If you haven't had to get rid of old appliances for years, congratulations; you had some tough appliances that hopefully served you well. But now that you do need to get rid of them, you have to figure out where to take them because leaving them at the dump is not the best option anymore. Appliances have reusable parts and recyclable materials including metals that you can sell at scrap metal yards. However, if you're not keen on dismantling the appliances themselves, you do have options, including seeing if those scrap metal yards will help you out.

Dispose of the Item Through the City

Your city should have programs for disposing of appliances, including electronic waste (for computer and digital components) and hazardous waste (for materials such as refrigerants). All you have to do is drop off the appliances, and workers will see which parts can be recycled, as well as figure out what to do with the rest of the item. Some of the recyclable metal will likely be sold to a yard by the city, while other parts may be repurposed. This is usually the easiest option for people who simply want to get rid of the appliance, although it will not really get them any money for any recyclable parts.

See if Scrap Metal Recyclers Will Want It

If you have the knowledge, you could try to dismantle the appliance yourself and find recyclable or reusable components. If you don't have that knowledge, though, you might still try calling a scrap metal yard anyway. Some of them will take appliances and dismantle them for you. Whether you get any money for recyclable metal components varies according to the yard's policy and to how much work the yard has to do to retrieve the metals.

Might Vocational Schools or Charities Want It?

This one is a long shot, but if you know of vocational programs that focus on the type of appliance you have, you might want to see if the school running those programs would like the appliance as a practice item. You won't get it back, obviously; it would be for training use and thus would be used for several classes. Another option is to see if there are charities that refurbish old appliances for sale; they may take the item if they think it's fixable. If neither option works out, then calling a scrap metal recycler is the easiest path.

Wanting to keep the appliance components out of the dump is good, and luckily more and more options are appearing for people who need to dispose of appliances without leaving them in a trash heap that could end up polluting groundwater.

For more information, contact a scrap metal recycling service near you.