Recycle your mobile phone for cash

Your old mobile phone can be turned into cash, now that's recycling!  Recycling isn't just about separating your papers from plastics or a weekly trip to the bottle bank. To find out how you can turn your mobile into cash read on...

I've noticed something recently. In every TV ad-break in recent weeks, there have been a variety of ads telling me to recycle my mobile phone for cash.

Most TV ads tend to leave me screaming at the television, or laughing at the 'science bit', but these are adverts I'm truly happy to see. Hundreds of thousands of mobile phones go into landfill every day and anything that can be done to reduce our landfill waste can only be a good thing in my book.

The manufacture of mobile phones is a highly resource and energy intensive process. We can reduce the impact of mobile phone manufacture on the natural environment by recycling our old mobile phones. Spare parts from even the most undesirable of mobile phones are still valuable.

It makes good financial sense to recycle old mobile phones for cash. These dusty old phones are locking up free money - and in these times of economic hardship, quick, easy cash is not to be sniffed at.

It's also incredibly easy to do. The ease of selling your old mobile to companies like envirofone or mazuma mobile is such that we really would be fools not to take advantage.

A lot of second-hand mobiles are sold on to the developing world, where people can less well afford full price, brand new handsets. By selling your old phone, you are ensuring access to useful technology to people who wouldn't otherwise have access to it.

This adds to the reduction in the production numbers of new handsets and therefore further reduces the impact of this industry on the environment. This is clearly a win-win situation!

Mobile phones contain metals such as lead, arsenic and beryllium that are hazardous when disposed of incorrectly. When left in landfill they can leach into the groundwater, eventually entering the food chain and posing a serious health-hazard.

They also contain precious metals such as platinum, copper, gold and silver which can be recovered and used to make items such as jewellery and copper piping.

Batteries contain nickel which can be used to make stainless steel for making saucepans. A cornucopia of resources is being dumped in our landfills every single day - it seems ludicrous that we ever thought landfill was the best option when upgrading our mobile phones.

Old mobile phones can of course also be cannibalised for spare parts, prolonging the life of current mobile phones, thus negating the need for so many new handsets to be produced.

If you have an old mobile phone that you no longer need, why not check first to see if any of your friends can use it? Reuse is always preferable to recycling, plus you'll get that warm fuzzy feeling that comes with doing a good deed :) Your local Freecycle network can help if none of your friends need a new handset

• Dig out your old mobile phone. The first thing you should do is check to see if the phone is in good working order. Some companies will only accept fully functioning phones so check the terms and conditions.
• Find out the make and model of your mobile phone. If you don't already know the make and model then either check the original packaging or, if you no longer have this, remove the battery and check the label.
• Shop around. Input the details of your phone into as many phone recycling websites as you can, some websites will offer you more money for your phone than others.
• Once you have made a decision, follow the online instructions of your chosen website. Most sites will take your details and in a few days send you a padded, prepaid envelope for your old mobile phone. Nice!
  
• When you receive your envelope, pop your old phone into it, and post it off to be recycled.
• Eagerly await the postman for the next few days...
• Receive cheque or high street vouchers in the post and enjoy the warm, satisfying glow that comes with doing something good - and getting paid for it!
  

• This ram packed compendium from the people at Yankee magazine really does seem to take the act of recycling to a whole new level - that of an extreme sport!
• Containing Make it Last tips, to maximise the lifespan of an item, Fix it Fast tips for repairing items in a snap and also Pass it Along tips on how to get rid of those unwanted items. A nicely written and really useful book.

• An educational and useful book from Fine Living TV's 'Easy Being Green' host, Renée Loux, applying her whole-foods philosophy to matters of the home, garden and beauty.
• Contains a 'Green Thumb Guide' to making ecologically and human friendly choices.
  

• Do you know how to correctly dispose of unwanted medicines? What should you do with your old mobile phones? This easy to read guide has all the answers.
• It has an A to Z listing of every day household items and how to recycle them, and is a valuable addition to the bookshelf of anyone who wants to do their bit for the planet.
  

• With great contributions from over 100 renowned children's authors, this book offers inspiring and informative calls to kids of all ages to understand the problems facing the environment.
  
• This book would make a great teaching aid when trying to educate children on the importance of protecting our natural environment, and what they can do to help.
  

A quick internet search reveals the sheer scale of the number of companies now offering you money for your old mobile phone, a trend which I for one am very happy to support. I have provided links to some of the best websites, such as mazumamobile and envirofone in the box above.

With hundreds of thousands of mobile phones hanging around in drawers just gathering dust, I for one am going to hunt out those old mobile phones and see what they are worth. Who wants to join me?

Find out what else you can do to protect the environment in some of my other Hubs;

Green Tips - Sustainable Living

Energy Efficient Light Bulbs

Vegetarian and Vegan diet

My local environment and its treasures

Embracing Green Energy - Wind Power