CFL light bulb and breakage

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Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 8:47 pm

What should you do if you break one of those new CFL light bulbs? (these are the new bulbs that are eventually replacing regular incadescent light bulbs) According to the State of Maine, these simple instructions:

Quote:

What if I accidentally break a fluorescent lamp in my home?
The lamp contains a small amount of mercury, but you can clean this up
yourself if you do the following:
• Do not use a vacuum cleaner to clean up the breakage. This will
spread the mercury vapor and dust throughout the area and
could potentially contaminate the vacuum.
• Keep people and pets away from the breakage area until the
cleanup is complete.
• Ventilate the area by opening windows, and leave the area for 15
minutes before returning to begin the cleanup. Mercury vapor
levels will be lower by then.
• For maximum protection and if you have them, wear rubber
gloves to protect your hands from the sharp glass.
• Carefully remove the larger pieces and place them in a secure closed container, preferably a
glass container with a metal screw top lid and seal like a canning jar.40 A glass jar with a good
seal works best to contain any mercury vapors inside.41
• Next, begin collecting the smaller pieces and dust. You can use two stiff pieces of paper such
as index cards or playing cards to scoop up pieces.
• Pat the area with the sticky side of duct tape, packing tape or masking tape to pick up fine
particles. Wipe the area with a wet wipe or damp paper towel to pick up even finer particles.
• Put all waste and materials into the glass container, including all material used in the cleanup
that may have been contaminated with mercury. Label the container as “Universal Waste -
broken lamp.”
• Remove the container with the breakage and cleanup materials from your home. This is
particularly important if you do not have a glass container.
• Continue ventilating the room for several hours.
• Wash your hands and face.
• Take the glass container with the waste material to a facility that accepts “universal waste” for
recycling. To determine where your municipality has made arrangements for recycling of this
type of waste, call your municipal office or go to MaineDEP.com, click on “Fluorescent Light
Bulb Information” and look for the link to municipal collection sites.
• When a break happens on carpeting, homeowners may consider removing throw rugs or the
area of carpet where the breakage occurred as a precaution, particularly if the rug is in an
area frequented by infants, small children or pregnant women.
• Finally, if the carpet is not removed, open the window to the room during the next several
times you vacuum the carpet to provide good ventilation.
The next time you replace a lamp, consider putting a drop cloth on the floor so that any accidental
breakage can be easily cleaned up. If consumers remain concerned regarding safety, they may
consider not utilizing fluorescent lamps in situations where they could easily be broken. Consumers
may also consider avoiding CFL usage in bedrooms or carpeted areas frequented by infants, small
children, or pregnant women. Finally, consider not storing too many used/spent lamps before
recycling as that may increase your chances of breakage. Don’t forget to properly recycle your used
fluorescent bulbs so they don’t break and put mercury into our environment.
40 Other jars that can be made of glass and also work are pickle, peanut butter and applesauce jars. Not ideal but
also a good choice for containing breakage is a heavy duty #2 plastic container with either a screw lid or push-on lid
such as a joint compound bucket or certain kitty litter-type containers.
41 If the only suitable jar available has food in it, you may need to empty it into another container before using it.

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:09 pm

Can you still get incandecent in Canada? I avoid Curly Fry Lights for the hazmat reasons.

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:15 pm

That's sooo wrong. It just replaces one problem with another, perhaps worse problem, in my opinion. Most of the folks buying these bulbs, to be "green" haven't got a clue that they need to be disposed of any other way than just throwing them away in the garbage. I didn't know for at least a year after I switched over

Speaking as someone who had a near death experience, two years ago, as a result of a variety of molds, and toxic levels of many heavy metals, the thought of another way for mercury to be around is freakin' terrifying.
Interesting fact - When I was tested, in California, 3 different kinds of Uranium were found. The tester had never seen that before and I was certain that I had somehow collected it up in Manitoba, Canada, where I spent the 1st 32 years of my life, or Scotland, where my Dad was from. Growing up we spent 6 to 8 weeks visiting our relatives there, at least 6 different times. Anyway, I recently learned that the soil in Manitoba is full of Uranium. I always gardened, never wore gloves and was usually barefoot, it's easy to see how it happened.

