# How to Dispose of a TV in California

URL: https://thejunkiez.com/how-to-dispose-of-a-tv-california/
Summary: Televisions are classed as hazardous waste in California and banned from household bins. Here is where they can legally go — most of it free.
Service: Electronics & E-Waste Recycling
Starting price: $79
Pricing: A TV or a few devices runs $79–$129. Office decommissions are quoted by volume.
Contact: 323-547-5879 — info@thejunkiez.com
Last updated: 2026-08-28

**You cannot legally put a television in your household rubbish in California.** TVs and monitors are classified as universal hazardous waste and must go to an approved collection or recycling facility. The good news is that for a single set, doing it properly is usually free.

### Free options first

- **County collection.** Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties all accept e-waste free from residents, at permanent household hazardous waste facilities and at scheduled weekend events. This is the standard route and it costs nothing.

- **Retailer take-back.** Best Buy accepts a limited number of items per household per day, though televisions above a certain size may carry a fee. Check current terms before driving over.

- **Certified recyclers.** Facilities certified to R2 or e-Stewards standards will usually take consumer e-waste free, and handle it to an audited standard.

### Why it is regulated

An older CRT television contains several pounds of leaded glass in the tube. Flat panels contain mercury in the backlight lamps. Circuit boards carry cadmium, beryllium and brominated flame retardants. Crushed into a landfill cell these leach; processed properly, the metals are recovered and reused.

You already paid for this. California’s Electronic Waste Recycling Act adds a fee at the point of sale on covered devices, and that fee funds the collection and recycling system. Using it is not a favour to anyone — it is a service you have prepaid.

### The CRT problem

Old tube televisions are the ones haulers most often refuse, because leaded glass is expensive to process and the resale value of the recovered material is negative. If you have been told no by someone else, that is usually why. We take them.

### When to pay someone

For one television, drive it to a county facility. Pay for removal when you have several sets, a wall-mounted screen that needs taking down, an office decommission, or no vehicle that fits a 65-inch panel.

For business decommissions there is a second consideration: smart TVs store network credentials and account logins. Factory-reset anything with a network connection before it leaves the building, or ask for a recycler that issues a certificate of data destruction.

## Frequently asked questions

**Can I throw a TV in the trash in California?**  
No. Televisions and monitors are classified as universal hazardous waste and are banned from household disposal.

**What happens to my data?**  
We can remove drives on site and hand them to you, or route equipment to a recycler that issues a certificate of data destruction.

**Do you take old CRT televisions?**  
Yes. Those are the ones most haulers refuse, because of the leaded glass. We take them.