At large dinner parties and on tiring nights back from the office, your dishwasher has been your reliable companion, preventing dirty dishes from piling up in the sink. But now it’s old and no longer serves its purpose well. Or perhaps you’ve found a better model.

But how do you dispose of your old dishwasher? You can’t just throw it in the garbage — even if that were appropriate, it simply wouldn’t fit!

Read ahead to learn why you can’t throw away a dishwasher with your regular garbage and a few ways to properly dispose of your dishwasher.

Why Can’t I Simply Throw Away My Dishwasher?

Your dishwasher, like many other white goods, contains hazardous materials such as chemicals, gases, and heavy metals. These materials need to be dealt with properly before a large appliance is recycled for its useful parts such as scrap metal and plastics.

Disposing of your dishwasher properly can ensure that it is passed on to someone who really needs it or is recycled so that its important parts can be used safely.

How Can I Properly Dispose of My Dishwasher?

1. Sell it

If your dishwasher still works and you are simply looking to replace it, you can sell it. You can sell the dishwasher at a yard sale, contact a company that sells used appliances, or post an ad online.

Selling online is the easiest option for most people as it requires little work. While you can offer to drop off the dishwasher either as a gesture of goodwill or for an extra fee, many buyers will offer to pick up the item from your place.

When you sell online, you also have the option of selling it to the buyer offering to pay the highest price.

2. Donate it to charity

If you don’t care much about making some extra cash and would like to do some good for others, you can donate your working dishwasher to charity. Some charities may even offer to pick up the dishwasher from you.

You could donate your dishwasher directly to a charity such as a shelter home or to an organisation that distributes to charities.

If you decide to donate your used dishwasher, make sure that it is in good working condition.

3. Check if the company has a buyback programme

Many electronics companies offer a buyback programme for their appliances. Your company may offer to take your used dishwasher for credit that you can use towards buying another appliance from the same company.

So if you are looking to buy any products from the company that made your dishwasher, getting credit for your used appliance may be a great option.

However, it is important to consider that the company might be paying you less in a buyback programme than you can get by selling the appliance yourself.

4. Give it away

There may be many people around you who need basic home appliances such as a dishwasher. If you know anybody who may not be able to afford a dishwasher, you can offer your used appliance to them.

You can also check with your family and friends to see if any of them need a dishwasher.

If you don’t know anyone around you looking for a dishwasher, you can post an ad online for a free giveaway on websites such as Gumtree, Craigslist, and Facebook. Everyone likes free things, so it should not be too hard to find someone who wants your dishwasher.

Giving away your dishwasher may help take it off your hands at no cost if the receiver picks it up from your home.

5. Check with your council for disposal

You can ask your local council if it offers pickup services for white goods. Some councils have a clean-up day for home appliances.

While some local councils charge a fee for picking up your appliances, others do it for free.

Your local council can also tell you if the local waste depot accepts dishwashers for recycling.

Unfortunately, not all councils offer to pick up used home appliances.

6. Book a rubbish removal company

There are many businesses that offer recycling or disposal services for used appliances such as dishwashers. Many of these companies pick up your appliances when you need them to.

A commercial recycler will usually take apart your dishwasher and separate the hazardous materials from recyclable materials. The hazardous materials will then be safely disposed of and important materials such as copper, steel, and plastics will be shredded for recycling.

Booking a commercial recycler or a professional service to help you dispose of your dishwasher has several benefits:

• It takes off the burden of finding someone to give it away to
• It helps you get rid of your dishwasher fast
• It eliminates the responsibility of dropping off your dishwasher

If you’re looking to take advantage of these benefits, you can book our white goods removal and recycling service here.

We also offer a kitchen demolition and removal service, which can be helpful if you’re upgrading not just your dishwasher, but the entire kitchen.