How To Minimize Health & Safety Risks of Used Fluorescent Lamps: Handling

Following the proper clean-up and disposal policies is necessary in ensuring the safety of people who handle fluorescent lamps, as well as those in close proximity to them. However, proper disposal of used lamps is not as simple as dropping them in a recycling bin. Lamps must be carefully removed and handled, as well as stored and transported in a package proven to contain mercury vapor. Specific precautions should be taken during each of the following steps: Handling, Storage, Transport, Recycling and Breakage.

Handling:

Mercury vapor—which can get into water, contaminating fish and entering the human food chain—can cause neurological damage to adults, children and fetuses. To avoid these issues, lamps should be carefully installed and uninstalled by maintenance professionals. Anyone handling a fluorescent bulb should take caution, as these lamps are fragile and can shatter easily.

Find out next week how to carefully store fluorescent lamps.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC