4 Ways To Recycle That Old PC!

You realize that it's time for your old PC to meet the "great PC in the sky" so you check out the tech deals on IntelligentIT (I mean would you really need to look elsewhere?) to find the perfect replacement for your old hunk of junk. You buy your new PC, set it up and it's 10X better than the old one! Now it's time to get rid of the old one. No problem just toss it in the trash and be on your way, right? Actually wrong.

Throwing that old PC (or electronics in general) in the trash is irresponsible and illegal in some states (check your state law). Lead and other hazardous materials can leak from damaged components and pollute the environment. Check the EPA's website on e-waste to learn more about e-waste and what you can do to help prevent polluting the environment. So you don't know what to do with the old PC now that trashing it is out of the question. Just recycle it! Yes there are many ways to recycle, you don't have to just recycle the hardware in the traditional sense of recycling; you can recycle the way it's used. Below are a few options you can use as an alternative to thrashing an old PC. You can:

1. Donate-  try an act of kindness and donate the system to charity; local shelter, school systems or a family in need. You can even donate to overseas charities like Computers For Africa. Don't worry about the system being old, it may be inadequate for what you do, but it may fit the needs of someone without a PC.
2. Upgrade- you can squeeze a little more life out of the PC by upgrading; more memory, larger hard drive, etc.
3. Reincarnate- use the system as dedicated piece of hardware for instance as a router, firewall, NAS, or even your phone system (hello magic jack). There are various distros of linux that will allow you to breathe new life into that old PC. 
4. Recycle- if the system is absolutely no good, and/or you decide you want to trash it, check the EPA's website to find local electronic recycling facilities and take it there so it can be properly disposed of.

If you have some ways you've recycled an old PC I'd like to hear about them, leave your comments below or send me a message @ITSecPr0.