Guide · 6 min read · updated 2026-09-17
TV, monitor and e-waste disposal in San Joaquin and Sacramento counties
Why a TV cannot go in the trash in California, where county residents drop off e-waste free, what businesses pay per unit, and what to wipe before it leaves.
The short answer
A television, computer monitor, laptop or tablet cannot go in your trash cart in California. The good news is that getting rid of one is usually free for households.
- San Joaquin County residents can bring up to 4 TVs, CRTs or monitors per trip to North County Landfill at no charge. Additional units, and all business units, are $23.75 each (effective 2026-01-01).
- Sacramento County residents can drop off TVs, monitors, printers, copiers, fax machines and cell phones at Kiefer Landfill and the North Area Recovery Station at no fee.
- Modesto: Gilton charges $26 per TV (effective 2026-07-01).
Before any computer, phone or tablet leaves your hands, take the data off it. That part is on you, not on whoever hauls it.
Why the trash is not an option
California's Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003 (SB 20, clarified by SB 50 in 2004) set up the system that handles most screens. CalRecycle defines a covered electronic device as a video display device with a screen larger than four inches measured diagonally that the Department of Toxic Substances Control has identified as hazardous waste when discarded.
That covers, per CalRecycle:
- Cathode ray tube (CRT) televisions and monitors
- LCD and LED televisions, monitors, laptop computers, tablets, smart displays and portable DVD players
- Plasma televisions
- OLED televisions, monitors, laptops and tablets
Because DTSC identifies these as hazardous when discarded, they are managed as e-waste and not as trash. Old CRTs carry leaded glass; flat panels carry circuit boards and, in older models, mercury backlights.
You already paid for the recycling: a covered electronic waste fee is collected at the register when a covered device is sold in California, and it varies by screen size. The state's newer battery-embedded-products law (SB 1215) extends the same idea to more devices over time.
What each gate takes and charges
Figures below are from each operator's posted sheet, with the date the rate took effect. "E-waste" on the county sheets means TVs, CRTs and computer monitors; Sacramento County's list also names printers, copiers, fax machines and cell phones.
| Gate | Household / resident | Business or extra units |
|---|---|---|
| North County Landfill, Lodi | Up to 4 per trip free with SJ County proof of residency | $23.75 each (effective 2026-01-01) |
| Kiefer Landfill, Sloughhouse | Residents: no fee | Business loads go through the county commercial hazardous waste program |
| North Area Recovery Station, Sacramento | Residents: no fee | Business loads go through the county commercial hazardous waste program |
| Gilton Resource Recovery, Modesto | $26 per TV (effective 2026-07-01) | $26 per TV (effective 2026-07-01) |
Batteries, bulbs and the small stuff
North County's sheet has a separate line for what it calls U-waste: fluorescent tubes, household batteries, small electronics and car batteries. San Joaquin County residents can bring up to 9 of those per trip, any combination, at no charge — and that is the limit, with no additional units accepted.
Lithium batteries deserve special care. Tape the terminals of loose batteries before they go in a box, and never put a swollen laptop or phone battery in a bag with other metal. A damaged lithium cell can start a fire in a garbage truck or a transfer station pit.
For paint, chemicals and anything with a hazard label, see what we will not take and where it goes.
Wipe it before it goes
Nobody at a landfill, a recycler or a junk removal company is going to wipe your computer for you, and you should not want them to. Do it yourself before the device leaves the house.
- Computers: back up what you need, then either run the operating system's reset-and-erase option or pull the drive. A pulled drive is the only version you can be completely sure about.
- Phones and tablets: sign out of the cloud account first, then factory reset. Remove the SIM and any memory card.
- Printers, copiers and fax machines: many office units keep a hard drive or memory of scanned pages. Check the manufacturer's instructions for clearing it.
- Smart TVs: sign out of streaming accounts and run a factory reset.
In an estate, the old desktop in the back bedroom often holds the only copy of family photos or financial records. Set it aside with the documents until the executor has looked at it. The executor's cleanout checklist covers what else belongs in that pile.
Old CRT televisions
The big tube TVs from the 1990s and early 2000s are the e-waste item we see most in garages and estate cleanouts. They are heavier than they look — a large console set is a two-person carry at minimum — and the glass is the reason they are regulated.
