Yesterday Home Depot announced they will offer recycling of CFLs at their stores starting Tuesday July 1st, so if the idea of CFLs was daunting because of the hassle of finding a hazardous waste disposal in your area, this is one issue that you can check off of your list. Truth be told, I don't have any old CFLs yet because they last a long time- one of the money savings aspects of the bulbs, but I'm relieved to hear about this because it will make it so much more convenient. 75% of the nation's homes are within 10 miles of a Home Depot (which is definitely a daunting statistic for anyone who follows big box politics) but in case, they are performing a great service and I just wanted to let you know, in case you haven't heard yet!
Is this at ALL their stores? That's great news! So far the nearest recycling center to me was over an hour away. I had one bad batch that all burned out in a few months, but the rest are going strong. Some are 10 years old!
That's good. Will they also send in a Hazmat team if you happen to break one in your home? The EPA guidelines concerning clean-up of a broken CFL are reminiscent of the Andromeda Strain.
How many have you broken? I have a slew of CFLs, and the infrequency with which I need to replace them lessens the likelihood of breakage. Its not not like I need to go around replacing them every 6 months like with the IC lights.
More mercury is release from the energy used by the IC bulbs than exists in the CFL bulb http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/ask/cflmercury It does appear that you need to be careful when you clean up any broken bulb, but I'm going with the theory that you get more mercury from the fish you eat than from the broken CFL. I did freak out when my son broke a CFL throwing a football in the house, but then I followed the directions in the link above.
I have but two CFLs in my house, one a desk lamp and the other a reading light. My electric bills are under $30 a month, so I'll continue my conservative ways rather than replace all my bulbs given the following draconian measures advised by the EPA. Yeah, I know they will be required in the future. No light bulb police will be allowed in my house without a warrant. Per the EPA: What to Do if a Fluorescent Light Bulb Breaks. Before Clean-up: Air Out the Room * Have people and pets leave the room, and don't let anyone walk through the breakage area on their way out. * Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more. * Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one. Clean-Up Steps for Hard Surfaces * Carefully scoop up glass pieces and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag. * Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder. * Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place towels in the glass jar or plastic bag. * Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces. Clean-up Steps for Carpeting or Rug * Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag. * Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder. * If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken. * Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag. Clean-up Steps for Clothing, Bedding and Other Soft Materials * If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from inside the bulb that may stick to the fabric, the clothing or bedding should be thrown away. Do not wash such clothing or bedding because mercury fragments in the clothing may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage. * You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, such as the clothing you are wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb. * If shoes come into direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from the bulb, wipe them off with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place the towels or wipes in a glass jar or plastic bag for disposal. Disposal of Clean-up Materials * Immediately place all clean-up materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area for the next normal trash pickup. * Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing clean-up materials. * Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area. Some states do not allow such trash disposal. Instead, they require that broken and unbroken mercury-containing bulbs be taken to a local recycling center. Future Cleaning of Carpeting or Rug: Air Out the Room During and After Vacuuming * The next several times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window before vacuuming. * Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.
Under $30/month is awesome! Congratulations. I wouldn't do it either if my bill was less than the price of 6 CFLs. I wish I could get mine that low, but with 6 of us that would be tough. Hopefully the light bulb police will be after all the "McMansions" (that spend $30 per room) long before they are after the rest of us.
Well you can try to lower it. No lights are on in my house unless the room is occupied, but more importantly, no electrical appliance remains plugged in unless I intend to use it (except my computer - and it is always turned off when not in use). An old, but interesting article from Science Daily
Hate to disagree with the EPA (not...) but there is a better way to handle a mercury spill. Buy the yellow powder sold as 'flowers of sulfur' from your pharmacy. When the bulb breaks sprinkle the sulfur on the affected area. It will turn gray-brown where HgS forms. The color change is useful, and (after waiting a respectful interval for the reaction to complete) the stuff can be vacuumed. Not much other use for flowers of S, unless you live in tick country and want to sprinkle some inside your, er, elastic waistband as a repellant. Great to hear whenever CFL bulb recycling gets easier. The long fluorescent tubes (which contain much more Hg) have been getting a free ride, environmentally speaking, for a long time. DAS
Tochatihu is about halfway there but you need to add zinc to bind to the mercury so it will be easier to capture. The sulphur is just an indicator. I always wondered what was in the kits we have at work . See this for what you should have for a clean up kit: http://www.odh.ohio.gov/ASSETS/76D8DDC7F8EB422EAF4A9CFC41930368/cleanup.pdf If you're a gardener the sulphur is also handy for lowering your soil PH to make acid loving plants like blueberries happy--that's why I have it on hand.
