Small electricals and electronics

Residents in houses can place small electrical items out with their green recycling bin. These items must be able to fit into a standard sized carrier bag and placed on top of the lid of the green recycling bin (not inside). Larger items will not be taken.

A specialised company takes these items, extracting metals and components, for recycling.

Items which can be taken from home can include:

• Toasters
• Kettles
• Coffee machines
• Vapes
• Hairdryers
• Small lamps (please remove the bulbs)
• DVD players
• Children’s electrical toys
• Portable speakers
• Cables

The HWRC accepts many electrical items.

Small electrical items can also be taken to the HWRC – this can also include items not accepted at the kerbside such as vacuum cleaners.

Batteries can be recycled at the HWRC as well as local supermarkets.

Items which can be taken to the HWRC include:

• Batteries
• Car batteries
• Electrical equipment and appliances
• Fridges/freezers
• Light bulbs
• Mobile phones

Appliances such as cookers are directed to the metal bin so the metal can be recycled.

Metals are extracted and the parts which currently can’t be recycled is sent to landfill, for example hard plastics.

Items such as TVs and large appliances (e.g. washing machines) are also sold to buyers who are certified with the Environment Agency for refurbishment, resale, and reuse.

Fluorescent lightbulbs are classed as hazardous and treated separately to remove mercury.

LED lightbulbs can be placed in the small electrical appliance container.

Halogen lightbulbs are not recycled and are directed to the general waste bin.

Our unwanted electricals contain valuable materials including plastics and metals such as gold, copper, steel and aluminium.

From your recycling point, old electricals go to a reprocessing plant, where people sort and break them apart by hand. Then machines shred the materials into small pieces. Magnets separate steel and other ferrous metals, and electrical currents remove other metals. Plastic is also sorted into different types and ground up.

When we recover metals and plastics, they become valuable commodities to the UK economy. They’re sold on the open market and can become new products – from bicycles to life saving equipment. The Recycle Your Electricals team have created a video that explains the whole process, in under 3 minutes you’ll be an expert.

For more information on how to recycle electricals in the UK visit Recycle Your Electricals.