PANORAMIC

Selling Your Panorex Dental Machine

Frank Tagye

Are you considering selling your panorex dental machine? Maybe you are upgrading to cone beam, consolidating practices, or retiring. For whatever reason, you may have a dental panorex machine that you want to get rid of. With everything else on your plate during an equipment transition, where do you even start? Here are a few guidelines on how to offload that old dental X-ray machine and how to obtain the information that is often required to make the sale.

What To Do With A Film X-ray

First, let’s talk technology and face the facts. If you have a film panorex dental unit, it would likely be extremely difficult to find another dental office that would want to buy it. You can try to donate it, but with the increasingly lower cost of digital panorex units, many charities will not take a film unit, even if it’s free. And, most reputable used dental equipment resellers will not purchase traditional analog X-rays. So, that means the only option is to remove and then recycle it. Most states require that dental X-ray units are dismantled and disposed of by a registered service provider following state-mandated protocols. That means you will need to contact a local dental dealer or service company to complete the removal and disposal.

What To Do With A Phosphor Plate X-ray

If you have a phosphor plate panorex dental system, you may have an easier time of selling it to another practice than you would a film unit, but most likely you’ll have to contact a local dental dealer or service company to remove and dispose of it, as well. It is unlikely that a used dental equipment reseller would purchase a phosphor plate system these days, either.

What To Do With a Digital X-ray

If you have a newer direct digital panorex dental machine, you may be able to find a local buyer, but it’s more efficient, and sometimes more cost-effective from a time and materials standpoint to find a reputable dental X-ray machine reseller to buy your X-ray. Why?

you will typically get paid for it in a timely manner
they are most often registered to provide X-ray removal services
they will come to your office and carefully remove it (and manage the entire process)
they will package it for storage and/or transport
they assume all liability for the unit if something goes wrong in the process.

All of these tasks are tedious and time-consuming and not how any dental or dental specialty practice wants to spend their time.

If you decide you wish to sell your direct digital panorex dental X-ray machine to a dental equipment reseller, do your homework first and ask the following questions to ensure the reseller is a reputable dealer.

Do they currently sell your X-ray model? Chances are, if that manufacturer or model is not on their website, they won’t buy it.
How do they determine the purchase price for the unit? What criterion do they use to price their equipment? How much are they selling that model for? Don’t expect to get the same price for the unit that the reseller is selling it for. They have already invested a lot into an X-ray before placing it for sale. They removed it, they crated and shipped it, then they inspected and/or refurbished it. All of these services add up and can add to a unit’s sale price. Pricing can vary greatly between age, features, and use, so make sure you are comparing “apples to apples”.
How long has the company been around? Do they have good reputation for buying and selling equipment? Do they have any reviews on Google or other online sources from equipment sellers? Do they use their own techs or do they outsource to third parties? Is there a recourse if something goes wrong?
Will they provide a legal, binding contract for the purchase of your equipment?
Do they manage the entire purchase and pickup or do you have to do a lot of the “leg work” yourself? Remember, the highest purchase price isn’t always the greatest deal!
When do they pay for the equipment? Do you get paid at pick up, or do you have to wait for a check?

When working with a dental equipment reseller to sell your panorex dental unit, you may be asked to provide the following details about your X-ray. Here are some tips on where to locate this information.

What is the manufacturer/model of the unit? You can likely find the name of the manufacturer and model on the unit’s serial plate. If the model is no longer manufactured or is undesirable for any reason, such as known quality issues, the value may be less, or the reseller may not wish to buy it.
What is the serial number of the unit? Like the manufacturer/model, you can find the serial number on the unit’s serial plate. Some resellers will check a serial number’s service history with the manufacturer before purchase.
What year was the unit manufactured? Newer units are more valuable.
What is the exposure count? This number tells the buyer how many times the unit was “fired”, and is like the mileage on a car. The lower the number the better for resale value. The exposure count is not always easy to determine. The reseller should be able to provide instructions to obtain this information.