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Solar energy is a safe, renewable, and widely available energy source. This type of power source is a cost-effective way to generate electricity. It is an environmentally-friendly solution that can be used to power our home, business, or any other electric device.
Solar panels have provided renewable energy for millions of homes and commercial properties in the past few decades. Indeed, solar panels benefit us in various ways, including generating a lot of power for lighting our homes and businesses.
However, once these items have served their purpose, they must be properly disposed of to avoid contaminating vital resources in our environment. Proper solar panel disposal minimises the environmental impact.
If your panels are defective or have stopped producing electricity, know how to dispose of them using the methods listed below safely.
1. Bring it to your local recycling centre
Like most electrical appliances, solar panels have certain recyclable parts. However, some of the materials require careful extraction. For instance, glass accounts for the majority of the weight of a solar panel. And other recyclable materials include the following:
- Aluminium frame
- Copper wire
- Plastic junction box
- Frames and brackets
- ..and more
Each solar panel contains approximately 80% crystalline silicon. This material can be recovered through a refined recycling process. An expert solar panel recycling plant must carry out this process. Check out the following designated solar panel recycling facilities in your local area:
- Reclaim PV
- PV Industries
- SolaCycle
- MA Ecocycle
- Ecoactiv
Note: Some local recycling centres offer pickup, while others require you to bring it yourself.
2. Sell it to a local dealer
If you want to make the most of your defective or broken solar panels, sell them to a local dealer. Before going to other drop-off locations, visit your local scrap yard. Ask if your local dealer may be interested in purchasing your solar panels.
Given the solar panel’s composition and valuable materials, your local scrap dealer may be willing to purchase them from you at a reasonable price. However, you must be aware that you must do all of the difficult work by moving and loading it yourself.
3. List your old solar panels
If you don’t want to go around your neighbourhood looking for a scrap dealer to buy your old solar panels, you can list them on the internet.
You can sell your old panels on sites like Gumtree or Facebook Marketplace to find someone who will turn them into a small upcycling project. Despite not being viable for large-scale installations, functional solar panels are still popular among handymen, travellers, and DIY enthusiasts.
4. Book an e-waste pickup
Even though Australia has a limited number of recycling facilities, more options are becoming available at a rapid pace. In fact, Sydney increases the collection, reuse, and recycling of e-waste.
Please contact the City of Sydney for additional information about solar panel collection and disposal. Aside from solar panels, you may want to remove any broken electronic items from your home or business.
5. Hire a local Sydney junk removalist
Hire a local, trusted Sydney junk removal company in your area to avoid the hassles of rubbish removal. The most difficult aspect of disposing of broken solar panels is moving and loading them onto your truck or vehicle.
Whenever you need junk or rubbish removed, it’s wise to contact a professional rubbish removal company to ensure everything is disposed of correctly. Service providers with good reputations have connections to a wide range of recycling facilities that responsibly divert waste and recyclable materials.
Bottomline
As more households and commercial establishments instal solar panels, waste management becomes increasingly important once the panels have served their purpose. Instead of throwing them away, have them recycled.
Considering the valuable materials, several recycling companies in Australia can now recycle solar panels. However, you should be aware that the majority of the options available require you to personally do the lifting and loading to transport them to the recycling facilities.
Indeed, several options are available for disposing of broken or defective solar panels and all other types of e-waste removal. However, the most efficient and least challenging method is to hire a rubbish removal company to complete the challenging and taxing task.
If you want to get rid of your broken solar panels fast, contact your trusted rubbish removalist in Sydney immediately!
