CFL danger. Not good.

[..]

Sitting at my computer desk last night a smell of burning lights up my olfactory sense. I immediately unplug PC, monitor, printer, modem, backup hard drive, desk lamp.

Hmm can still smell something plasticky and over hot. Using my finely honed sense of smell I quarter the room on high alert with a fire extinguisher in hand - just in case.

Within about 90 seconds I track down the smelly culprit.

A CFL bulb in a lamp on a side table. When I hold it to remove it I nearly burn my fingers it's so hot. As you can see in the photo one of the oojimaflops has started to melt the plastic surround and cracked as i unscrewed it.



Now I have this monster at hand. 


Special handling instructions for breakage are currently not printed on the packaging of household CFL bulbs in many countries. The amount of mercury released by one bulb can temporarily exceed U.S. federal guidelines for chronic exposure.[55][56] Chronic however, implies that the exposure continues constantly over a long period of time and the Maine DEP study noted that it remains unclear what the health risks are from short-term exposure to low levels of elemental mercury. The Maine DEP study also confirmed that, despite following EPA best-practice cleanup guidelines on broken CFLs, researchers were unable to remove mercury from carpet, and agitation of the carpet — such as by young children playing — created localized concentrations as high as 25,000 ng/m3 in air close to the carpet, even weeks after the initial breakage.

[MP]

Welcome to the "Green" community.

It kills people in China and India making them,  they are toxic here, but the Greenies think they are the best thing since sliced bread.

MP

[Jess Tolbirt]

if you would have had a 10,000 dollar parrot as we do, that bulb would have killed him,, those are deadly toxic to birds and other animals,,, i am stocked up on light bulbs!!!!

[Jess from VA]

Mail it back to China. 

[MNBill]

They really suck here in MN. I use them for my outside lights, when it gets cold I have to leave them on. Warm up to bright is about 10 minutes so they do you no good. I do not know how they save energy for me, except they do last longer than other bulbs. I am going to stock up on the tuff bulbs like i use in my shop lights, they last longer and do not break.

[X Ring]

Last winter I remember hearing about Canadian complaining about their heating bills going up.  Incandescent bubs helped heat the house and switching to CFLs made the heating work that much harder.

Hear another story about a woman in MN changing all the bulbs in her house to CFLs.  She dropped one and tryed to do the right thing by calling MN's version of EPA.  They sent a Hazmat team out and she was charged $2500 for the cleanup.  So much for CFLs saving you money.

All this hoopla is about saving you 5 cents a year per bulb?   

Marty

[Bobbo]

I'm waiting for the price of LED versions to come down.

Another group that opposes getting rid of incandescent bulbs is farmers.  They use incandescents to light and warm chicken coups and other things.  They would have to add an extra heater without them.

[alph]

AND THAT IS THE NUMBER ONE REASON WHY I DO NOT LET THOSE PIECES OF CRAP IN MY HOUSE!!!

the previous owner of this house had 'em all over the place.  i didn't think much of 'em at the time, didn't like the fact that they can't be used on a dimmer switch, didn't like the cost, didn't like the fact that they DON'T last that long (i place a date on the base when i put them in.  the longest one lasted three years, that was because it was in the basement)  i've had about 4 of 'em BLOW UP just like the one you've got shown, found the glass on the floor of the basement and smelt burning electrical components.  the ONLY place i like 'em is in the garage door opener, and a trouble light 'cause they can take vibration.

i bought a bunch of regular incandecent light bulbs, enough to last me until i die i think, to heck with the enviroment, i'd reather pay the extra money in light then take a chance of burning down the house!!

[Serk]

Here's the EPA's own instructions for what you should do if you have a broken CFL:

http://www.epa.gov/cfl/cflcleanup-detailed.html

Personally, I've switched to them mostly, but it's my CHOICE to do so, and really wish it would remain anyone's CHOICE...

(Besides..... Won't someone think of the children??? How will lil' girls make little cupcakes in their EZ-Bake ovens without real light bulbs?!?!?! )

[..]

