In an earlier post I covered the standard metals, plastics, glass, and paper recycling that can be put out for weekly pick up by the Department of Sanitation. Now we’ll cover some of the more complicated kinds of recycling. These items come up often with our senior moves business!
E-Waste
Most electronics cannot be bagged and left for recycling pick up, including:
Desktops, laptops, servers
Monitors, printers, scanners, hard drives
TVs, VCRs, DVD players, DVRs
Cellphones, tablets, eReaders
Video games, consoles, digital picture frames
Instead, you have a few options for disposing of the above:
Most large manufacturers provide free drop-off recycling of their products at their locations, including Apple, Best Buy and Amazon
Most Staples stores offer drop off of various electronics at their stores, even if those items were not purchased from Staples. Please check your local store for details as some locations limit the amount that can be dropped off
New York City has e-waste drop off sites in each borough and also hosts e-waste drop off events
The Lower East Side Recycling Center (LES) hosts free e-waste drop off events in all NYC boroughs. LES used to have a permanent drop off location open daily in Gowanus but they closed this a few years ago but they list events on their website
We encourage clients to wipe the data off devices before dropping them off to be recycled; there are companies that offer this service for a charge
Air conditioners
New York City will pick up air conditioners, refrigerators and other appliances containing CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) gas BUT you have to make arrangements to have the city (for free) remove the CFCs first. You can start the process by visiting the Department of Sanitation website.
Batteries
You can dispose of regular alkaline batteries in the garbage but not rechargeable and lithium-ion batteries. Stores that sell these types of batteries are required to take them back or you can take them to the city’s e-waste drop-off sites or e-waste drop-off events.
Composting
The city has a growing composting program. If your building participates, you can put food waste, plant, leaf, and yard waste in these bins and they will be converted to compost. Pretty soon composting will be mandatory throughout the city so it should become easier to participate.
Gas cylinders, fire extinguishers, and things containing fuel
These can explode inside collection trucks so should not be disposed of with regular pick-ups. Instead they should be brought to the city’s e-waste disposal events.
Paint cans
We covered paint cans in an earlier blog post.
Bulk disposal or recycling
Anything that cannot fit in a bin or bag is considered bulk. Until a few years ago, if you wanted bulk items removed on either trash or recycling days, you had to call to make an appointment but now we are all allowed six bulk items on each garbage or recycling pick up day. This includes furniture, but mattresses and box sprints require special handling. To dispose of a mattress, purchase a large plastic mattress bag from a hardware store, and wrap the mattress up before you leave it out. Rugs and carpets can be rolled up and secured with string and are considered bulk.
A few surprising things you can just toss with your garbage
Some things that you can dispose of in regular trash or recycling include: ink and toner cartridges, light bulbs (even fluorescent bulbs), alkaline batteries, and small appliances.
