City pilots Retrievr, clothing & electronics doorstep pickup

Retrievr is SmartCityPHL’s first winner of the Pitch & Pilot challenge

Looking to responsibly rid hard-to-recycle items like clothing, electronics and microwaves?

There’s a new app for that.

The City of Philadelphia announced a partnership with Retrievr. Residents can schedule free doorstep pickups for clothing and small electronics. There’s a small fee to recycle larger electronics like TVs, microwaves and air conditioners (which the state of PA legally requires you to recycle).

You can still recycle large electronics for free – you just need to drop them off at sanitation convenience centers.

Fees range from $35 for a computer monitor to $50 for air conditioners.

Another weird-recycling pickup service in the mix

This is the latest wave of odd-recycling item pickup services. Local business Rabbit Recycling offers robust recycling solutions with container pickup. In addition to electronics, Rabbit also collects crayons, markers, notebooks and paint.

New Jersey-based Terracycle recently debuted Terracycle Pick Up, which collects pickups based on Zero Waste “themed” bags like kitchen, bathroom, battery and more.

How to schedule a Retrievr pickup

Philadelphians can schedule a pickup by: 

• Visiting retrievr.com.
• Texting PICKUP to 757-70-FETCH (757-703-3824)
• Calling 757-70-FETCH (757-703-3824)

Photo: City of Philadelphia

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