Here's the EPA's own instructions for what you should do if you have a broken CFL:

http://www.epa.gov/cfl/cflcleanup-detailed.html

It's amazing that one can legally buy something so fricking hazardous

[Jeff K]

I look at this like the coal fired electric cars. People feel better when the pollution is made where they can't see it. CFL's take more energy to produce, but it's ok because it is happening someplace where we can't see it. So, we are being eco responsible, but we need to tax the crap out of the evil companies that manufacture these toxic little time bombs!! 

[MAD6Gun]

 My opinion is that if they didnt make those "little Time bombs" in china they would most likly be ok. If they were made here they would be better,more expensive but better. When is this country going to wake up and stop buying this junk from China. We have had toys painted with lead paint. Drywall that corrodes copper piping in houses and now melting light bulbs. Buy cheep get cheep......

[Jeff K]

My opinion is that if they didnt make those "little Time bombs" in china they would most likly be ok. If they were made here they would be better,more expensive but better. When is this country going to wake up and stop buying this junk from China. We have had toys painted with lead paint. Drywall that corrodes copper piping in houses and now melting light bulbs. Buy cheep get cheep......

Or... we could just stick with the incandescent bulbs. Not sure I want to pay $25 for a light bulb.

[MNBill]

I heard they got around these things in Europe by selling the regular bulbs as 100 watt heaters instead of light bulbs.

[solo1]

I didn't give it a thought...........until now.  I'm using them.  I try to buy US but it's almost impossible.

This is brought to us by the same government that underwrites and pushes ethanol,   which is more inefficient drives up the costs of food, screws up carbs, and isn't even 'green'.

Yep, watch it, electric cars are next.  I wonder where we'll get the energy to run those.....Hmmmm.

[Chrisj CMA]

Am I missing something here.  The long tubular bulbs in all of our flourescent fixtures in kitchens and closets have mercury in them too.  A few have broken over the years, one right on me....dust all over, in my hair etc and I think Im still alive.  Plus since no big to-do has been made about them things, I just threw them away.  My .02 is this.......Right when it breaks the released mercury if ingested or inhaled is probably hazardous.  Once it disperses the threat is much less.....soo much less I dont think one should worry about it.  They say all that hazmat stuff to cover their own a$$es.  

I had one of them CFL bulbs break.......I got out the dustpan, dumped it in the trash can and eventually the trashcan was emptied into the outside can and picked up and taken to the landfill where now there is a very tiny amount of mercury in one tiny spot.

OH YA, Im so evil

Now think about this.........tornado hits.......hundreds of the big and small flourescent bulbs are smashed in an instant..........funny, I dont hear anyone talking about needing protection from mercury contamination.......much to do about nothing

[donaldcc]

if you would have had a 10,000 dollar parrot as we do, that bulb would have killed him,, those are deadly toxic to birds and other animals,,, i am stocked up on light bulbs!!!!

how do you cook a $10,000  parrot Jess?  Do they taste as good as armadillo?? 

[Daniel Meyer]

On breaking the things...I think this is a lot of hoopla over not so big a deal.

We've been using fluorescents for a very long time. They've been in widespread use since the 40's. We've literally used billions of the things. The CFL's are the same thing (mercury vapor lamp) and are no more dangerous than any other fluorescent bulb. Less, in point of fact.

The approved disposal method for fluorescent bulbs? Smush 'em up, try not to breath the dust, and throw them away. There is even a grinder (like a small limb grinder) for that if you do a large volume (like a commercial electrician).

The feds *banning* incandescents, that's the real issue. They've not the right, and it's not their business, and still we let them do it. That's the issue we need to fight...the overstepping of their bounds.

Pointing at a fluorescent light bulb and screaming "The sky is falling" gets us nowhere. It's a red-herring, and if that's the rallying cry about why you wouldn't want to use them, you've already lost.

Why use an incandescent over a CFL? The answer shouldn't be safety of the vapor or looks or whatever...the answer is much simpler.

Why choose one type of bulb over another? "Because I can."

I happen to like the things in *appropriate* locations...1/5th the power really does add up...but they are not appropriate or useful everywhere and again, it should be my choice.

Fight the right fight.

