Gray Matters by Stuart Carlson and Jerry Resler for March 25, 2013

Just go to bed after after sundown. That’s environmentally friendly.

We have had 3 of those squirrelly lightbulbs crack spontaneously.

I stocked up on regular bulbs when I could.

I won’t put ’em in my house since they have Mercury in them and I have grandkids and pets. Besides, they would be a pain to clean up if I dropped one. If you do use them and do break one, here are the cleanup instructions from energystar.gov

CLEANUP AND DISPOSAL OVERVIEWThe most important steps to reduce exposure to mercury vapor from a broken bulb are:1. Before cleanupa. Have people and pets leave the room.b. Air out the room for 5-10 minutes by opening a window or door to the outdoor environment.c. Shut off the central forced air heating/air conditioning (H&AC) system, if you have one.d. Collect materials needed to clean up broken bulb.

2. During cleanupa. Be thorough in collecting broken glass and visible powder.b. Place cleanup materials in a sealable container.

3. After cleanupa. Promptly place all bulb debris and cleanup materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area until materials can be disposed of properly. Avoid leaving any bulb fragments or cleanup materials indoors.b. For several hours, continue to air out the room where the bulb was broken and leave the H&AC system shut off.

I have GOT to do this.

Almost all recycling centers take fluorescent bulbs.You just need to make time to take them in.

I was behind them until I read what Logan revealed, and realized it was costing me more than $5.00 to take them to the recycling center. Any savings one might gain is wasted, and there is no environmental benefit. Regular bulbs can be made better. Ever notice how ever manufacture has bulbs of exactly 1000 hours? It is an intentional cartel decision.

“Curly Fry” bulbs are an example of environmentalism gone wrong.

Brighter LEDs are now available with longer life and no disposal hazards. They still lack dimming, though. I have put LEDs everywhere I can. Where I need dimmable, I use halogen which are still legal. Also exempt are 3 way, appliance bulbs, rough duty, and the best loophole, nostalgia bulbs which are standard incandescent with old fashioned filament and glass shapes.

I have been using CFLs throughout my house for over a decade, have never had one break, they last a very long time, and I have been very happy with them. Where’s the problem? Recently we built a new house and have more than 90% CFLs. We heat with electricity (heat pump) and our electricity bill is lower than our water bill.

We’re allowed to throw the curly bulbs in our regular trash. Go figure, with all the environmental extremism.