Appliance Recycling Centers of America, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARCI) today announced that it will open a 33,000-square-foot ApplianceSmart Factory Outlet in Marietta, Georgia, in November 2008 to serve the northwest suburbs of the Atlanta metropolitan area.

Located at 1355 Roswell Road, N.E., the outlet is part of the Town & Country Shopping Center. The new factory outlet will be ApplianceSmart’s fifth location in the Atlanta market and eighteenth outlet nationally. The four other Atlanta outlets are located in Norcross, Smyrna, Lithia Springs and Stockbridge.

Like all ApplianceSmart Factory Outlets, this new location will carry a wide range of special-buy major household appliance brands, including Whirlpool, Maytag, GE, Frigidaire, Jenn-Air, Amana and KitchenAid. Special-buy appliances, which ApplianceSmart sells at a significant discount to retail, include new in-the-box closeouts, factory overruns, discontinued models and thousands of discounted out-of-box items.

Edward R. (Jack) Cameron, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “Atlanta is a great market for our concept. This latest location in Marietta is part of our strategic plan to cover the greater Atlanta metro area by finding the right retail locations at the right prices. Our new factory outlet will be in a prime location with dense traffic patterns and wonderful visibility to commuters and shoppers.”

Cameron continued: “ApplianceSmart has established itself in the Atlanta market with four other strongly performing retail outlets. We believe our brand of offering customers a wide selection of high-quality, discount-priced appliances has proven to work extremely well in this market. The addition of a fifth outlet to serve this market will enable us to increase our market penetration, while generating greater economies of scale as we leverage advertising and other overhead expenses.”

About ARCA

ARCA is one of the nation’s largest recyclers of major household appliances for the energy conservation programs of electric utilities. Through its ApplianceSmart operation, ARCA is also one of the nation’s leading retailers of special-buy household appliances, primarily those manufactured by Maytag, GE, Frigidaire and Whirlpool. These special-buy appliances, which include close-outs, factory overruns and scratch-and-dent units, typically are not integrated into manufacturers’ normal distribution channels. ApplianceSmart sells these virtually new appliances at a discount to full retail, offers a 100% money-back guarantee and provides warranties on parts and labor. As of August 2008, ApplianceSmart was operating sixteen factory outlets: six in the Minneapolis/St. Paul market; four in the Columbus, Ohio, market; four in the Atlanta market; and two in San Antonio, Texas. The Company previously announced that it will be opening its third retail outlet in the San Antonio market at the end of August. The signing of the lease for Marietta, Georgia, will bring the total count of ApplianceSmart stores to eighteen.

This press release contains statements that are forward-looking statements as defined within the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made, including the risks associated with general economic conditions, competition in the retail and recycling industries and regulatory risks. Other factors that could cause operating and financial results to differ are described in ARCA’s periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Other risks may be detailed from time to time in reports to be filed with the SEC.

Visit our websites at www.arcainc.com and www.appliancesmart.com.

For Additional Information Contact:                            Edward R. (Jack) Cameron, CEO or
                                                                               Peter Hausback, EVP and CFO
                                                                               (952) 930-9000