How Reusing Electricals Helps the Planet
Donating a working gadget helps the planet because someone uses it again just as it is, so a new one doesn’t need to be made. Making electricals takes metals, plastics, energy and long supply chains. Reusing what already exists saves most of that. Recycling is still far better than the bin, but reuse saves more. Our free doorstep collection for small electricals is built around getting working gadgets used again.
The waste hierarchy
Reuse first, recycling second
UK waste law ranks the ways of dealing with waste in order, from best to worst:
Prevent it
Buy less, and keep the gadgets you have for longer.
Reuse it
Pass it on so it gets used again as it is. This is what donating your electricals does.
Recycle it
Break it down and recover the materials inside.
Recover it
Burn it to make energy.
Dispose of it
Landfill, the last resort.
A reused laptop is still a whole laptop. Recycling it means taking it apart, shredding it and separating the metals and plastics. Some materials come back, but some are lost along the way, as is all the energy and work that went into making it. The materials are worth a lot. Material Focus puts the value of the materials inside UK electricals that are thrown away, kept unused, stolen or illegally exported at £927 million (Material Focus, 2023 figure).
Why it adds up
Where a gadget’s footprint comes from
Most of the impact of a phone, tablet or kettle happens before you ever switch it on. Metals have to be mined and refined. Circuit boards, screens and batteries have to be made. Parts travel between factories, and the finished product is packed and shipped. All of that is spent the moment a new gadget is made.
When a working toaster, speaker or drill gets a second owner, that cost has already been paid. The new owner gets what they need without anything new being made for them. That is why keeping gadgets in use for longer is one of the simplest things you can do for the planet.
What it saves
What reusing electricals saves
There is a lot of reuse waiting to happen. Material Focus found that 880 million unused working electrical items are being kept in UK homes, 31 per household on average, and that number has been growing (Material Focus, 2023 figure). Every one of those that still works could save a new one being made.
Our own estimate, for every kilo of small electricals used again rather than made new:
Work out your own with the green calculator
These are estimates, not measurements. They show what reuse saves in general when a working gadget is used again instead of a new one being made. Your own saving depends on what you give and what it replaces. Sources: Material Focus, press release on reselling unused tech (2023 figure).
When reuse isn’t possible
When recycling is the right answer
Some gadgets really are finished. They won’t switch on, the screen is smashed, or the cable is damaged. We only collect electricals that work, so those should be recycled, not binned. Material Focus found that UK households throw away 103,000 tonnes of electricals (Material Focus, 2023 figure). Most council household recycling centres take small electricals, and many shops that sell electricals will take old ones back. The materials inside can then be recovered.
It matters on a global scale too. The Global E-waste Monitor 2024 from UNITAR and ITU found that 62 million tonnes of e-waste was produced worldwide in 2022, up 82% from 2010 (UNITAR and ITU, 2022 figure). Keeping working gadgets in use slows that growth, and recycling the broken ones recovers what it can.
Everything we collect is sorted by hand at our warehouse, and we pass on what can be used again. See how on what happens to my electricals.
So which should you do?
- Working and in one piece? Donate it. Book a free doorstep electricals collection.
- Broken or damaged? Recycle it at a council recycling centre or a shop take-back point.
- Not sure? Check what electricals can I donate?
The one thing never to do is put them in the bin. Why that matters is on why shouldn’t electricals go in the bin?
Every day
Other ways to keep electricals in use
- Keep your phone and laptop for longer. A case and a screen protector help.
- Repair before you replace. A new battery or charging cable can add years.
- Install software updates so older devices keep working well.
- Buy refurbished or second-hand when you need something new to you.
- Pass gadgets on to family and friends when you upgrade.
- Give old things a new job. There are ideas on upcycling your unwanted items.
Giving away a phone, tablet or laptop? Clear your data first: old phones, tablets and laptops shows you how. Then follow how to donate your electricals. Every gadget you pass on gives someone an affordable choice and means one less made new, and we collect it free from your doorstep.
Sources
- Material Focus, Electrical Waste: Challenges and Opportunities (media release, 28 March 2024), 2023 figures.
- Material Focus, press release on reselling unused tech, 2023 figure.
- UNITAR and ITU, Global E-waste Monitor 2024, 2022 figure.
- Our estimate of 5 kg of CO2e for each kilo reused is the factor we use across our site for small electricals used again rather than made new.
Ready to donate your small electricals?
It’s free, you don’t need to be at home, and you choose the charity your donation supports.