Do not try to break one down. The tube is under vacuum and the leaded glass is exactly the part the rules exist to keep out of a landfill. Move it whole, screen facing in, and if it is going in a truck bed, pad it so it does not crack on the way.
What we charge, and when it is worth it
Our per-item line for a TV or monitor is $40. On our loads, e-waste is separated out rather than mixed in with trash, and we keep the scale ticket on every load if you want proof of where it went.
For a single flat-screen, a county resident with a car should just drive it to the gate on the next errand; it is free. Where hiring out makes sense is volume and weight: an office with a dozen monitors, a garage with two console CRTs, or an estate where the electronics are one layer of a whole house. Those are general junk removal and estate cleanout jobs, and the per-item and load prices are all on the pricing page.
Which gate serves your town
The free-drop-off rules depend on which county you live in, and so does the gate your load goes to when we haul it. Here is how the towns we serve route.
- North County Landfill, Lodi: Lodi, Stockton, Acampo, Lockeford, Woodbridge, Victor, Clements, Thornton, Linden and Morada. San Joaquin County residents get the 4-unit free limit per trip.
- Kiefer Landfill, Sloughhouse: Galt, Elk Grove, Wilton, Herald, Rancho Murieta, Rancho Cordova, Folsom, Vineyard, Florin, Isleton, Courtland and Walnut Grove. Sacramento County residents drop off e-waste at no fee.
- North Area Recovery Station, Sacramento: Sacramento, Citrus Heights, Carmichael, Fair Oaks, Orangevale, Antelope, North Highlands, Rio Linda, Elverta and Arden-Arcade. Same Sacramento County resident rule.
- Gilton Resource Recovery, Modesto: Modesto, at $26 per TV (effective 2026-07-01).
If you live near a county line, the free limits follow your residency, not the gate. Bring proof of residency; the San Joaquin County sheet requires it for no-charge special waste.
Landlords, offices and estates
The free resident limits are built for a household clearing out one or two screens. They do not stretch to a business.
At North County, business and non-resident e-waste is $23.75 each (effective 2026-01-01), from the first unit. In Sacramento County, business loads of e-waste are routed through the county's commercial hazardous waste program rather than the resident drop-off, so call ahead.
Three situations come up again and again:
- A tenant leaves a TV behind. It is still covered e-waste and cannot go in the dumpster with the rest of the unit. On a rental cleanout we pull screens out of the load and handle them separately.
- An office upgrade leaves a stack of monitors. Wipe or pull any storage first, then price it as a per-unit job. A small office's worth of monitors adds up fast at per-unit rates.
- An estate has a generation of electronics. Console TVs, VCRs, stereos, desktop towers, printers. Sort the storage devices into the documents pile first, then let the rest go as one load.
Quick answers
Can I put a small electronic item in the trash? Not if it has a screen larger than four inches, and batteries never. For anything else, check your city's hauler; many run e-waste curbside pickups or events.
Will a thrift store take my old TV? Some take working flat-screens. Almost none take CRTs anymore. Call before you load it.
Do the county limits reset each trip or each day? The San Joaquin County sheet counts per trip. Sacramento County's appliance and tire limits count per day, and its e-waste line is residents-only.
What else is on the county sheets? Every gate and its general per-ton rate is in every gate and every rate for 2026.
Related guides
Sources
Every fee above is read from the operator's own published sheet and shown with its effective date. Rates change; call the gate before you load a truck around a number.
- CalRecycle — Covered Electronic Waste Recycling Program (definition, covered devices, SB 20 / SB 50) — read 2026-09-17
- CDTFA — Covered Electronic Waste Recycling Fee guide — read 2026-09-17
- DTSC — E-waste more information — read 2026-09-17
- San Joaquin County — North County Recycling Center & Sanitary Landfill price sheet, effective 2026-01-01 — read 2026-09-17
- Sacramento County — Kiefer Landfill fees, effective 2026-01-01 — read 2026-09-17
- Sacramento County — North Area Recovery Station fees, effective 2026-01-01 — read 2026-09-17
- Gilton Resource Recovery price sheet, effective 2026-07-01 — read 2026-09-17