by Cindy Rhodes
Recycling Made Easy
BulbGuy Lighting will recycle your light bulbs for you. That’s right. If you own or manage a commercial business in central Iowa, BulbGuy will come pick up all those bulbs you have stashed away in a corner of your storage room, and we will recycle them for you. There’s just a small fee for this service, but isn’t it worth it to take the guess work out of your life?
Recycling light bulbs can be complicated for anyone to understand. There’s so many light bulb types and styles, and all of the information online about recycling them is still confusing. You need to drop off certain types of light bulbs in hazardous waste bins. It all depends on whether or not that specific type of light bulb contains Mercury.
What is Mercury?
The Earth provides us with Mercury, which is a natural element found in rock. Mercury is an essential component in fluorescent lighting. When you turn the light bulb on, the Mercury turns into a vapor, which becomes a poisonous gas, and the chemical reaction it makes turns on the light. As long as the Mercury is contained, it is safe for you to be near this gas. However, improper disposal of fluorescent bulbs can cause this poisonous form of Mercury to release into our atmosphere.
The most common fluorescent light bulb used in commercial buildings contains 3-4mg of Mercury. A typical 5 story office building may replace 1,000 of these fluorescent light bulbs over the course of 1 year. When people throw fluorescent light bulbs into a landfill, it causes the contamination of soil and local drinking water. Instead, you should recycle fluorescent light bulbs. Recycling centers take these bulbs through a special treatment to safely release the leftover Mercury.
BulbGuy Lighting will recycle your bulbs for you. Call us to schedule a pick up at (515) 777-2765.
Other Types of Light Bulbs to Recycle
Fluorescent light bulbs are not alone in their need for Mercury. Metal halide and high pressure sodium light bulbs also contain Mercury, and you should recycle them for the safe removal of Mercury, as well as for the glass and metal these bulbs contain.