Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE)

You can take household electrical items to Oxfordshire's waste recycling centres for recycling.

Anything with electrical or electronic parts, a plug or a battery is classified as WEEE and must not be disposed of with your general waste. Electrical items will have a logo with a crossed-out wheelie bin on their packaging. 

The manufacturers, producers and retailers of the equipment help pay for old electrical items to be recycled. 

If you’re buying a new electrical item, larger retailers must provide a service to take back an equivalent old electrical item for recycling. 

You can take all household electrical items to Oxfordshire's waste recycling centres for recycling.

If your item is in working condition, consider donating it. If your electrical item is broken, you could look for a local repair café where volunteers can fix it. 

You could also consider borrowing electrical items that you don’t use frequently.

Disposable vapes and e-cigarettes

Our recycling centres now have dedicated bins to recycle vapes and e-cigarettes.  

Additionally, all Oxfordshire local authorities accept vapes and e-cigarettes as a separate kerbside collection. Disposable vapes must not be put inside your wheelie bins.  How they are collected in each area varies slightly; check you have the correct information for your area.

Find a vape collection service

Use the Waste Wizard search tool to check how your local authority collects this waste or find other drop-off locations in your area.

Batteries

All types of household batteries can be recycled at our recycling centres – this includes car batteries from your own car. 

Portable batteries – the kind you find in small handheld devices – can also be recycled at the kerbside but not inside any of your bins. Check the Waste Wizard for how to do this in your area.

Larger shops that sell batteries also have collection points for recycling old batteries.

Batteries should always be removed from electrical items where they are designed to do so and recycle separately,

Light bulbs and fluorescent tubes

Energy-saving, LED and compact fluorescent light bulbs and tubes can be recycled at our recycling centres

Please do not put them in any of your bins at home. 

Older-style filament or halogen light bulbs can be disposed of in your general rubbish bin at home.

Some DIY shops also have collection points for light bulbs.

Small household electrical items

Small electrical items (small enough to fit in a carrier bag) can be recycled at our waste recycling centres or at the kerbside. 

Things like:

  • clocks
  • laptops
  • small electric heaters
  • hairdryers
  • irons
  • vapes/e-cigarettes
  • shaving equipment
  • smart speakers
  • telephones
  • toasters

For information about district council collection services for small electrical items, please visit their website or search the Waste Wizard:

Please note: Any mobile phone, laptop or other appropriate electronic device delivered to any of our sites may be recycled or reused by our contractors and it is up to individual residents to ensure that prior to disposal such devices are cleansed of all personal information and data before delivery to our sites. The council will not cleanse these items after delivery and cannot be held responsible for any data held on them.

Large household electricals

Large household electrical items such as those in the list below can be dropped off for recycling at any of our recycling centres.

  • cookers  
  • computers
  • fridges and freezers
  • lawnmowers (electric)
  • microwaves
  • monitors
  • televisions
  • vacuum cleaners
  • washing machines/tumble dryers 

Your district or city council can also collect large electrical items through their bulky waste collection schemes. Contact them directly for details, bookings and charges.

How are electrical items recycled?

Electrical items are broken down into separate pasts so that the different materials they are made up of can be removed and recycled.

Businesses - how traders can recycle their old electrical items

Waste recycling centres are for use by householders only and cannot accept waste from commercial sources. However, small businesses and traders have a duty of care under this scheme, which means they also have to comply with the WEEE regulations.

Read the duty of care to find out how to comply with the new regulations and make financial savings for your business.