Oh, and I should add...in Britman's case above, I'd be more worried about the possibility of fire from a failed ballast in a CFL, then the break. Supposedly that's been tested to exhaustion too though. The entire "made in China" thing throws an additional risk/variable into that equation though.

[Serk]

Daniel - I actually agree with you that it's not that big a deal, I only pointed out the EPA's crazy instructions for how to handle a broken one because of the irony that our same benevolent government that's forcing us to use these is also saying we should basically have hazmat suits handy to jump into in case one breaks...

(And yes, I'll go ahead and point this out before someone else does. The actual law forcing the move to CFL's was signed by Bush, not Obama... I don't care who is in power, I don't like them removing choices.)

[Daniel Meyer]

(Besides..... Won't someone think of the children??? How will lil' girls make little cupcakes in their EZ-Bake ovens without real light bulbs?!?!?! )

Muhahahaha...ask my Dad about that. I "modified" my sisters easy-bake...yeah...see, I got the magnetron out of an old microwave oven I found in the alley...

(it's a wonder kids ever reach adult-hood)

That sucker worked though!

Now think about this.........tornado hits.......hundreds of the big and small flourescent bulbs are smashed in an instant..........

Heh heh...a new worry for the ages...mercury impregnated swirling glass vortexes of death!  

Combine that with the dreaded fire tornado...and we are all doomed!

[BonS]

Okay, where to begin . . .

Fluorescent bulbs that contain mercury are considered hazardous waste by the EPA. The good news is that not all fluorescent bulbs contain mercury. The mercury-free ones usually have green end caps. The EPA cops may very well visit a facility and audit the disposal of fluorescent bulbs. For example, Grainger sells pre-addressed hazardous waste boxes for old fluorescent bulbs. If you can't show that you've been doing this based upon your purchases of replacements then a fine may be imposed. Our facility manager is so paranoid that he won't dispose of mercury-free lamps for fear of the EPA. This should make you cringe: It is up to the user of the bulb to prove that the bulb is not hazardous waste. It is not the responsibility of the manufacturer!! 

All CFL's are made overseas. The quality sucks. They all have some amount of mercury vapor. Yes, I played with liquid mercury as a kid and I'm still alive but it's still bad stuff. Liquid mercury does give off mercury vapor, especially when heated. Mercury vapor is bad as it goes right into your blood stream when inhaled. Mercury vapor is what's always in CFL's (but only sometimes in fluorescent bulbs).

Oh, and did I say how much I hate CFL's? I've been retrofitting LED's in my 6" can lights and really like them a lot. They're instant on, bright, dimmable and will last forever (so to speak). There's only one decent brand/model sold right now and it can be found at HD under the name EcoSmart. Some states are using our tax dollars to lower their cost and some enterprising folks sell them under the box store price on eBay. They vary from around $36-$41 each. They make a great alternative to CFL's where it's cold, where you don't want the heat of an incandescent, where they're on a lot and where they're hard to access.

[Jess Tolbirt]

if you would have had a 10,000 dollar parrot as we do, that bulb would have killed him,, those are deadly toxic to birds and other animals,,, i am stocked up on light bulbs!!!!

how do you cook a $10,000  parrot Jess?  Do they taste as good as armadillo?? 

actually its 3 parrots, Cookie a Cockatoo,, Buddy an Illiger, and Baby an African gray valued at 3 grand each,,

[Rocketman]

created localized concentrations as high as 25,000 ng/m3 in air close to the carpet, even weeks after the initial breakage.

The real concern is why do organizations insist on using such inane units?  25,000 nanograms?  AKA- 25 micrograms?
(:

Of course, it's not as inane as my college physics textbook, that specified the mass of a proton in kilograms.  That was a REALLY small number.

[Sludge]

I'm waiting for the price of LED versions to come down.

Yea LED is the way to go when the prices get right.  These things are just a transitional technology at best.

Another group that opposes getting rid of incandescent bulbs is farmers.  They use incandescents to light and warm chicken coups and other things.  They would have to add an extra heater without them.

Yup, we have used em for several things over the years, but mostly to keep cattle drinkers and well houses from freezing the pipes.