Best way to get rid of computer?

[Timberwolf]

ME,

I know this is a bit off topic, but you don't have to be doing anything wrong with your computer.

All I have to do is make a call to your local police department.
I tell them that I believe that you are a bad guy, and that I think you have drugs and guns in your house.

That's all I have to do.....and under the current laws of the land, my call is all they need for a search warrant of your property!!!

It can suck to be us....you know what I mean Vern?

TW

 

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[mastereagle22]

Oh I realize that but it is just amazing to me how many people just don't understand that just because a computer is sitting in your home it is safe to keep crap on your hard drive. I know several people that have 500 GB external hard drives full of stuff that I would NEVER allow on any computer of mine. They just have the attitude that it's there stuff and no one can do anything about it.

One guy has a big magnet in a metal box in his office he told me that if anyone ever comes to his house to search for things he is just going to slam the magnet on the side of his drive. Some people just don't get it.

Anyway, the point is if you are just trying to keep the casual user away from your data a DOD wipe will be all that is needed. Short of that if someone wants your data and you don't want them to have it physically destroy the drive.

 

[Timberwolf]

I understand your point ME,

You shouldn't have anything on your PC that you would be ashamed of

That fellow with the magnet is pretty funny

TW

 

[cavers5]

Thanks, guys. I don't think I have anything on my computers to worry about.

I've been trying to do searches on how to recycle the gold, but I can't find anything very helpful yet.

Cavers5

 

[Smee]

If the good geeks can get private info from a wiped hard drive then I garauntee the bad ones can too.

Oh, the bad ones can do much more.

Customer came to my shop and told me that his hard drive was shrinking. I told him that it wasn't possible, and that he was only seeing a reduction in free space available.

He told me that I was wrong, and then said that the HDD was an 80 GB drive, but that he only had 40 GB of space that he could use. I opened the case, and it was an 80 GB drive. Turned the computer on, it showed the right model, but it only showed 40 GB.

I figured he had placed a jumper to limit it, but told him to leave it with me over the weekend.

Monday morning, using a couple of different programs, I discovered that his file sharing was the problem. A hacker on his "file sharing" network had set up a hidden partition on this person's HDD to store their porn collection.

I like to use a program called "Steganos". It will exceed a military wipe of the drive.

 

[mastereagle22]

Back to the main topic

I would think you would need several MOBOs (a pound or two at least) before anyone would talk to you about recyling. There are people out there that do this as a way to make money but they are talking hundreds if not thousands of boards.

Wish you luck

 

[Timberwolf]

I wasn't aware of there being gold on mother boards
Are we talking about gold plated contacts/connectors? If so, that is not going to be much.

TW

 

[mastereagle22]

http://www.finishing.com/295/05.shtml

Just trying to educate TW, just trying to educate.

Who knew there was so much to recycle in an old desktop?

 

[Timberwolf]

Thanks for the link ME.

Still sounds like way too much trouble for the small amount of salvageable material
Just my opinion....but of course I'm lazy

TW

 

[cavers5]

Yep, thanks for that link! That was the best one that I've read so far!

I just can't stand the thought of throwing away anything that has real gold on it...gives me the heebie-jeebies...esp. since I spend hours searching for the dang stuff with my metal detector!

Cavers5

 

[Farmercal]

I have heard that it is not worth the trouble to extract gold from circuit boards unless you have a lot of them for the process.

As far as destroying a hard drive: I take my hard drives apart completely. I remove each platter and fold them in half twice, flatten them with a sledge hammer and then throw them away. If someone were to get to them, I don't think they would go to the trouble of unfolding them just to see if anything is on them or not. When you mash them up like that, they don't even look like platters anymore yet alone a hard drive.

Oh yeah, if you take apart a laptop hard drive: just hit the platters with hammer (wear eye protection), because they mostly made of glass with a metallic coating. I've done this also.

 

[cavers5]

Thanks for the tip of folding, that is a good idea.

Has anybody tried aqua regia on computer parts?

Cavers5

 

[Dimeman]

I have heard that it is not worth the trouble to extract gold from circuit boards unless you have a lot of them for the process.

