Hey everyone! I'm diving into my first solo role as an admin, and things are progressing well. I've started to take on additional management responsibilities, and I've come across a challenge. Our court system is on a super tight budget, so any extra money we can save is a win. My predecessor mentioned they sometimes sold off outdated tech to make a profit, and now I've noticed a bunch of old equipment lying around, including an old server rack. I'm looking for best practices or recommendations for vendors who could help with this. I don't have any existing sales contacts, so if anyone knows of services that not only buy but also pick up old tech (I'm in Ohio), that would be fantastic! Thanks in advance for any tips!
5 Answers
You might find some recycling companies that will take your old tech for free, but most likely, your e-waste won't be worth much unless it's a bulk order of the same item—like 500 laptops or something.
If you're looking to make some decent cash, eBay is your best bet for selling electronics like this.
If you have a decent number of relatively recent laptops, consider reaching out to Ingram Micro. I've sold batches of 100+ laptops to them and got a bit of cash back.
For odd bits of equipment, Facebook Marketplace is a good option, especially targeting homelab enthusiasts. It may not make a huge dent in the budget, but it’s worth a shot if you have a bunch of stuff to offload.
A lot of companies dealing in this area are basically e-waste disposal services. Typically, you pay them to pick up your old gear and ensure data destruction before they resell it online. It sounds like your predecessor could have been sidestepping that process and selling directly through marketplaces. If you’ve got RAM from the server rack, now's a great time to sell it online, especially with the demand due to the AI trend.
Yeah, I hear you. And if you have used MacBooks, Apple has a buyback program worth checking out.
Totally agree! We were offered about $100 for old Surfaces and realized it wasn't worth the hassle, so we just donated them instead. Some programs even help veterans with tech skills.