the top resource that will help you save the environment by recycling your old and unwanted goods and at the same time earn some easy extra money. Don't let your attic, cupboards or drawers fill up with rubbish or even make the mistake of throwing old items in the dustbin.
Earn money by recycling your old stuff
Whether you're looking to earn money for yourself, your school, your charity, your business or any other organisation you can learn how here. There are over 100 online recyclers listed on this website that will take almost any goods off you in exchange for pennies to hundreds of pounds. Not only will you be getting a little extra money in your pocket but you can be happy that you have made a difference to the environment.
Pretty much any of your unwanted everyday household goods could be recycled for cash including:
- Mobile phones
- Tablet PCs
- Console games
- Gold, silver and jewellery
- Printer cartridges
- and lots more...
It's estimated that in the UK there are just under 100 million phones sat around either collecting dust or on their way to landfill sites. Mobile phones contain many dangerous and toxic materials including cadmium, lead, brominated flame retardants and beryllium, these materials are associated with human diseases and can cause many problems to the world's environment.
By sending your old mobile to the right place it can be disposed of correctly. Online mobile recycling companies will pay you between £1 - £500 per handset that you send in. It's estimated that each home in Britain has up to 3 old mobiles hidden away, just imagine how much cash you could make by sending them in today.
iPods / iPhones
Millions of iPods and iPhones have been sold around the world making Apple lots of money but at the same time creating a huge e-waste problem. To help solve this problem there are many online recyclers who will buy your old iPod (any model) or iPhone off you. The great thing about these devices is that even the older models do not lose their value quickly so by selling them you are likely to get hundreds of pounds straight into your pocket.
Sales of digital cameras and camcorders have fallen by as much as 30% in the last 5 years as more people rely on their smartphones. If you have recently bought a smartphone and feel its time to get rid of your old camera or have simply upgraded to the latest model, then there are many sites that will buy them off you for up to as much as £500+ each.
There are so many other electronic products such as computer monitors, keyboards, hard drives, e-book readers, satellite navigation systems, cookers, dishwashers, tv sets, dvd players, memory cards and lots more. Most people don't have a clue how to dispose of these goods once they stop working or are replaced for a newer model.
If you're not bothered about the money the best way to get rid of TV's and white goods would be at your local recycling centre. There are websites available that will take most of your small waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE) but bigger items can only really be sold online at auction sites or even be given away to be reused.
DVDs, Games and CDs
As the majority of people are now buying digital music, millions of CDs are being disposed of. Last year over 2500 tonnes of CDs were thrown in the bin and ended up at rubbish tips around the country. If all the CDs people throw away each year were sent in to be recycled this would add up to a staggering £21 million.
Many computer games are also disposed of each year, as the latest games come out or the old game is completed people no longer want to play them and many put them straight into the bin. There are websites available that will allow you to return your CDs, DVDs and games and will reuse or recycle them correctly, in return you will be paid in cash or credit.
Every year millions of tonnes of clothes are being dumped when they could easily be worn again or sent to be recycled. Of all the clothes that are thrown in the bin only 25% are being disposed of correctly the rest are ending up at landfill. Once at landfill many will never fully decompose and the ones that do will produce lots of methane gas which is further damaging the environment.
There are many websites nationwide that are available who will buy your old clothes off you in return for up to as much as 60p / kg or £18 a sack. Many will provide you with a sack to put your items in and offer a free courier collection.
There are lots of other items that can be recycled both on and offline for money including:
Gold / silver items and jewellery, copper, brass, books, aluminium cans, plastic bottles, glass bottles,
Printer ink cartridges, PC's, MP3 players, car batteries, calculators and lots more.
It really pays to think about where an item could go before you put it in the bin with unrecyclable stuff.
According to official statistics UK households produces over 10 million tonnes of waste every year. From all the waste that is currently being dumped only just over 40% is being recycled correctly. This figure is still quite low in comparison to other European countries like Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands who are recycling or composting over 60% of all the waste they produce.
The waste that does end up at landfill is seriously damaging the environment. Biodegradable waste generates methane, a powerful greenhouse gas which presents a hazard for the global environment and causes climate change. It's been estimated that climate change kills as many as 300,000 people every year. Landfill sites currently produce as much of a quarter of Britain's methane emissions.
When used products are not disposed of correctly then new products will need to be manufactured by extracting raw materials from the earth by mining and forestry. Mining and Forestry kills trees, wildlife and pollutes water.By recycling your unwanted goods instead of binning them means that less of the earth's natural resources will be used.
Together we can all make a big difference to the environment and earn lots of money at the same time, make a start today!