Can CDs Be Recycled?

An anonymous reader asks: "I was recently doing a closet-cleaning and came across literally hundreds of old software CDs that are no longer usable — both manufactured CDs and CD-Rs. Note that by 'not usable', I mean that many of them simply couldn't be read anymore, possibly due to the fact that they'd been stored rather ineptly (no, I wasn't responsible for how they were stored). It seems wrong to just throw them out, but are there other things that can be done with them that will allow their raw materials to be reused in some way?Is it possible to reclaim CDs for raw materials?"

Comments

Dunno about the US.

[Ihlosi]

Here in Europe, CDs are collected for recycling.

Yes

[gagravarr]

Yes, you can recycle your cds. There's a list of places that offer cd recycling on recyclenow - http://www.recyclenow.com/what_more_can_i_do/can_i t_be_recycled/compact_discs.html

Microwave

[tscheez]

While this is not a way to recycle CD's, it is fun and will destroy the data on it permanently. Put one data side up in the microwave and run it for 2-4 seconds on high and watch the light show. (I wouldn't suggest doing this in a microwave you like, it *seems* to do no damage to the microwave but I can't be sure)

Re:Microwave

[tsa]

It sure makes your home stink like a hellhole. We tried toasting CD's in this way in the research group's kitchen once. The experiment worked out beautifully but you could still smell it a week later.

Dunno about Europe.

[KlaymenDK]

Here in Denmark, they're not.

It annoys me so much that in a little flat country such as Denmark we can't figure out how to sort our waste, especially when the tiniest mountain villages in Austria do it. >_< Ok, rant over.

Re:Dunno about Europe.

[KlaymenDK]

"It annoys me so much that in a little flat country such as Denmark we can't figure out how to sort our waste..."

You lost me here.....sort waste (trash)? You don't just throw it in the garbage can, and once or twice a week, the garbagemen drive by the front of your house and empty your can and haul it all away?

Perhaps I should have written garbage, yes.

Here, everything goes into the same (under-the-sink) trash can, then into a single-compartment garbage truck, to one garbage heap. It pains me everytime I have to throw away perfectly good alumim(i)um foil. As it is, trying to roll a ton of it into a big ball for recycling would only serve to make me (a) $.02 richer, and (b) a laughing-stock.

OTOH, in Austria (or at least several parts of it) you are supposed to sort your garbage into separate trash cans for organic, plastic and metal parts. Therefore, if you buy sliced ham at the butcher's, the coated paper that it comes wrapped in can easily be taken apart for separate disposal. Very nice.

Oh well ...

Re:Dunno about Europe.

[horatio]

Yeah, she's fine. :) The vet said the biggest thing to worry about was internal bleeding caused by perforations from the shards of plastic, but that wasn't an issue. I am a little surprised that the organic dye layer (whatever it is composed of) didn't seem to make her sick at all. Maybe I should start feeding her CDs I want "recycled" instead of contaminated off-the-shelf dog food.

Re:They make great coasters

[j00r0m4nc3r]

They actually make terrible coasters, because without a material on them to absorb water, or a lip around the edge to trap it, water just rolls off onto the table.

Artwork

[Rob T Firefly]

Shiny but useless CDs can be very useful for artists who need sparklies. Try sticking them up on your local Freecycle or Craigslist as a freebie, someone out there may be willing to take them off your hands.

Probably.

[mythar]

If you live in Silicon Valley, you can check http://www.recyclestuff.org/.

polycarbonate -- unfortunately not

[redelm]

CDs are made of polycarbonate resin, Recycling Class (7) that finds little use. See and here.

We use the Technotrash can by GreenDisk

[Anonymous Coward]

We generate a LOT of CD and tech waste where I work, so we looked into this. Turns out there is a company that recycles all that sort of junk called GreenDisk, so I get a technotrash can every 3 months or so. Basically you pay $40 for a box that they send you, you load it up with up to 70 pounds of tech-junk, and then you send it back via USPS. They pay shipping on the way back (but I think you really pay it up front when you give them the $40 :-P).

http://www.greendisk.com/

Re:They make great coasters

[steveo777]

I've used them to hold big candles. They reflect the light and make some pretty cool looking candelabras when you use a bunch of different colored CD's at varying heights.

On the other hand they don't tend to stop the wax from flowing all over the place.

In most cases...

[Amerist]

Yes.

Electronic waste is a huge part of our community in the United States and as a result a lot of recycling centers and other facilities have cropped up to try to handle it. Since I work for them, the first place I'd check to locate a facility near me is EARTH911, there is even a computer recycling section being floated right now: Computer Components Recycling.

In many cases they will be reuse and donation centers, or something like ACT; in the end anything that gives these items a longer lifespan in the community or puts them to different use than ending up in a landfill is a step in good direction.

Every geek in the US needs one of these around...

[Optic7]

The Technotrash can by Greendisk.

It's a box for any electronic trash that has all the recycling and shipping fees included in its purchase price. Total price is $30 for a 35lbs capacity box, or $40 for a 70lbs capacity one. Or you can get bundles and give them away as gifts to everyone. You can throw anything from CDs to videotapes to laptops to cell phones in there. When it's full, you close it up and ship it (for "free").