Electronic waste, commonly called e-waste, includes any electronic device that has reached the end of its useful life. If it has a plug, battery, or circuit board, it probably qualifies. E-waste disposal is a growing concern in Orange County and across California, where millions of pounds of old electronics end up in the waste stream every year.
Common types of e-waste include:
If you have a garage full of old TVs, broken laptops, or drawers stuffed with outdated phones and chargers, you are sitting on e-waste that needs proper handling, not a trip to the regular trash can.
Old electronics contain hazardous materials that make them dangerous when they end up in landfills. A single CRT television can contain up to eight pounds of lead. Computer circuit boards hold mercury, cadmium, and chromium. Lithium-ion batteries in phones and laptops can catch fire or explode when crushed in garbage trucks or compacted at a landfill.
Here is what is lurking inside common devices:
When these toxins leach into soil and groundwater, they contaminate drinking water and harm ecosystems. That is exactly why California enacted some of the strictest e-waste recycling laws in the country.
California was the first state to pass dedicated e-waste legislation, and residents of Orange County need to understand how these laws affect them.
SB 20 (Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003) established a statewide system for collecting and recycling “covered electronic devices,” primarily TVs and monitors. When you buy a new TV or monitor in California, you pay an electronic waste recycling fee at the point of sale, typically $4 to $6 depending on screen size. This fee funds the state’s e-waste recycling infrastructure.
SB 50 expanded on SB 20 by establishing payment rates for certified e-waste collectors and recyclers, creating financial incentives for companies to properly process electronic waste rather than dumping it.
Under California law, it is illegal to throw covered electronic devices, including TVs, monitors, laptops, and tablets, into the trash. Businesses face additional regulations under the state’s Universal Waste Rule, which also covers batteries, fluorescent tubes, and mercury-containing equipment.
The bottom line: if you toss your old TV in the dumpster in Orange County, you are breaking the law and potentially facing fines.
The good news is that Orange County has plenty of options for electronics recycling. Here is a breakdown of where you can take your e-waste, from free drop-off locations to paid pickup services.
The OC Waste and Recycling program operates several household hazardous waste collection centers that accept e-waste at no charge. These same centers also accept old paint and other hazardous household materials. Residents can drop off old electronics at permanent collection sites or during scheduled collection events throughout the year. Check your city’s website or the OC Waste and Recycling site for locations and schedules near you.
Many Orange County cities, including Huntington Beach, Irvine, Anaheim, Santa Ana, and Costa Mesa, also run their own periodic e-waste collection events, often at community centers or parking lots on weekends.
Best Buy accepts a wide range of electronics for recycling at their stores, including TVs (up to certain size limits), computers, phones, cables, and small appliances. Most items are accepted for free, though there may be a fee for large TVs and monitors.
Staples accepts computers, monitors, printers, and networking equipment for free recycling.
Goodwill and Salvation Army accept working electronics as donations. If your old laptop or TV still works, donating it gives the device a second life and keeps it out of the waste stream entirely.
For large volumes of e-waste or business cleanouts, certified e-waste recyclers in Orange County offer pickup services and provide certificates of destruction, important for companies that need to protect sensitive data on old hard drives. Look for recyclers certified through R2 (Responsible Recycling) or e-Stewards programs to ensure your electronics are processed responsibly and not shipped overseas to unregulated facilities.
When you have a mix of e-waste and other junk, or when the volume is too large to haul yourself, professional junk removal is the most convenient option. Junk Smiths handles e-waste removal as part of our appliance pickup and disposal and general junk removal services. We sort electronics from the rest of your load and route them to certified recycling facilities, so you do not have to figure out where each item goes.
Ever wonder what actually happens after you drop off that old computer or TV? The e-waste recycling process involves several stages:
A single ton of circuit boards contains more gold than 17 tons of gold ore. E-waste recycling is not just environmentally responsible; it recovers genuinely valuable materials that would otherwise be lost.
Sorting e-waste from regular junk is tedious, and hauling heavy CRT televisions or stacks of old monitors is physically demanding. That is where professional junk removal comes in.
At Junk Smiths, here is how we handle e-waste as part of our service:
This is especially useful for estate cleanouts, office cleanouts, and property turnovers where you are dealing with years of accumulated electronics mixed in with everything else. One call to Junk Smiths at 714-369-8886 handles it all.
Understanding your options helps you decide the right approach based on volume, convenience, and budget.
For a single old phone or laptop, a free drop-off makes sense. But when you are dealing with a full garage cleanout, an estate full of old electronics, or a commercial office with dozens of outdated computers, professional junk removal is the most efficient and cost-effective path. You save hours of sorting, loading, and driving to multiple drop-off locations.
Dealing with old tires instead of electronics? Check out our complete guide to tire disposal and recycling in Orange County for free drop-off locations and California tire recycling laws.
Yes. Under California’s Electronic Waste Recycling Act (SB 20), it is illegal to dispose of covered electronic devices like TVs, monitors, laptops, and tablets in the trash. These items contain hazardous materials and must be recycled through approved programs or certified recyclers.
You can recycle old TVs at OC Waste and Recycling household hazardous waste collection centers, Best Buy stores (may charge a fee for large TVs), or through a professional junk removal service like Junk Smiths that handles TV recycling as part of a full cleanout.
Junk Smiths accepts all types of electronic waste, including TVs, computers, monitors, printers, phones, tablets, gaming consoles, stereo equipment, cables, batteries, and small kitchen electronics. We sort e-waste from your other junk and route it to certified recyclers.
Many drop-off options are free for Orange County residents. Professional junk removal services like Junk Smiths use volume-based pricing, so e-waste removal is included as part of your total load. Contact us at 714-369-8886 for a free estimate.
Old electronics commonly contain lead (CRT monitors), mercury (LCD backlights), cadmium (rechargeable batteries), brominated flame retardants (plastic casings), and arsenic (semiconductors). These toxins can contaminate soil and groundwater if electronics are sent to a landfill.
Yes. Working electronics in good condition can be donated to Goodwill, Salvation Army, and other local organizations. Donating functional devices is the most sustainable option because it extends the product’s useful life and keeps it out of the recycling stream entirely.
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