transaction is complete, the foundation will send you a “donor acknowledgment letter” which can be used for tax purposes.
Reconnect is a partnership between Dell and Goodwill Industries that allows you take any brand computer or computer accessory to your local Goodwill store to be recycled. Click here to find a participating location near you. Keep in mind that some items may require extra preparation before you bring them in. For details, check their Items We Accept page.
Still looking for more information? MyGreenElectronics.org is a website dedicated to answering all of your questions. You can find even more programs that will take your unwanted electronic gear, and provides tone of education pieces on saving energy, deciding whether to repair or replace a specific devise, and more.
Preparing your Computer for Recylcing
Note: When sending your computer off to be recycled, you’ll want to take a few step to protect your data. Many of these companies offer to clear your computer hard drive for you, but for peace of mind, I recommend you do it yourself…you don’t want to risk the chance of losing some of your private data to the wrong person. Also, simply deleting files isn’t enough, nor is reformatting your hard drive.
Indianapolis-basid Computer Experts offers a few eCycling Dos & Don’ts:
1. Make sure your backup is complete and test it before you delete any information. The only sure way to get it all is to make an image of the hard drive. Several free and commercial utilities exist. Ask an expert if you need help. Don’t forget settings, shortcuts, email, license & activation keys.
2. Don’t leave the hard drive in a computer that doesn’t work. You might be able to install it in a working computer and have all your stuff copied to a working system.
3. Don’t delete, destroy or donate anything important until you confirm your datahas been copied to and is usable on your new system.
4. Use a software program to wipe the hard drive. Darik’s Boot and Nuke (”DBAN”) (http://www.dban.org/) is a self-contained boot disk that securely wipes the hard disks of most computers. DBAN will automatically and completely delete the contents of any hard disk that it can detect, which makes it an appropriate utility for bulk or emergency data destruction.
5. If you want someone to use your old computer, remember to include all the cords, cables, keyboard, mouse, power cubes, manuals, software disks, registration/license information, speakers, power cubes, keys, etc.
6. Reinstall the OS & software from a factory supplied ‘Recovery’ disk if available, or with an image you made when the system was new.
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