Posts Tagged ‘Grenk’
Monday, December 7, 2009
Dirty Jobs TV series: E-waste Recycling
By Jared Cook:
Here is a clip I wanted to share from the television series Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe. In this particular episode, host Mike Rowe learns about e-waste recycling.
click here to watch
Friday, November 27, 2009
Following The Trail Of Toxic E-Waste
I wanted to share this story that 60 minutes did in August about where electronic waste is ending up after being dumped here in the U.S.
(CBS) This story was first published on Nov. 9, 2008. It was updated on Aug. 27, 2009.
60 Minutes is going to take you to one of the most toxic places on Earth — a place that government officials and gangsters don’t want you to see. It’s a town in China where you can’t breathe the air or drink the water, a town where the blood of the children is laced with lead. It’s worth risking a visit because, as correspondent Scott Pelley first reported last November, much of the poison is coming out of the homes, schools and offices of America.
This is a story about recycling – about how your best intentions to be green can be channeled into an underground sewer that flows from the United States and into the wasteland.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Best ways to reuse your e-waste: re-equip your office and IT electronics to reduce your carbon footprint
E-waste is the e-worst!
By guest Michael Timberlake
An average computer contains as much as four pounds of lead and a circuit board has over 16 hazardous heavy metals…these are not the materials you want in a landfill! Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to properly dispose of your old or damaged copiers, computers, modems, ethernet cables and other business/IT equipment. Finding the proper place to recycle or an outlet to donate old monitors, laptops and cell phones can be time consuming and frustrating in the average, hectic business life. All too often it becomes too easy to either keep old electronics in the attic or throw our e-waste out with the rest of the garbage.
However, that inconvenience can turn into a fun and creative avenue in the workplace and at home. Recreate and breathe new life into those dusty old TVs, printers and lamps with these clever ideas and guides. Whether you are more into the geek/technical side or the designer/artist side there are countless ways to make your e-waste into e-treasure.
Its easy to get started! Just simply type what electronic you are trying to e-create into any search engine and you’ll net hundreds of ideas and guides, from simple to complex, to help alleviate all the wires, cables and hardware crowding and tangling up your office or home. Suddenly you may find you own brilliant e-inspiration to reuse those dusty old electronics you thought were digitally extinct (Oh, and dont forget to check out some of the reader comments where many of the best ideas are hidden).
Here are some of the best that I found in my search!
- Laptop Magazine has a section in its website devoted to reusing laptops with video and step by step instructions. Here’s one on how to make an outdated slow laptop into a modern entertainment center, perfect for online video business meetings.
- Ever wonder what to do with all those old cell phones you accumulated over the years? Well, this video tutorial shows you how to turn any cell phone with a camera into a webcam that could be used for anything from security surveillance and live web broadcasts to video Skyping and online business meetings. The more sophisticated the camera the more options are available for recording, but if you’re looking for a simple way to increase security at home or at the office look no further.
Don’t think you have the technical wiz to reuse your old electronic clutter? Use your inner artist to find ways around your home and garden for your e-waste to become e-art!
- A University of Illinois class actually specialized in making creations out of donated old electronics. Some of the most popular ended up being furniture creations and outdoor garden accessories. From CD vases and laptop mirrors to Mac garden pots and keyboard tresses, the possibilities are endless for all your old electronics.
- One of the most popular creative uses for old TVs, computers and monitors is turning them into fish tanks. But remember the tubes, wires and pieces removed still must be recycled properly. Here are a few good step by step guides to make that outdated electronic into a hip new iTank.
Classic TV makes a vintage style fishtank
Some companies, such as MotherBoard Gifts and Fractal Spin specialize in designing and creating practical uses for circuit boards and other used computer equipment. Whether you are a DIYer or would rather simply appreciate some cool artistic hardware, these can give you some interesting inpriations for your own creations. Examples include coasters, picture frames, luggage tags and even earrings and cufflinks. But don’t let it stop you there, these are just a few examples of the endless artistic possibilities available in electronics.
These clever innovators are finding new fascinating ways to reuse their old electronics, whether it be for technical uses or simple decoration. Get out there and find your imaginative awakening and cut down on the building up of e-waste in our environment.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
How to properly dispose of your e-waste
Ink and toner cartridges, computer monitors, cables, laptop batteries… they all make our lives so much easier when in use. But, when these items have finally seen better days and must be replaced, they could actually make our lives a lot worse.
This is because many of these high-tech gadgets and parts contain lead, mercury and other dangerous chemicals. Often referred to as “e-waste,” old electronics have become the fastest growing municipal waste in the United States. They’re completely safe sitting on your desk. But, when e-waste is dumped in landfills, the potentially deadly chemicals can easily absorb into the soil and groundwater, possibly even contributing to different forms of cancer.
