It’s often been difficult for domestic clients to know what to do with their electronic waste. Local Authorities across the country have banned the act of placing them in general waste bins, so it leaves people with the question: how can we dispose of our electronic waste? In short, you will need to take them to your local recycling centre. There are often people on hand to help you if you aren’t sure which bin to place them in once you get there.

Disposing of electronic waste properly can help to protect the environment, the wildlife, plantlife and to ensure the health of those who process the waste. If you’d like a more convenient option, however, then Willshee’s offers a hazardous waste collection service to domestic and commercial customers throughout Burton-on-Trent and the surrounding areas.

Under this service, their expert team will be able to collect your electronic waste and dispose of it in an environmentally-friendly, responsible manner every single time. If you’re not quite ready to call in the experienced industry professionals, then here are a few do’s and don’ts of electronic waste disposal:

The do’s of electronic waste recycling

Whether you wish to dispose of your electronic waste yourself, by giving it to your local recycling centre, or want to hold onto it until a dedicated waste management company, such as Willshee’s, can come and collect it, here’s everything you should do when it comes to electronic waste recycling:

DO identify all electronic waste items that are recyclable

It’s important that you do your research before giving over, or disposing of, your electronic waste items. This is because not all of them can be recycled. If you put non-recyclable waste into a recyclable container, then it contaminates the recyclable waste that’s already in there. When going through your electronic waste items, go through the following checklist to determine whether or not it can actually be recycled, if any of the following apply, then it can be recycled:

Do any of the electronic items come with plugs?
Is the item battery-operated?
Does the item require charging using external cables?
Look for a picture somewhere on the product that displays a picture of a bin that appears to be crossed out

DO consider a third party to take your electronic waste away for you

It’s a convenient option to allow a waste management company to come and collect your electronic waste on your behalf. It also gives you peace of mind that it will be disposed of responsibly. Willshee’s can always be counted upon to do this for you. On the other hand, do not accept the services of people who turn up at your door as the waste could end up being fly-tipped. Likewise, do your research on waste management companies and make sure they’re fully-registered and licensed to collect and dispose of waste. You should also be provided with paperwork to prove that the waste was taken away by a licensed professional.

DO erase personal data that might be held on a device & back everything up

Before disposing of an electronic item, especially a laptop, a tablet or mobile phone, make sure you’ve backed up all of the information on it and ensure it has all been erased from the device before handing it over to be recycled. This helps to protect yourself, as well as others as you might have information about other individuals, such as phone numbers and addresses.

The don’ts of electronic waste recycling

Just as there are many things you should be doing before recycling your electronic waste, there are things that you shouldn’t be doing with your electronic waste items. That goes for both before and during the disposal process. Just as we delved into what should be done, here’s everything you should refrain from doing when looking to recycle electronic waste:

DON’T put your electronic waste in the bin

We’ve already touched on this, but you should never put electronic waste items in the general, council-owned bin. This goes for headphones, charging cables and other small devices and pieces of equipment. You should also never send rechargeable items, or items powered by lithium batteries, to landfill as they could cause a fire.

DON’T leave hard drives in personal electronic devices

As already touched upon, make sure that you’ve taken all of the hard drives out of your personal devices, such as laptops and desktop computer systems. Sim cards should also be removed from old mobile phones as well as SD cards from cameras and other devices. Not only do you need to do this to protect your personal data, but it could impact which devices end up being recycled and which end up in landfill.

DON’T dispose of electronic items without doing any research

You need to look into what can be recycled and what can’t be recycled. It’s important that you do not contaminate recyclable waste but it’s also imperative that you’re disposing of electronic waste properly as, if done incorrectly, it could cause a great deal of harm to waste management employees, wildlife and also the planet.

If you choose Willshee’s to take your electronic waste away for you, then you’ll have complete peace of mind that everything will be disposed of safely and responsibly. You will also be supplied with a waste transfer note as we’re fully-licensed to handle and dispose of a wide range of different waste types, including asbestos.

Willshee’s is highly-experienced in the waste management industry. With many years of knowledge and expertise to draw upon, you can rest assured that you’ll be provided with sterling waste management services, including skip hire, grab hire, hazardous waste disposal and more, regardless of whether you’re a domestic or commercial customer. For more information about our services, get in touch with a member of our friendly, specialist team today – we’re always pleased to hear from you.

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