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Fluorescent Lighting Dangers - Why LED Bulbs Are Indeed The Excellent Alternative

Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs) along with more traditional fluorescent lamps are seriously marketed as eco-friendly due to their diminished electricity utilization. Indeed, widespread replacement of incandescent bulbs with CFLs will greatly reduce electricity demand; however, there are safety issues that ultimately promote to making LED lighting the superior choice. Understanding fluorescent lighting hazards can help ensure that fluorescent light bulbs are being used and thrown out safely while detailing why LED lighting is the safest and most eco-friendly lighting alternative in the long run.

Mercury

One of the most commonly cited fluorescent lighting risk is mercury. Fluorescent and CFL bulbs carry a small amount of mercury and identified with the fundamental symbol Hg. When these bulbs are chilled, some of the mercury in the bulb is in fluid form, but while the lamp is operating or when the lamp is warm, most of the mercury is in a gaseous or vapor form.

Mercury steam is really toxic. Even in liquefied form, exposure to mercury is believed life-threatening or a "severe" danger to health. Even small doses of mercury could cause severe throat damage, memory damage, renal damage, central nervous system damage, and many other serious health conditions.

Disposed off in the wrong way, mercury can infect buildings, landfills, lakes, wildlife, fish, birds, humans, vegetation and lakes. In the US, the EPA has ordered waste handlers to treat fluorescent lamps as dangerous waste. Up to 95 percent of the mercury found in CFLs can be extracted if the bulbs are recycled properly.

Mercury-containing lamps generated by households and small businesses are not always according to legal regulations, regarding their disposal. State laws deviate and some states, just like California, Maine, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Vermont and Massachusetts, prohibit every mercury-containing lights, including CFLs, from being thrown away in the solid waste river.

Because mercury could be released if a fluorescent lamp is shattered, it is important to install fixtures in places that the lamps are not likely to be broken. Fixtures in areas close to ground level or in places with moving equipment should use metal or plastic shields to guard the lamp from being broken. If a fluorescent lamp breaks, there are many safety and cleanup troubles which we will discuss more thoroughly in the following section.

Breakage

Fluorescent lamps create several hazards if damaged. Determined by the type, there could be a partial vacuum or the lamp may be under pressure. Cracking the glass could cause shrapnel injuries, as well as the release of mercury and other unhealthy compounds.

The greatest immediate injury danger from a broken lamp is from the phosphor-coated glass. If cut with fluorescent lamp glass, almost any phosphor that enters the wound is likely to prevent blood clotting and will interfere with healing. Such mishaps should be dealt with seriously and immediate medical attention should be obtained for anyone or house animals that are cut. Medical personnel should be notified that the wounds were caused by a broken fluorescent lamp, and that mercury came to be present.

To reduce exposure to mercury vapor, EPA and other experts advise a few precautionary measures. Children and pets should stay away from the area, and windows ought to be opened for at least 15 minutes so that vapors may scatter. Scrubbing can be done by hand using throw-aways materials. Use rubber throw away gloves and scoop up the materials with firm paper or cardboard. Get sticky tape to pick up small bits and powder, clean the area with a damp paper towel, and dispose of the materials in an outside bin. Never use a vacuum seeing that this will only disperse the mercury mist and leave particles trapped inside the cleaner bag.