This article does a wonderful job of explaining how to properly dispose of seven common electronic components.
1. Recycle your toner cartridges with an office supply store.
2. Recycle your ink-jet cartridges through a fundraising campaign.
3. Donate your computer monitor to a nearby school or charity.
4. Send your old CPU back to the manufacturer for proper disposal.
5. Find a group that properly disposes of old cables, many which can be reused.
6. Contact “Free Geek” for information on who can still use your old mouse or keyboard.
7. Give your old laptop battery to groups who can reuse the different parts.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
InkCycle, grenk show how to produce zero-waste ink and toner; cut down e-waste
A lot of hard work goes into staying green and reducing a carbon footprint. Just ask the dedicated green individuals over at InkCycle.
When InkCycle set out to create the grenk line of recycled ink and toner cartridges, it took a lot of dedicated individuals to design a truly unique and green product. Here’s InkCycles inside look at what it takes to recycle ink and toner cartridges.
Company Announces Ink Cartridge Recycling Index – The most popular videos are here
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Despite Recycling Efforts, E-waste Creating Problems Worldwide
According to Consumer Reports, electronic waste is the fastest growing category of municipal waste in the United States. Americans alone accounts for 3 million tons of e-waste each year. As landfill space fills up quickly, developed countries are looking for ways to get rid of old electronics. According to greenpeace.org, companies in the U.S. have made e-waste a global challenge and as 60 Minutes shows, “much of this poison is coming out of the homes, schools and offices of America.”
Monday, July 13, 2009
Grenk Picked Up By BusinessWeek.com
Grenk picked up by Business Week Online!
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Ink Cartridge Recycling Index to Divert More Than 700 Million Ink Cartridges From Landfills
InkCycle’s new cartridge measurement tool diverted 394 tons of toner and ink cartridges from entering landfills last year (2008).
Ink cartridges are considered e-waste; they are harmful to the environment and can take eons to decompose, according to IdealBite.com (http://www.idealbite.com/tiplibrary/archives/getting-inked). Companies and consumers should recycle their old ones, and when ink cartridges are purchased, go with refilled ones, which work just like conventional cartridges.
According to Brad Roderick, executive vice president of InkCycle, “It’s time consumers and businesses know how much their green initiatives are really saving the planet.”
Read the full story at :http://newsblaze.com/story/2009062210245300002.mwir/topstory.html
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
By the Numbers…Carbon Neutronics™ Certified
Of course, it’s one thing to say you’re doing something environmentally responsible. It’s another thing to prove it.
That’s why we created the Carbon Neutronics Index. It’s a proprietary software program that we share with those who purchase and use grenk products. It helps customers calculate the tonnage they’re keeping out of landfills by choosing grenk.
Far too many businesses don’t get the credit they deserve for their exo-initiative. The Carbon Neutronics Index makes it easy to track and record the effect one company can make in reducing landfill waste and keeping cartridges in circulation for reuse.
It’s also a great tool for comparing the cost difference of using remanufactured grenk cartridges over original manufacturer print cartridges, and can provide measurable case studies to help customers build support for other environmental initiatives while improving their bottom line.
Carbon Neutronics™ is made up of three words: Carbon + Neutral + Electronics. CNI makes it easy to track and record the effect one company can make in reducing landfill waste and keeping cartridges in circulation for reuse. The Carbon Neutronics™ Index was created to provide companies with an accurate account of their potential e-waste that has been diverted by using grenk™ products.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
What really happens to print cartridges…
In the next four years, more than 590 million print cartridges will be consumed in North America. Where will they end up?
Millions will be simply thrown away, where they’ll eventually be dumped in landfills around the country.
Because of their hard plastic and metal materials, discarded cartridges can take hundreds, even thousands of years to decompose, and their unused inks and toners can leach into the surrounding soil and contaminate ground water.
Millions more will be tossed-in good faith- into recycling bins but these are often shipped overseas to less responsible countries. Harmful human labor practices are used to siphon unused toner from the cartridges and waste products are often burned in open ditches. Add this human misery to the pollution and energy drain caused by shipping millions of cartridges overseas and, well, it’s not really a solution.
Even the millions that will be legitimately recycled into other things will impact the environment. Plastics are reprocessed into “regrind” and used in plastic injection to make things like park benches. That’s great, but think of the energy used and the pollutants expelled from those processes, which will be repeated over and over.
grenk takes a different path. We control where every piece of our product ends up, from every metal spring to every plastic housing. We reuse what we can for its original purpose, and then make sure the rest is recycled under our control; using fewer natural resources and creating fewer end-waste cycles.