Too many old monitors! February 25, 2008

I finally made the switch to a flat-screen monitor this week. I’d inherited it a year ago and never bothered to hook it up. Finally the advantages of saving space and some energy prompted me to make the change. The new monitor is great, only now I have the old CRT monitor sitting on my living room floor. It didn’t seem all that big when it was on my computer stand, but when I look at it now it seems immense:

 

(The wine bottle is just for perspective!)

My problem is bigger than this, however. I actually have 2 other similarly large monitors I’m not using, plus 2 non-working but fixable printers, 2 or 3 keyboards, and a complete desktop system that my mother just replaced and that I volunteered to dispose of for her.

Despite the fact that there is probably a higher concentration of hardware in the NYC metropolitan area, there are surprisingly few options for donating or recycling. Most of my unneeded equipment is in working order, so I would prefer not to take it to my town’s electronic recycling day, which isn’t until April 18th anyway. My preference is that it find a useful purpose somewhere. Staples collects from businesses but not from individuals, and even the apparently helpful Find a Recycling Center at earth911.org didn’t offer any options.

Finally, after many fruitless searches, I came across the National Cristina Foundation, which encourages companies and individuals to donate computers and other technology, which are then matched to charities, schools and public agencies in all 50 states, Canada, and in many countries around the world. The process was easy. I filled in a form with the details of the monitor, and my contact information. Once they have a match they will get in touch. There is an option for 3 levels of detail about the equipment. I chose the most detailed in this case because I knew the make and model number, and had been able to find some of the specs on Amazon. For the IBM I have I don’t have much detail, so when I post that one I’ll choose the “don’t know much about the equipment” option. I could also choose whether I’d ship the item or would prefer to drop it off or have it picked up, which seemed more sensible in this case. They say it takes 2 weeks minimum to hear back, so I’ll have to be patient, and will update the blog once I’ve been contacted.

The take many types of notebooks, desktops, printers, peripherals and even software, so if you have something you don’t need, give it a try. Not only will you be helping someone else, you’ll be keeping potentially dangerous substances out of a landfill.