Q&A for How to Safely Get Rid of an Old Computer

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Is it OK to just throw a computer away?

Spike Baron
Network Engineer & Desktop Support
Spike Baron is the Owner of Spike's Computer Repair based in Los Angeles, California. With over 25 years of working experience in the tech industry, Spike specializes in PC and Mac computer repair, used computer sales, virus removal, data recovery, and hardware and software upgrades. He has his CompTIA A+ certification for computer service technicians and is a Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert.

Spike Baron

Network Engineer & Desktop Support

Expert Answer

No, you have to wipe the computer to remove any personal information that may be pulled from the hard drive. On top of that, computers aren't biodegradable, so just throwing it in the trash isn't a good idea.

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Question

Who takes old computers for free?

Spike Baron
Network Engineer & Desktop Support
Spike Baron is the Owner of Spike's Computer Repair based in Los Angeles, California. With over 25 years of working experience in the tech industry, Spike specializes in PC and Mac computer repair, used computer sales, virus removal, data recovery, and hardware and software upgrades. He has his CompTIA A+ certification for computer service technicians and is a Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert.

Spike Baron

Network Engineer & Desktop Support

Expert Answer

Call your local computer store and ask them if they recycle computers. The vast majority of electronics stores out there will take your old computer. Most major cities will have recycling programs for electronics as well.

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I want to sell my old computer but need to remove all stored files and personal information. How can I do that?

Community Answer

The short answer is to format the hard drive. Usually this requires booting from a bootable CD or USB stick that contains tools to format the hard drive. Some computers also come with a recovery partition on the hard-drive that you can use to do a fresh install of the OS, but this won't guarantee your data can't be recovered if someone has the right tools to do it. Either way, you'll have to interrupt the computer's boot process to tell it to boot from the alternate media. Even better is to get a program that will overwrite the hard-drive with zeros, to ensure the data cannot be recovered. This will also make the computer unusable until a new operating system is installed.

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Question

Can I just dump it in a bucket of bleach? (The methods listed aren't plausible for me.)

Community Answer

Not really, because you'd still be stuck with the computer itself. Bleach would just ruin the internal system. The best option is to take it to a pawn shop for some cash, give it to a friend or relatives, or just call the manufacturer and see what they recommend.

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How do I dispose of a computer that needs a mother board?

Community Answer

Send it to somewhere that recycles computers, but make sure you remove any part that may have your personal data on it first.

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How do I securely erase my old computer?

Community Answer

This is described in Step 2. You can click the link at the beginning of that step for a detailed article.

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Question

Can I burn a computer in a fire?

Community Answer

It is not recommended at all due to environmental responsibility and concerns, but if it is legal in your area and you have no moral constraints or health concerns about the chemicals it will release, go ahead. Just don't stand too close to the fire, and remove the PSU (Power Supply) and RAM, as these can cause explosion when introduced to extreme heat.

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Question

How do I remove the hard drive from a computer?

Community Answer

First open your computer case, then you will see some hard drive bay, unscrew those screws, and remove the hard drive connection. (It can be Sata or IDE depending on what your hard drive uses.) Then the hard drive can be easily removed.

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Do I need to remove the video card when recycling an old computer?

Community Answer

No. If you want to use it as a backup or a paper weight, go right ahead. There is no personal information on a graphics card, so you can just leave it with the computer when you recycle it.

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Question

Will water destroy all the information on a hard drive?

Community Answer

The short answer is yes, but it may not protect it from data recovery services if someone really wanted to access your information. My advice would be to just keep the hard drive, or send it in for recycling if it doesn't have any critical data on it (i.e. banking info, passwords, etc.).

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I am currently throwing out my old computer it runs on Windows 2000, I took the hard drive and RAM out and CPU fan and cooler. Would it be best to throw it out?

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Community Answer

No, you should take it to a pawn shop, a recycling center or reuse the parts for another system.

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What if I take a sledgehammer to the laptop, will that decommission it?

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Community Answer

Yes, it will destroy the laptop and then you can throw whatever is left of it into the trash.

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