Bringing old electricals back from the dead

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Revive unwanted electricals by giving them a second life

International E-Waste Day is on the way and on 14 October, it’s a good time for us to look at the best ways of giving old electricals a second life and recycling them in Surrey.

When we talk about electricals, we mean anything that has a plug or uses removable or internal batteries including USB-charged items.

If your item has given up the ghost and can’t be repaired or reused…

Recycle small ones from home

If you live in Elmbridge, Guildford, Mole Valley, Runnymede, Spelthorne, Surrey Heath, Tandridge, Waverley or Woking, you can put small electricals (any item that will fit into a supermarket-style carrier bag) out for recycling. You’ll need to check with your local council for details of how and when to present your small electricals for collection.
Wherever you live in Surrey, Anglo Doorstep Collections provides free collections of electricals, among many other types of waste.
You can also use the website, Compare and Recycle to recycle your electricals from home.

Recycle large ones from home

Anything larger than will fit into a carrier bag needs to be recycled separately. Wherever you live in Surrey, you can book a bulky waste collection for large electricals. Some local charities and social enterprises may also collect your large electricals from home.
Recycle your electricals when you’re out and about
All community recycling centres accept small and large electrical items for recycling.
Some shops, such as supermarkets and electrical retailers, take electrical items back to be recycled.

If you think your electrical item still has a spark of life...

Take your electrical item to one of Surrey's repair cafes

Surrey is home to 23 repair cafes, at which volunteers will repair almost any item that you bring, including electricals, for free or a donation.

Take your item to a repair shop in Surrey

Surrey also has many electrical repair businesses, which may be able to repair your electrical item for a fee.

Pass on your electrical item to be reused by someone else

Surrey is full of places that you can take working electricals to be passed on for reuse by someone else. These include all the county’s community recycling centre, a host of car boot sales and many electrical retailers that offer takeback schemes.
To find your nearest community recycling centre, repair cafe, electrical repair business or electrical retailer that takes back electrical items, check out Surrey’s zero-waste map.
You can also go online to find one of the many online marketplaces through which you can sell working electrical items. Websites include Facebook Marketplace, eBay, Freecycle or Gumtree.

Avoid a recycling horror story

Finally, a note on batteries and vapes.

Always remove batteries from electrical items before you dispose of them, so they don’t come back to haunt you. Once removed, batteries should never go in a bin. To recycle them safely, read our article on how to dispose of household batteries in Surrey.
Vapes contain electrical parts and batteries and should also never go in a bin.

Check the Surrey Recycles search tool or with your local council to find the best way to dispose of them. After all, the only thing scarier than a ghost, is a battery in the wrong bin.