How to Dispose of Light Bulbs

Light bulbs. Everyone uses them. Everyone discards them.

People should be concerned with 2 things when disposing of light bulbs:

  1. The glass that encases the filament or heated substance
  2. The substance inside the light bulb that creates the light

Either of these can cause harm if not disposed of correctly.

Basic Light Bulb Types and Their Disposal

Every light bulb has a correct disposal method.

How to Dispose of Incandescent Light Bulbs

Incandescent light bulbs used to be the most common residential light bulbs in use. Incandescent light bulbs are contained in a glass dome and work by passing electricity through a metal filament that in turn creates light. More energy efficient light bulbs are supplanting incandescent light bulbs.

The internal workings of incandescent bulbs usually don't contain dangerous chemicals, but they do create a risk of harm through broken glass. Exceptions include incandescent bulbs that are coated with chemicals internally to soften or diffuse light.

To dispose of an incandescent light bulb: Incandescent bulbs should be disposed of with other the household trash. But make sure that the bulb doesn't break . You don't want someone injured because they're interacting with your trash. 

  1. Be careful when you remove burnt out incandescent light bulbs. Don't break the glass bulb.
  2. Before putting the bulb in the trash, place the cooled bulb into a plastic bag or container. That way it won't break in the trash while it's being moved.

How to Dispose of Fluorescent Light Bulbs

How To Dispose of Light BulbsFluorescent light bulbs are more common in offices and retail business. Fluorescent lights pass a current through a long glass tube containing argon and mercury to create ultraviolet radiation. That radiation reacts with the phosphorous coating inside the glass tube to create light.

To dispose of a fluorescent light bulbs: Fluorescent light bulbs contain contain dangerous chemicals. Do not dispose of fluorescent light bulbs in normal trash receptacles. 

  1. Do not bend, break, or modify fluorescent bulbs prior to disposal. Store burned out fluorescent light bulbs safely in containers designed for fluorescent bulbs. Most fluorescent bulbs arrive in cardboard containers designed for their transport. These work great for disposal purposes too.
  2. Transport the used fluorescent bulbs to your community hazardous waste or recycling location. Individuals at these sites have specific methods for dealing with consumer products that have the potential to harm sanitation workers or animals.

How to Dispose of Compact Fluorescent Lamps

Compact fluorescent lamps use a technology similar to fluorescent light. CFLs have all the benefits of fluorescent lights, including low energy emission, but they're the same size as a traditional incandescent light bulb. CFLs are also more efficient than incadescent light bulbs, providing light for 10,000 hours instead of just 1000 hours. CFLs come in a short duo of glass tubes or a trio of spiral glass tubes. CFLs contain argon and mercury, in the same way that fluorescent light bulbs do.

To dispose of compact cluorescent camps: Because CFL bulbs contain the same chemical and physical hazards of their larger fluorescent bulbs, just on a smaller scale, the same precautions should be used in their disposal: 

  1. CFL bulbs should not be disposed of in normal household or business trash.
  2. Local recycling and hazardous waste disposal facilities should be utilized to assure that no consumers, sanitation workers, or animals are injured from glass or exposure to hazardous chemicals.

Disposing of Light Bulbs - A Final Thought

Who knew that disposing of light bulbs required so much care and thought? But if you want to be safe (and be a good citizen), then you'll pay close attention to the guidelines for disposing of light bulbs we've offered above.

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