The best way to recycle these cartridges is to send them back to the manufacturer. After the holidays, you may have some burnt-out string lights you need to recycle. Nowadays, most string lights use LED bulbs. The good news is Home Depot will accept these for recycling, and has recycled more than 2.
What do you do with old light bulbs? Safe light bulb disposal Standard light bulbs should be disposed of in normal household waste.
Compact fluorescent lamps are energy saving light bulbs and do not belong in the rubbish bin. Halogen Light bulbs should be disposed of in normal household waste.
Where do I dispose of CFL bulbs? What does Lowes accept for recycling? At participating Lowe's store, customers can drop off expired, unbroken CFLs, any rechargeable battery up to 11 pounds and all used cell phones and plastic shopping bags.
The products are shipped to recycling facilities for processing. What does Lowes do with old appliances? If you pay for this service, you'll almost certainly find a customer service number on your bill. Give them a call and ask if they offer CFL or mercury recycling. If not, politely suggest they do so. Here's an opportunity to write a letter, attend a meeting or take some other activist role in highlighting the importance of proper CFL disposal.
The appropriate follow-up will depend on whether your trash service is privately or publicly held. Whether or not local trash service is provided by a private contractor, your local municipality city, county or parish is ultimately responsible for waste disposal.
Most phone directories have a "blue pages" directory of local government agencies. Try the listing for sanitation services. While curbside recycling is by no means universal, your area may have designated drop-off locations or periodic CFL collections. Should your local agency not have any CFL-specific provisions, ask about safe disposal of mercury or fluorescent tubes. Unless you bought CFLs from Ikea, one of the first major vendors to offer a free take-back program, you're probably going to get some blank stares when you ask the manager of your local store about CFL recycling.
It's worth the effort, though: retailers need to know their customers want safe disposal of the good they purchase. If you bought your CFLs from Walmart, consider contacting their corporate headquarters and asking that they establish a company wide CFL-return program.
Earth is probably the United States and Canada's largest online clearinghouse of recycling information. Alternately, try "mercury" and "fluorescent bulbs. Earth is currently attempting to expand its coverage to Europe, the first step toward an international registry of recycling options.
There are a variety of for-profit companies that provide CFL and fluorescent bulb disposal by mail. Failing a local option, these firms represent a responsible and environmentally friendly channel for CFL recycling. Because the mercury usually bonds with the glass casing, it should be in solid enough form that you can scoop up any glass pieces with cardboard. As mentioned above, retailers make up a large percentage of the market for CFL recycling.
These stores accept CFLs and not fluorescent tubes. Light-emitting diodes LEDs, the bulbs commonly used in electronics now available in light bulb form last about three times as long as CFLs and use two-thirds of the energy.
Skip to content. How to Recycle CFLs. Why Recycle CFLs? They are made with recyclable materials. Why recycle CFLs? Because all of the components that make up these bulbs are all recyclable. From the glass to the metal, these can be used for the next bulb that can light up another home. Therefore, it lessens the amount of waste. On top of that, Mercury is a precious and quite limited liquid metal. This is why it is crucial for you to recycle these light bulbs.
Your state may require recycling of waste. There are a few states and areas in the US where there are laws requiring the people to recycle or not to dispose of recyclable materials. In fact, some of these states have stricter regulations compared to that of the EPA. If you need to know about recycling laws within your state, you can contact a waste collection agency as they can provide you with details regarding recycling regulations. For now, here are a few states that have strict recycling laws, and also have banned mercury-containing bulbs to be disposed in landfills:.
It avoids contaminating the environment with mercury. CFLs and other fluorescent light bulbs do contain mercury. Therefore, it can harm the environment in the event these bulbs break. Each CFL contains 4mg of Mercury, which can be harmless when inside the bulb.
However, when a CFL breaks when improperly thrown in a landfill can potentially lead to toxic effects when entered into the water stream. Where to Recycle CFLs? Waste Collection Agencies. Local Retail Stores. Mail-Back Services. CFL Recycling Process. Where can you recycle used CFLs? When it all comes down to it, LEDs are quite better for the environment. That is because they last longer about three times as long than CFLs. On top of that, they also only use two-thirds of the energy that it takes to power a CFL bulb.
Finally, they also do not contain the element, Mercury, so it is easier for you to dispose of. Aside from it being more expensive, you will also have a much more difficult time trying to find a recycling market for LED light bulbs.
What is the purpose of the Mercury in a CFL? Mercury just so happens to be a superb conductor for electricity. And, it is the reason why CFLs are much more energy efficient. When it comes to potential harmful effects when humans are exposed to it, one should know that the amount of Mercury in a CFL is not close to the amount of it being toxic to people.
Yes, CFLs today commonly have about 4mg of Mercury. However, most companies and manufacturers also try to decrease the amount of Mercury. That is why other CFLs only have around 1.
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