Recycle Those Old VHS Tapes

Tired of the dusty old collection of VHS movies taking up space in the living room? You may not want to toss them in trash. Here are some ideas for what to do with the VHS tapes. There are more options than you realize.

Donate your old VHS tapes to a hospital. Children's hospitals try to keep a library of children's movies. Cartoons and animated films are a great distraction for children in emergency rooms and prolonged hospital stays. When donating to a children's hospital remember that they treat children up to the age of 18. Family films, comedy, and drama up to PG-13 will also be appreciated.

Many other hospitals have a video collection for their patients, as well. It is especially helpful for patients who are hospitalized for weeks or months at the time. Adult hospitals need a variety of movies for all tastes. They draw the line at rated R movies; please respect decency when donating to hospitals.

If your local hospital does not have a video library, maybe you can start one. Make sure the hospital has VCR's in the rooms before you donate VHS tapes. You may have to coordinate a VCR drive first. A video drive is easy to plan and coordinate. You can enlist the help of local schools, churches, and community centers as collection spots.

Another way to get rid of old VHS tapes is to donate them to a local daycare, preschool, children's ministry, or girls' and boys' clubs. Funds can be especially tight for non-profit organizations that work with children. Your gift of VHS tapes will provide fresh alternatives for rainy day movies. VHS clips are useful as teaching resources.

If you prefer donate your videos to a nursing home. Residents there also need entertainment. You will find residents and staff appreciative of your thoughtfulness toward them.

Your VHS donation to any non-profit organization is tax deductible. Before you make the assumption that your donation is tax deductible, make sure the organization is registered with the U.S. government with a 501 © 3 non-profit status. They can provide you with a letter or receipt recognizing your donation. Check to make sure the tax I.D. number is located somewhere on the document. Your accountant will want it at the end of the year to add to your charitable deductions.

If you want to sell your old videos, families who use VCR's will buy your old videos at a yard sale. Don't expect to get what you paid. I've seen them sell for a dollar or two. Disney classics may go for $5 or more. Disney orignals much more. If you have an extensive collection or collectible tapes the money can quickly add up.

Another option for your VHS collection, especially if it is large, is to sell it in lots on EBay. I don't recommend this method unless you own very rare video footage, or have a huge lot of Videos. However, if you group your videos in sets: comedy, drama, westerns, animated, children's, etc, you should be able to sell and ship in bulk. The larger the lot, the more money you are likely to make on a VHS sale on EBay. Lots of 50+ seem to do the best. Optimize your profits on EBay by listing the titles and conditions of your movies in your listing. The more details you provide, the higher your selling price can be.

Another option for getting rid of your VHS tapes is to donate them to a local charity thrift store. They may have the opportunity to sell it and usually donate approximately 20% of their profits to charity (depending on state regulations). At least a portion of the proceeds from the sale of your tapes will benefit a charity.

There are a variety of ways to keep your VHS tapes out of landfills. Give them away or sell them. Go ahead and clean them out now before you get tired of them and toss them in the trash. They are just collecting dust anyway.