Investing in CFLs lately but you’ve heard all the mercury hype? Worried about how you’d clean up a broken bulb? Here are some tips from 7Gen Blog on the matter.
- First, don’t worry about buying or using CFLs. The mercury they contain can’t be released during normal operation, and until new technologies like LED bulbs come along to replace them they’ll remain the best lighting choice in a healthy, sustainable home.
- Always screw CFLs into and out of fixtures using the base and not the glass portion of the bulb. Never force a bulb into an unwilling socket.
- When you replace a CFL, consider using a disposable drop cloth underneath the immediate area, which can make an accident easier to clean up.
- Always dispose of burned-out CFLs via your local hazardous waste program.
- If you break a CFL, don’t panic! Proper clean up will keep everyone safe. Shut off any forced air heating or cooling that’s on, open windows to ventilate the room, and clear the area for 15 minutes. This will dissipate mercury vapors and dramatically lower exposure risks.
- Using disposable rubber gloves, carefully place the larger pieces in a screw-top glass jar. Use stiff paper like index cards to gently gather smaller bits. Try not to stir up any dust.
- Use a sticky tape like duct tape to “blot” up the smaller pieces and powder from the bulb. Place this tape in the jar as well. Follow with a damp paper towel wipe-down. Put the towel in the jar, too.
- Seal the jar, remove it from your home, and take it to your local hazardous waste depot next time you go.
- If you feel the area needs vacuuming, do so now, but throw out the bag when you’re done.
- Keep the room ventilated for a few hours and during the next several times you vacuum the area.
The post has more information on CFLs, so check it out.
Be inspired.
I met Kate through the Association of Women Journalists (AWJ) and immediately was impressed (and inspired) by her creativity, drive, work ethic and use of social media. Her passion for journalism, digital media and communications overall is evident in the projects she takes on, including LoganSquarist, an online news outlet that she founded that uses social media to socialize the neighborhood. What I admire about Kate is her vitality as well as her desire to keep learning and growing personally and professionally. Kate is a modern-day renaissance woman who is multitalented (ask about her travel, knitting and marathon exploits!) and who brings instant value to any team or organization.
Kate has been a fantastic resource for all things digital, whether redesigning my website on Wordpress, fine tuning my social media profiles, or understanding Google Analytics. She's an excellent communicator, and I will absolutely hire her again in the future.
One of the best things I've ever done in my career is work with Kate Hamilton. Her enthusiasm for all things editorial, not to mention her energy and passion for any project she's involved with, is contagious. In addition to being a natural born leader, she's also a creative type, a thinker, a stickler for details, and someone with incredible vision and the drive to get things done. I always marvel at how she is constantly teaching herself new things. She always seems to be ahead of the curve on anything related to social media, and she also has an eye for design. This lady rocks! And she continues to be a mentor to me and others in journalism and communications.
Kate did and excellent job with our website. We have received several compliments on how nice it looks and how easy it is to navigate. She also went above and beyond to make sure that we were able to update and the website ourselves through Wordpress. I cannot gush about how awesome she is and how happy we are with the site and her dedication to the project.
Kate is a real professional and a pleasure to work with. She is a great communicator and always put her client's (my company) interest first. She is tremendously personal and had a great understanding of our business and how she could help it. She is great and is a tremendous asset to any company.
Kate is a wealth of knowledge who served as a tremendous mentor for all of our team members while constantly improving processes and workflows. She’s a tremendous project manager, pays great attention to detail, and is able to demand results from her team with respect. At LoganSquarist she has built and led a team of dozens of volunteer contributors committed to her vision of a community resource. I would happily work with Kate again anytime!
I worked with Kate during my time as a community manager at Lightspan Digital while Kate was my direct manager. Kate’s communication practices really taught me how to navigate the sometimes complicated agency world. As an account manger, Kate smoothly orchestrated 10+ accounts at one time as well as help me manage and prioritize tasks in my role. Kate was a role model during my first few years in the professional world and continues to be so to this day.
Kate has an incredible amount of drive when it comes to LoganSquarist. In the six months that I’ve been involved, I’ve watched the site grow from a pet project to a respected community publication. This success can be attributed to Kate’s technical and leadership skills. From building out the site to off-hours community management and a consistent flow of content, the site improves by leaps and bounds on a weekly basis. When it comes to team management, Kate delegates tasks in an organized and efficient manner, making her an all around great and inspiring person to work with.