As far as destroying a hard drive: I take my hard drives apart completely. I remove each platter and fold them in half twice, flatten them with a sledge hammer and then throw them away. If someone were to get to them, I don't think they would go to the trouble of unfolding them just to see if anything is on them or not. When you mash them up like that, they don't even look like platters anymore yet alone a hard drive.

Oh yeah, if you take apart a laptop hard drive: just hit the platters with hammer (wear eye protection), because they mostly made of glass with a metallic coating. I've done this also.

If you have a hard drive that you don't want anyone getting any info from it and it isn't repairable---- get a drill and drill a hole through the hard drive... much easier and quicker than taking the thing apart.

 

[boogeyman]

Thanks for the tip of folding, that is a good idea.

Has anybody tried aqua regia on computer parts?

Cavers5

Tried it but I found the most gold was on the CPUs some but not all the fingers have gold plating. It wasn't worth the work for me, I found more gold out panning. Like stated above, unless you have a ton of boards it's not worth it there was a company that makes an electrolytic cell but when I looked at it, the cost was prohibitive with the chemicals needed. The other thing is do you have a source for Nitric and Hydrocloric acids local? The hazmat charges to ship the stuff is almost more than the cost for small quantities. If you can get large amounts of cards and boards find a junk yard that will buy them.

Please please be very careful when using Aqua Regia! All the warnings about safety equipment and venting fumes are no BS! The fumes will rust any iron such as tools parts close by. And if you get the acids on you by the time you feel anything it's too late. So if you attempt doing it yoursel Please be careful!

 

[sniffer]

magnet to his computer huh ? I guess nobody told him all hard drives are shielded to protect them from inadvertant magnetic fields. a big hammer to the main rotating hub is enough to make them inoperable and usually breaks the inner hub of the platters

 

[cavers5]

Thanks for the advice on aqua regia. It is rough stuff! I've used it before, although not on computer parts!

Cavers5

 

[boogeyman]

Thanks for the advice on aqua regia. It is rough stuff! I've used it before, although not on computer parts!

Cavers5

Just my view, I brouse the thrift shops and swap meets for gold & gold plate jewlery along with silver. You'd be surprised what you can find! Less work more gold. I'm no expert by far but this has been more profitable for me. A lot of the stuff gets sold to friends before I get a chance to leach the gold!

 

[cavers5]

Well, been doing some more research:

Since I can't knowingly throw away gold (I'm absolutely positively certain it's against my religion, let alone I'm allergic to throwing away gold--makes me break out in hives and get physically ill),

apparently, there is supposed to be gold in a lot of things: computers, cameras, microwaves, televisions, etc.

along with copper, silver, etc.

I figure it's worth our time to either take a few minutes with some screwdrivers and cutting tools (or faster with my big sledge hammer) and just go ahead and bust all these parts out and throw them in a box up in the attic or garage.

After a year or two, we figure we'll have enough gold parts to recycle and maybe if prices keep going up, there will be some new recycling methods or companies out there that will make use of all these extra parts and pay us a little spare cash anyhow.

We call it a long-term gold investment. Might as well get some of my money back on some of these pieces of crap products that lasted just a month past their warranties!

Cavers5

 

[boogeyman]

You know if you have a lot of cards & such, chuck em in a box and your next trip to the swap meet or yard sale throw a $5 ea sign on the box. I've sold a lot of stuff this way & figure I made more than I could recover. Towers, if you have the room seem to move pretty good. Had a couple of kids one time bugging me to death. I told em I wanted $25 ea, although I was only gonna ask $5. They finally left. Towards the end of the swap meet they came back and handed me $150 for all six! (wanted to make file servers). I'm like you I hate to chuck anything. Sometimes a different approach will yield bigger profits with less work.

 

[Hemisteve]

I know this is an old thread but for future viewers there is a great way to get rid of old equipment.
First off, the old stuff people have isi'nt worth much, given the way tech stuff evolves every year.
the gold inside is so miniscule, it would take a hundred or so computers to make a dollar.

I donate my old comp stuff to a school for downs syndrome kids so that they can explore computers and learn to be techs.
Seeing the joy on their faces when they put together a system that works is worth more than any dollar I might make selling my old equipment.

Get a full write off and help a local school for kids.
Just do it.
Steve