Get a Free PC the Green Way
Do you know someone who upgrades their home / office PC’s far too frequently because apparently their systems are no longer “compatible” or have become “too slow”? - yeah I do too.
The problem is that there is a HUGE misconception with Radio Shack dads who get suckered into buying the latest piece of shit Acer because they think that somehow their hardware magically disintegrates and becomes completely useless. That or they read too many Microsoft advertisements and think that they will be doomed to have viruses for the rest of their lives unless they “upgrade” to Vista.
The Story
I have done something that some might consider shady - however I feel that I am just a vigilant rogue, fighting for Mother Nature. Last year some friends and I went dumpster diving at the local recycling plant (late at night) and we were astounded at some of the quality computer hardware just laying in a pile - waiting to get destroyed by snow / rain!
Well we didn’t have much time before security came rolling by however I was able to distract her stating my uncle was a mechanic and that we were looking for him - I was trying to bring him a coffee (I luckily had one unopened in the van). She bought it and drove me to the shop, out of sight from the computer bins. My friends picked up on what I was doing and quickly packed the van with everything they could grab before we returned. When there was no one at the shop I said “Oh, he must be on days!” - she wasn’t too bright.
By the time she drove me back to the heap, my partners in crime had the van packed up tight and security escorted us out. She told me to come earlier during the day to visit my uncle - so I was a very nice and thanked her for the help.
So what did we snatch?
We got home to find we jacked 3 decent Pentium 4 chipsets, two of which had working chips and a total of 3GB DDR PC2700 Ram (mostly 256 but a couple 512). About 6 40GB + Hard drives (still containing a lot of strange personal data - gross) and one gorgeous form factor aluminum case.
We were blown away at some of the GOOD hardware people throw away daily. Keep in mind some of the garbage men scooped parts before we even got to em. Anyway we divvied up the parts and planned our next attack
If you are planning on running a dumpster heist, I have some tips you should know.
- Go Alone, a group of guys - if successful will get you more stuff - but it is harder to fool a security guard no matter what story you come up with.
- Drop off some trash during the day - scope out the parts you want and ask if you could grab some - people have agreed to this in the past, lets avoid unnecessary risk.
- Don’t get caught - they have no problem calling the police!
If you feel like you could be in a tight situation, do what we did when we got caught - argue that it is garbage and you are recycling, it is not for monetary gain and if you have to - say it is for your kids science project.
This adventure was very rewarding for us all three visits, but be warned - security guards get pissed off really easy because they are security guards. Do not rub them the wrong way (or any way for that matter), be courteous and if they kick you out don’t piss them off.
PS. Most recycling plants (waste management plants or land fills) have a road to the bins that splits over the weighing station. If your security guard goes left - you go right and you can generally book it out of there in time… it worked for us.
This not only delimits “E-waste” - It is something wicked fun to do that doesn’t cost a dime.