What do you do with old PCBs, broken sensors and unused electronics after a project?
PRADIT 2026-08-07 01:19:54 263 Views3 Replies Hi everyone,
After finishing a few Arduino and Raspberry Pi projects, I realized I had a growing box full of old sensors, damaged PCBs, duplicate cables, power adapters, and modules that I was probably never going to use again.
At first I kept everything because I thought it might be useful someday, but over time it just made my workspace harder to organize and finding the parts I actually needed became frustrating.
Now I try to separate items into three groups:
Components that still work and can be reusedParts worth keeping for testing or spare componentsElectronics that are beyond repair and should be recycled responsibly
I recently read an electronics recycling guide that explained how to sort different types of electronic waste instead of throwing everything into one box. It made me realize that some items can still be recycled properly even if they no longer have any value for future projects.
I'm interested to know how everyone here manages old electronics.
Do you keep every board and sensor?How long do you wait before deciding something isn't worth storing anymore?Do you have a better organization or recycling system?
I'd love to learn from your experience.
The "might be useful someday" trap gets everyone. Now I sort into four piles:
Dead or damaged — strip anything reusable (headers, connectors, IC sockets) then recycle the bare PCB. Local e-waste centers usually take them, and some makerspaces have component recovery bins.
Working but generic — resistors, dupont cables, basic sensors. These go into labeled drawer organizers. If I haven't touched them in a year, they go to the local hackerspace or a school club.
Project builds worth keeping — the stuff I'm proud of or learned something from. I keep the assembled board as-is, take a few photos of the wiring and the back side, and shove it in a clear box with a label. It's not about reusing the parts, it's about having a physical reference when someone asks "how did you do that?"
The one that got weird — projects that failed in interesting ways or taught me something unexpected. These are worth keeping even if the board is half-dead, because the failure itself is the reference.
For the "how long" question — generic parts get 12 months. If a year passes and I haven't even thought about it, it's clutter, not inventory. Project builds stay forever unless I need the enclosure or a specific module for something urgent.
Recording the build process is the best move, though. A 30-second video of the wiring before you tear it down beats trying to reverse-engineer your own work six months later. No fancy setup needed — phone camera is fine.
Genius Mensa Einstein 