Electronic recycling in Cardiff by the Sea
Where to take your e-waste in Cardiff-by-the-Sea
For electronic recycling in Cardiff by the Sea, the closest Dream E-Waste recycling center is San Marcos recycling center at 2930 Norman Strasse Rd STE 104, San Marcos, CA 92069, about 25 minutes away. For electronics and small appliances, our Oceanside drop-off site is about 20 minutes from Cardiff-by-the-Sea. Electronics are free to drop off and you don't need an appointment.
Where to go
Nearest recycling center and drop-off to Cardiff-by-the-Sea
Our main recycling center for Cardiff-by-the-Sea is San Marcos, about 25 minutes away. San Marcos doesn't take large appliances or scrap metal, so for those use Point Loma, about 27 minutes away. The closest drop-off site is Oceanside, about 20 minutes away, for electronics and small appliances. Check in at the Security Public Storage office when you arrive.
Hours and items for every site are on our San Diego e-waste drop-off locations page.
Accepted items
What you can bring for electronic recycling in Cardiff by the Sea
Point Loma and Chula Vista take everything shown here. San Marcos takes electronics, batteries and microwaves, and Miramar, Kearny Mesa and Oceanside take electronics and small appliances. A few items carry a small fee, listed on each item page.
Rack and tower servers, workstations, storage arrays and other business hardware.
Cell phones, tablets, cameras, game consoles, stereos and other home electronics.
Keyboards, mice, webcams, speakers, headsets, docks and other computer accessories.
Hard drives, SSDs, USB sticks, backup tapes, CDs and DVDs. Every drive is destroyed by default.
Microscopes, lab scales, centrifuges and patient monitors, clean and free of medical waste.
Control panels, motors, pumps and other electrical equipment. Email photos of large items first.
Appliances, scrap metal and more
Washers, dryers, stoves, refrigerators, freezers, mini fridges, dish antennas and lawnmowers.
Microwaves, vacuums, toasters, air fryers, coffee makers and other small kitchen appliances.
Server racks, computer cases, shelving, frames and other metal, sorted from wood and drywall.
Rechargeable, lithium-ion, power tool and single-use batteries. Tape the ends of lithium batteries.
How it works
How electronic recycling in Cardiff by the Sea works
Step 1
Pick your site
First, choose San Marcos for everything we take, or the Oceanside drop-off for electronics and small appliances.
Step 2
Drive up, no appointment
Then drive up during opening hours. At Oceanside, check in at the storage office first.
Step 3
Unload with our team
After that, our team helps unload. Tell them what you brought and if anything holds data you care about.
Step 4
Data destroyed, items recycled
Finally, every drive is wiped and physically destroyed by default, and everything is recycled through our Point Loma and Chula Vista processing sites.
Services
Business and data services in Cardiff-by-the-Sea
Besides drop-off and pickup, these services cover homes and businesses in Cardiff-by-the-Sea.
Six sites across San Diego County with no appointment. Electronics are free to drop off.
Five or more computers, laptops, monitors, servers, printers or TVs? We collect them free anywhere in San Diego County.
Residential Electronics Recycling
Household TVs, computers, phones and small electronics, dropped off or picked up from your home.
Business Electronics Recycling
Office clean-outs, IT refreshes and server rooms, with certified data destruction and recycling records.
Pickups for apartments, HOAs and commercial properties, including move-out clean-outs and bulk items.
Tracked, documented retirement of company IT, from inventory to data destruction and recycling.
Servers, storage and networking removed with a documented chain of custody and NIST 800-88 data destruction.
Recover value from retired IT through evaluation, buyback and resale, with certified recycling for the rest.
Drives are crushed or shredded by default, with witnessed destruction and a Certificate of Destruction on request.
On-Site Hard Drive Destruction
We destroy drives at your office, so the data never leaves your building.
Electronics processed under the R2v3 standard at our certified Point Loma facility.
Free community collection events with schools, businesses and neighborhood groups.
Pickup
Free e-waste pickup in Cardiff-by-the-Sea
Our free e-waste pickup covers Cardiff-by-the-Sea when you have five or more computing devices, such as computers, laptops, monitors, servers, printers or TVs. Smaller items like vacuums, CDs and cables don't count toward the five, but we take them with the rest of the load. Book online or call (619) 889-1305.
For an office clean-out, see business electronics recycling. For drives that must be destroyed at your site, see on-site hard drive destruction.
Certified and registered
Certified electronic recycling in Cardiff by the Sea
Our Point Loma facility holds the R2v3 certification (Perry Johnson Registrars, valid to January 2029), and we're registered with CalRecycle and California DTSC. Our U.S. EPA ID is CAL000484577. Details and certificates are on our certifications.
R2v3 certified, Point Loma facility (C2026-00214)
CalRecycle approved collector and recycler, CEWID 127772
California DTSC facility ID 36681
RIOS certified recycler, ID 10240807
Cardiff-by-the-Sea
About Cardiff-by-the-Sea
Cardiff-by-the-Sea, usually just called Cardiff, is a coastal community within the city of Encinitas in northern San Diego County. Interstate 5 and Highway 101 are the main roads, and the Encinitas Coaster Station is close by for trips along the coast.
The beaches are the main draw. Cardiff State Beach and Swami's Beach both pull surfers from around the region, and Cardiff Reef is a well-known break with waves for beginners and experienced surfers. There are tide pools along the shore too. Just inland, the San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve is one of the largest coastal wetlands in the county, with miles of trails and a lot of birdlife.
Homes range from small beach cottages to newer houses and oceanfront properties. Cardiff Town Center holds most of the local shops and cafes. Each year the community puts on the Cardiff Greek Festival, the Cardiff Kook Run and the Taste of Cardiff. Children attend schools in the Encinitas Union and San Dieguito Union High districts, including Cardiff Elementary and Ada Harris Elementary.
Nearby areas
Areas near Cardiff-by-the-Sea
Local reviews
Reviews of our San Marcos recycling center
Ken & Tammy Easy drop off location
rachel chrisman Super friendly place. Heads up they do not take lighters. Your batteries should be separated and they do not receive spray cans, Nice and friendly service
Pay Way Dropped off a 20 inch CRT. The attendant was friendly and took the crt from the back of my car. Very helpful!! Easy stop and go drop off. Highly recommend.
Also he did not charge me. Hope that’s ok.
Libby Patterson made an errand i was avoiding for weeks super quick and easy 🙂
Yvonne Diaz Easy to find
Patricia Conner We had a lot of stuff we didn’t/couldn’t use. We drove into a business lot with warehouse style buildings. This particular business was in the back corner. A guy came out and took everything we had in the trunk. He was polite and asked if we wanted to get rid of a certain item. We said yes. We have no use for it. Instead of just assuming everything in the trunk was being recycled. The only thing he couldn’t take were some lights. Which was fine. He was able to take everything else.
Randy Blackburn They made it very quick and easy. I had a lot of old family videos that needed recycled. I pulled up and the gentleman took what I had and I was out the door within three minutes.
Sam Hoffman Great service and easy to use. Brought in my broke. Flat screen TV to their location and they took it for free. No charge to me. I really appreciate this great service.
Andrew Schwartz I dropped off a microwave today. Fast, and easy - with great service from the friendly staff. For recycling they're the way to go.
Questions