From Guest Blogger Sam Charles: Recycling Household Goods

Keeping leftovers from meals and collecting free plastic bags from supermarkets have been some of the most common ways of saving households money by recycling.

The challenge is to make a profit by going green.

Online Sales

Old household items such as chairs, books, tools and furniture can be sold on numerous online retail websites such as eBay.

All it requires high-quality photos of the item from a few angles and you may have a number of potential buyers trying to outbid each other.

However, you have to calculate how much it will cost to wrap and ship the item. Sometimes postage costs for old books exceed the money you may make from them.

Car Boot Sales

Car boot sales have become a weekend tradition around Britain. In railway-station car parks, race courses out of season, playgrounds and side streets, anyone can set up a stall to sell old junk. But that old piece of junk just may become someone else’s treasure.

Auctions

You don’t need to go to London’s West End to Christie’s and Sotheby’s, as local auctions are an ideal opportunity to recycle old pictures, furniture, china and glass; especially an inheritance from an older family member that simply isn’t to anyone’s taste anymore.

Obviously, a commission has to be paid to the auction house, and dealers will do their best to keep prices down. But sometimes householders discover they have been keeping a valuable treasure in the attic gathering dust.

Electronic Waste

What does anyone do with an old mobile phone or computer? Usually we throw them away, hopefully, after removing any chips and disks that contain personal information. But these are the items that contain some today’s most valuable materials.

Circuit boards in computers and other electronic equipment contain precious metals such as gold, silver, palladium and even platinum. There are also significant amounts of base metals such as copper, zinc, aluminium, lead and tin.

However, the extraction of these metals uses dangerous chemicals such as cyanide compounds, and it can be highly dangerous as well as polluting when attempted by amateurs.

It’s a good idea to consult specialists on precious-metal extraction. Use any profits to buy a more efficient computer or smartphone and save on energy bills by not leaving it on standby overnight.

Scrappage Schemes

Central and local government as well as numerous companies offer scrappage schemes for old cars and central heating boilers. The best strategy is to shop around to find the most profitable scheme.

Local stainless steel suppliers could be possible buyers for boilers as well as old pots, pans and kettles. Use the money to install a more energy-efficient boiler that will cut down on energy bills or buy a more fuel-efficient car.

Grow Fruit and Vegetables

If you have a large enough garden or some reliable fruit trees, try growing your own food and selling it. If you don’t have a large garden but do have a patio or balcony, recycle some old pots and pans as plant holders.

You may find that there are a surprising number of outlets. Try selling from a stall in your front garden or at local school fairs, or tour around local restaurants and sandwich bars to sell your produce.