Are florescent light bulbs dangerous?

Question

I heard about a report tell of a hidden danger in florescent light bulbs and I was wonder what it was.

Answer 1

No, that's just the media sensationalizing everything (as usual). CFC's contain about 5mg of mercury per bulb. To put that into some sort of perspective, a mercury thermometer has about 450-500mg of mercury. So, although mercury is poisonous, these bulbs have very, very little and it's only dangerous if you were to break several of them, and then inhale the mercury and/or let it contact your skin. Besides, even though these bulbs have a bit of this toxic chemical in them, they use WAY less electricity than incandescent bulbs. And much of the electricity produced in our country comes from coal burning power plants that belch out gobs of mercury. So, by using incandescent bulbs, you'll be exposed to more mercury in the long run. Therefore, CFCs are way better.

It's been ages since I last took a chemistry class so if one of these bulbs breaks, I don't remember all the correct methods of safe clean-up for mercury. I'd guess: clean up the glass/bulb debris asap, wear rubber gloves, hold your breath and/or wear a mask until you can get the contents in a trashcan (preferably outdoors), and open the windows to ventilate the area. Other than that, I wouldn't sweat it too much. I mean, do you know how much other toxic/unhealthy crap we have in our households? Airborne carpet fibers, dust, pesticides, harsh cleaners, pet dander, insulation, fertilizers, paints/varnishes, etc, etc. Try not to lose sleep over it...

Answer 2

An email is racing across the country warning of the bulbs potential dangers.
But in reality, if the bulb breaks you stand a greater chance of being injured by the broken glass then the potentially dangerous mercury vapors inside.
Even so, doctors insist precautions need to be taken.
“You should ventilate the room and use plastic gloves to clean up broken light bulbs,” one doctor said.
When a compact florescent light bulb breaks it releases a very small amount of mercury vapor.

That’s why you need to sweep the glass not vacuum it up.
You’re also advised to use a wet towel to wipe the area clean, throwing everything away in a sealed plastic bag.

Treat the bulbs as you would dangerous household chemicals, locked up and out of a child’s reach.

Answer 3

Just throw it in the yard where it may be stepped on and broken. This can injure a person and when its broken it will release the dangerous material inside of it into the ground which can seep into the ground water or an animal may try to eat it. You could also break it by throwing it into a water system and making sure it hits something hard on the way in. This would contaminate the water. Please don't really do these though because these bulbs can be dangerous to the environment.

Answer 4

Florescent lights are only dangerous if broken they contain mercury vapor.

Answer 5

Yes. If you break them they shatter all over the place and some weird gas comes out. They are not only dangerous but ugly looking and have very unnatural light.

Answer 6

No, they are not dangerous. I assume you are not going to eat them? There is less murcury in them than in the fish we eat. And a tiny amount of lead is possible in the solder at the ends. If they were dangerous they would be outlawed. They are very energy efficient and that is good for the earth.

Answer 7

aside from the fact they contain mercury, they have very thin glass that breaks easily

Answer 8

as long as you break them and release the poison gas really nasty stuff

Answer 9

Only when they break.

Answer 10

Not really.