Sorry if I derailed the thread...

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:22 pm

So you're saying you're pretty hot then, Farti? Wink

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:36 pm

Call me naughty but when we had one break recently, these are the steps I took:

1. Swept up pieces
2. Dumped broken pieces in trash can
3. When trash got full, took to dumpster

Now that I revealed my deep dark secret, I am expecting agents from Augusta to swarm over and take me away.

They did this before when they caught me taking recyclable cans I bought in New Hampshire and returned them in Maine. Very Happy

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:38 pm

Badgerbait
Yes, I'm extremely hot! But it's all behind me ...

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:55 pm

We have been told to return them to the local Lowe's or Home Depot where purchased when they burn out, that is assuming they are all in one piece. They did not tell what to do if broken.

So if I follow this procedure for broken crappy curly lights I should then take the contents of the container to Lowes or Home Depot and watch their faces as they don't know what to do next. Laughing

One trick I use for regular broken light bulbs is using a piece of white bread to pick up the smallest of pieces.

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 11:05 pm

It's a real Catch-22 situation. Conventional incandescent filament lightbulbs are in the process of being outlawed in many countries of the world because they are wasteful -- most of the energy consumed is given off as heat rather than light. CFLs are very efficient from a power standpoint but introduce ridiculous mercury dangers exactly at a time when governments are clamping down on the use of mercury in batteries.

I suspect the real future will be in LED bulbs. The technology has a ways to go yet but it's coming fast. I can remember when CFLs cost $15-$20 each. LED bulbs cost that much and more now, and are still limited to low candlepower output. But just as CFLs have dropped virtually to pennies at the same time as their efficiency improved, LEDs will get better and cheaper in a few years. My guess is that CFLs will be a non-issue in another decade. And good riddance........

As a related aside, here's how one German businessman is getting around the ban on incandescent filament bulbs -- "heat balls".

Edit to add: sometimes the old ways are still the best. My preferred lighting -- seriously -- is kerosene. Not standard open flame, which is inefficient, but Aladdin mantle lamps. (Mantle refers to the incandescent part of the lamp, not to a fireplace. Wink

) It burns little fuel and the light output is easily 40-60 watt equivalent, infinitely adjustable. I use 100 year-old lamps but brand-new ones are still being made. Check out http://www.goodpick.com/.

Mine is the only house in the block with ample lighting during power outages.

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 11:17 pm

I remember my first attempt at being "green", damn CFL's went out in 3-6 months. Same life as incan's.

I agree LEDs are bright and much better. They can't produce a really good white or natural light yet.

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 11:37 pm

As for me and mine we be stockin' up on incandescents. I hate the type of light LEDs put out and the outdoor LED Christmas lights are horrid as are the LED lights on automobiles that blind oncoming traffic. If I have to give up incandescent lights I will sue Al Gore!

Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Apr 2007 Posts: 3123

Before 100W incandescent bulbs were banned here, I wiped out my local hardware store so that I'd delay the switchover - I prefer the reassuring warm glow (light, not heat) eminating from good 'ole bulbs compared to the harsh unfamiliar light from these new fad bulbs.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1343554/Eco-bulb-cost-treble-Makers-cash-ban-old-style-bulbs-kicks-in.html

Doesn't look like I have long to stack up a lifetime supply of incandescents before they're all banned. Sad

Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 6:34 pm

We moved recently and one of the first things I did was replaced the incandescent parabolic aluminized reflectors (PAR) in 72 recessed fixtures with CFL PARs. They are safer because they have an outer envelope. The one's I got are Lights of America and put out 900 lumens with 20 watts and are rated at a very warm white 2700 degrees K. They replaced 70 watt incandescent PARs rated at 720 lumens @70 watts at exactly the same temperature so at exactly the same color.

