Curbside Pickup

• Contact your local utilities provider and ask if they offer curbside pickup for old appliances. They may offer to pick up used appliances twice a year or so and will notify customers when those days are approaching. Curbside recycling is convenient and usually offered at no additional cost to the customer.
  
  

Scrap Metal

• If a little extra cash is what you're after, stop by a scrap metal recycler and see what the going rate is for steel. The U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Star program offers a locator tool for scrap metal recyclers at its website. A scrap metal recycler will buy your old machine, pay you for it and recycle the steel parts. The only disadvantage to this method is that you'll probably have to deliver the unit yourself, unless the scrap yard offers pick-up service.
  
  

Buy a New Washer

• Purchasing a new washing machine is another way to recycle the used one. Many appliance dealers and home centers will take away the old unit and recycle it for you. Just to be sure, it's best to ask what the store policy is when purchasing a new machine.
  
  

Sell or Donate It

• Of course, one way of recycling an old, working washing machine is to give it or sell it to someone in need of one. Posting an ad online or in the local newspaper, having a yard sale or letting your friends know that you've got a working, used appliance are all ways to get someone to take the machine off your hands. Habitat for Humanity, as well as local thrift stores and other nonprofits will happily accept your old appliance so they can sell it to benefit others.