When we buy new computers (or any technology for that matter) we are left with the old device to dispose of. In St Johns County, you are not supposed to put it in the trash, or the recycling for normal pickup.
St Johns County does have an “Obsolete Electronics” drop off at the Tillman Ridge and the Stratton Rd Transfer stations. It’s free, and easy to drop off your old electronics.
There is also a free pickup service provided by Sensible Recycling which is Veteran Owned & Operated.
It is generally considered good practice to remove the hard drive as it contains personal information that needs to be guarded against wrongful use.
For a while now, I have taken all old hard drives to Sensible Recycling’s shop in Jacksonville and watched them shred them into little tiny pieces. It’s amazing to see. They actually have a video of the shredder working on their website (sensiblerecycling.com). Whether you go there, or call them for a free pickup, you may rest assured they responsibly remove and destroy the hard drive and recycle your old electronics, free of charge.
Before disposing of your old computer, you probably will want to get all of your files (pictures, documents, etc.) so that you can use them on the new computer. This can normally be done quickly with an external hard drive or a high capacity USB Flash drive. If you are not sure where all of your files are located on the computer, the safest bet is to copy your entire user folder.
Computers have a folder called Users where the files for each user are stored If you open that folder you will see folders with User names. You would want to copy the entire user folder for each of the User names that hold documents of importance.
Of course, if you are not sure or uncomfortable figuring this out, call a reputable Computer Service company (Like my company; First Coast Computer Services). I will even take away the old machine and ensure that the hard drive is properly destroyed.
Steven Aldrich is a technology advisor with decades of experience as an IT Director and is the owner of First Coast Computer Services. Contact Steven if you need a trusted advisor to come to your business or home and help with your technology. See my ad on this page. [email protected] or (904) 479-5661.