How to dispose of CRTs?
We still had a few CRTs that we just replaced with flat screen LCD monitors , and I thought that I would just store them away for backups, since they all still work (and I wouldn't have to do anything else with them, to be honest). Well, apparently the last guy who did this had the same thought, because I found dozens and dozens of old CRTs stored away. Instead of "sit and forget", I actually need to deal with this. You can't just toss them in the trash anymore (not that you ever should have), and the local recyclers say they don't want them. I can pay $15 per unit for disposal, but I'll have to make a disbursement request, justify it, wait, etc. Are there any better options. What do you do with old CRTs?
Answers
Check with your city/town, there might be a municipal recycling/disposal program. Where I live, they started charging to take CRT monitors/TVs, and as a result people were just tossing them in dumpsters, which is actually illegal in my state. The city went back to free disposal to keep the old CRTs (which use a lot of lead in the glass) out of the landfill.
The problem is that CRTs went from being something that had value to recyclers to being something that is more like a mildly hazardous waste. There isn't a lot of demand for the leaded glass used for the screen anymore, and very little else you can do with it cost effectively. There is a chance you are going to just have to buck up and pay a few bucks per CRT.
The NYT had an interesting article about the problems of old CRT TV disposal, BTW.
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Do a google search for CRT recycling for your state. That's the best way to find a local way of recycling them.