The CFLPARs should retail for $10 each but the local utility buys down the cost so the listed price is $1.92. They say they run 8000 hours but I generally change them before that. Incandescent PARs run 750 hours and cost $5.

The energy savings will net me $40 per bulb so that's $2880. The cost of replacing 72 lamps 10.6 times at a cost of $5 each would be $3840. That's also a huge pain in the butt. The point is that the savings are supposed to be $6720 less the cost of the new bulbs.

Is it possible to tell the difference between the two? When my military girl came home she mentioned that she was leaving her bathroom lights on because they were energy efficient. I had not gotten to them yet so they were not. She was fooled. There is about a 1/10 of a second time delay with the CFL and its really not possible to dim them even though they say you can.

I recently bought some cheap twisties from Costco. They had a limit of 18 so I am now stuck with 18. The packages said "daylight". My guess is that they are running about 4500K. Too blue for indoors. My theory is that the higher temp means more energy on the meter so the efficiency measures higher. I paid very little for them because of the utility company's buydown.

I love LEDs and buy the newest emitters as they are released. The color is completely dependent upon the temperature rating and that's determined by the bin and the voltage of the driver circuit. I am presently running 2000 lumens on my bicycle. Only 5 years ago in the days of incandescent, 37 lumens was considered a lot. I've talked to the power company's management about buying down the cost of LEDs and was told that they are waiting for the technology to mature.

The LEDs on cars are only used as markers and do not do much for forward illumination or cause glare. The issue is idiots that buy aftermarket ballasts and unshielded high intensity discharge (HID) lamps and put them into their existing reflectors. The focal points are totally different and the shielding does not exist. Cars with original equipment HIDs have either projector systems or leveling motors.

BTW- This week's project for me- I run my vehicles until the wheels fall off and more. The HID bulbs on my car are 11 years old and the output of each is falling off. They were originally rated at 3700K but I want a little more blue so I bought some 6500K replacements. The only others were 8000K and 10,000K. That's purple.

Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 11:22 pm

I'm with Juan, bring back the trusty Coleman

Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 1:15 am

I've broken on CFL and I threw it in the trash.

I have a few floor lamps (three-way) that do not take CFL. Incandescent only. So I'm stocking up on those bulbs.

My mother is wheel-chair bound and stuff, and for Christmas I bought her a remote-control floor lamp. Didn't know until it arrived that it only took incandescent bulbs. I've got more stocking up to do.

Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 1:30 am

I love Coleman stuff but do not allow mantles to be lit or run around the house. The good mantles are way too brittle and the radioactive thorium ash gets everywhere. With a half life of 14 billion years it will take a while for the radiation levels to go down. I know that some manufacturers, Coleman being one of them have now use nonradioactive yttrium but the output is not as high and thorium is still being used. Talking about mantles, I have some mil spec SunPower mantles that put out 4 times the lumens of a modern Coleman. They were packed with a military quarter-pane lantern in 1956. I have 6 mantle burners but generally use LEDs for camping and LEDs exclusively for backpacking. For in the house power outage stuff I use a really old Deitz "hot blast" lantern. My kids have given me knock-off "cold blast" lanterns that are brighter but they stink.

Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 1:53 am

Exemptions from the (USA) Energy Independence and Security Act include reflector flood, 3-way, candelabra, colored, and other specialty bulbs.

So does this mean I can have all the 3-way lamps I want and can put some specialty bulbs like those candelabra lights in my dining room fixtures and over overheads?

I read that businesses are getting around the incandescent light bulb ban by marketing them as heaters

Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 2:26 am

^^^^

See my post above:

Quote:

As a related aside, here's how one German businessman is getting around the ban on incandescent filament bulbs -- "heat balls".

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