Excess Disposal
From HacDC Wiki
Not yet official HacDC policy until approved at a monthly meeting.
Stuff at HacDC builds up far faster than storage space can be found for them. Therefore, it is necessary to efficiently determine what does or does not stay.
Stays at HacDC Criteria
- Rare or valuable. Anything difficult to obtain or worth >$50 is probably worth keeping.
- Useful. HacDC's goals include education, research and engineering.
- No better-condition duplicates. Some item quantities may be limited.
- Available to other HacDC members. HacDC is for collaboration, individual member storage space should be limited.
- Known to be on loan, and lender has not been given a reasonable chance to take back.
If in doubt, ask one of the following consultants:
- mirage335
- Dan Barlow
- Julia Longtin (aka. juri)
These individuals are hardware experts, and can quickly identify the function and value of almost all items at HacDC, as well as valuable components to salvage inside those items.
Also consider discouraging donations that do not meet the above criteria.
Processes
Scraps
Scraps have no appreciable commercial value, cannot easily be reused, and typically were once part of a larger store of supplies.
Members are authorized to dispose of these on an ongoing basis.
However, many scraps may be directly recycled, and within reason, should be saved. These include:
- Wire, especially special-purpose (eg. teflon-coated).
- Uncontaminated, pure PLA/ABS (3D printer scraps). Can be melted down chemically or thermally.
Going out Pile
Designated going out pile is in the basement. Anything put on that pile has a lifetime of one month, at which time it may be disposed of.
Items meeting the "Stays at HacDC Criteria" should not be added to this pile except in dire need.
Members are welcome to return these items to service or storage at HacDC, or bid on these items.
Rotation
Not all valuable or useful items at HacDC are in mint condition. When better condition items of the same type become available, and agreed upon limits have been exceeded, poorer condition items may be disposed of immediately.
Limits are set in the following table.
| Item | Limit | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Laptops | 30 | Identical sets of laptops in greater quantities may be desirable for classes. |
| Desktops | 20 | Prior to disposal, valuable components should be taken out. This includes desoldering capacitors, inductors, crystals, MOSFETs, etc. |
| WYSE Terminals | 50 | Some boot USB with fewer problems than others. Those are the ones to save. Also, RAM may be salvaged from the undesirable units. |
The junk committee members are authorized to revise the table at any time.
Speedy Disposal
Low value items (<$50 commercial value) not meeting any of the "Stays at HacDC Criteria" and known not to be valued by any stakeholders may be disposed of by a member making an executive decision.
HacDC Board of Directors, by majority vote, has authority at any time for any reason to prohibit specific members or all HacDC members from exercising this authority.
Disposal Methods
Do It Yourself (yes, really!)
Anything efficient that does not inconvenience our host or other authorities is acceptable, including without limitation:
- Take it home.
- Throw it in an empty dumpster we are authorized to use, within reason.
- Take it to the dump.
Local Electronics Recycling Resources
The DC Department of Public Works offers a free, weekly electronics recycling drop-off service at the Benning Road Trash Transfer Station, 3200 Benning Road NE, each Saturday from 8 am to 3 pm.
The DC government will take electronic waste without an additional fee, but you need to drop it off at the Ft. Totten Waste Transfer Station, which is almost impossible to find, particularly since the directions on their website refer to the use of a road that is currently closed. Here's a quick Google Map that conveys three key things:
- McCormick Road cannot be used -- at least, not the last time I went there
- you should not cross Puerto Rico Ave from Taylor, but rather get onto Brookland Ave going north immediately before it (I believe you can use either ramp off of Taylor to do this, but am not sure)
- The employees at the station can be a little vague on where electronics recycling occurs. Go to the end of the path on the map (although I should emphasize that its final location, not the specific way it gets there, is the important thing -- I can't recall the exact geometry of the station, and would encourage you not to drive your car into anything that looks like a giant crushing machine, despite what my map may say)
Junk Committee
- mirage335
- Dan Barlow
- Julia Longtin (aka. juri)
- Zachariah Mully
- All individuals acting as HacDC Board of Directors .
Others may apply on the discussion page.
Legalese
Nothing in this policy establishes disciplinary measures to be taken upon mistakes or abuse, nor is it to conflict with purchases or normal use of HacDC materials, supplies, beverages, etc. However, it does set guidelines agreed upon by HacDC members, with the expectation that other members will make a good faith effort to abide them. The expectation is also set that members will make reasonable efforts to discourage theft by guests.
By majority vote, HacDC Board of Directors is authorized to identify cases of improper disposal, warn specific members that the disposal was improper, and if necessary, prohibit specific members involved from undertaking further disposal. Further, improper disposal by those members after this prohibition may be deemed as occurring without the permission of HacDC members. That may have legal implications.