Recyclable Electronic Equipment and Procedures

Recyled Equipment
Basically, all electronic equipment can be recycled. With this being said, some types of equipment are easier to handle than others. Here are a few of the most commonly recycled electronics equipment:

  • Laptops
  • Desktop Computers
  • Monitors
  • Telephones and Cell Phones
  • Flash Drives, CDs, Data Tapes, etc.

One piece of IT (electronic) equipment that many electronics recycling companies do not accept is printers and printing supplies, such as toner cartridges. Although only a few facilities are able to recycle this equipment, Rover Recycling is fully capable of performing the job, due to our massive efforts to keep toner cartridges out of landfills.

All of this leads to the next point, the recycling procedure for each type of electronic equipment. There are different processes for different electronics. When the equipment is transported to the recycling facility, it is broken down and assessed. Some pieces of equipment can be refurbished, while others are disassembled or shredded and sent downstream.

Electronic Waste Recycling Precautions

Of course, some recyclable equipment requires additional precautionary measures and must be transferred to a specialty end-of-life recycling center where it can be properly and safely handled. Types of equipment that require this kind of process include cathode ray tubes (CRTs), which are found in old televisions and computer monitors. CRTs require specialty recycling because they contain toxic e-waste materials. The glass tubes are made with lead, while the interior is coated in toxic phosphor dust containing cadmium. This poses many concerns relating to worker safety and environmental protection. Therefore, when a CRT is sent downstream to a specialty recycling center, the actual glass tube portion is carefully separated from the rest of the device. From here, the other components of the device are shredded and separated based on material. The section of the glass tube that contains lead is separated from the clean glass, or panel, section.

Non-IT Electronic Equipment Recycling and Procedures

As mentioned earlier, many types of electronic equipment require advanced care. Some of the items on this list include:

  • Refrigerators (Freon must be properly removed and disposed of)
  • Certain types of household equipment (internal components may require special removal and disposal)
  • Light bulbs and fluorescent light tubes (glass requires additional care when recycling)

Downstream of Different Recycled Electronics Equipment

In the end, all electronic equipment has a specific downstream location based on:

  • What the equipment is composed of
  • Which type of process it goes through (disassembly and shredding or refurbishing)
  • Whether it contains any toxic e-waste

Electronics Recycling at Rover Recycling

Rover Recycling’s facility accepts almost all types of electronics equipment for recycling. We are fully capable of accepting and recycling certain pieces of electronics equipment that some other recycling companies will not accept. If a piece of equipment that a client sends us can be refurbished and repurposed, it doesn’t necessarily have to be. Our clients have the ability to let us know if they are required to destroy this type of equipment instead—being that it might contain sensitive information somewhere.

Recognizing that toner cartridges have a high tendency of ending up in landfills, and thus damaging our sensitive environment, we here at Rover Recycling take great steps to ensure that your toner cartridges can be properly recycled in our dedicated toner recycling center. Overall, Rover should be your number one choice for electronics recycling services that are extremely secure, worker-safe and environmentally conscious.Electronics Recycling