Home Depot no longer recycling CFL bulbs

[Donald]

Home Depot use to have a recycle container for CFL bulbs and another for NiCad batteries. Now that people are going full steam for LED would seem the right time to collect CFL. Same with NiCad going out and LiIon coming in. So what gives. This was in Pittsfield MA.

 

[JC1]

What about Lowe's? It's probably head office telling them to stop. Does your local municipality allow you to drop them off for free?

 

[Donald]

Around here hazordus waste is once per year and they skipped 2015. I got rid of about 20 gallons of old gas and a large 250watt spotlight from church that said it contained mercury.

 

[crazyoildude]

Never thought of it i would have just thrown them away..

 

[Warstud]

Yea...it sucks. Were supposed to recycle but can't find anyone to take it. Maybe try googling "recycling".

 

[bioburner]

Our county has a recycle center that's open on a limited basis. Bulb, batteries and oil are free. Idiot boxes are 25 cents a pound. That old plasma is going to hurt.

 

[tomcat27]

they contain mercury - which is hazardous to breath the vapors; or have it enter our water. it is very difficult to properly get rid of these, and 4 (or 8) foot fluorescants are near impossible. You can purchase expensive disposal kits.....

at work we have a vacuum/vapor contained/filtered grinder to reduce the bulbs to dust and capture the mercury. I don't understand why more municipalities don't have this (if we can afford one at work - and we are a non-profit)

 

[umungus1122]

Originally Posted By: tomcat27
they contain mercury - which is hazardous to breath the vapors; or have it enter our water. it is very difficult to properly get rid of these, and 4 (or 8) foot fluorescants are near impossible. You can purchase expensive disposal kits.....

at work we have a vacuum/vapor contained/filtered grinder to reduce the bulbs to dust and capture the mercury. I don't understand why more municipalities don't have this (if we can afford one at work - and we are a non-profit)
4" bulbs go right in the garbage truck or dumpster. That's how residences and stores dispose of them here. No special handling needed.

 

[Doc8404]

https://www.epa.gov/cfl/recycling-and-disposal-cfls.

The cleanup always amazes me. How did we survive?

https://www.epa.gov/cfl/cleaning-broken-cfl

 

[JC1]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Around here hazordus waste is once per year and they skipped 2015. I got rid of about 20 gallons of old gas and a large 250watt spotlight from church that said it contained mercury.


That's ridiculous. At least up here hazardous household items, motor oil and anything else vehicle related and electronics are free for disposal. We do pay an eco fee on TVs which helps to pay for that.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: JC1
Originally Posted By: Donald
Around here hazordus waste is once per year and they skipped 2015. I got rid of about 20 gallons of old gas and a large 250watt spotlight from church that said it contained mercury.


That's ridiculous. At least up here hazardous household items, motor oil and anything else vehicle related and electronics are free for disposal. We do pay an eco fee on TVs which helps to pay for that.


Used motor isle is not a problem. Old gas is a big problem.

 

[dave123]

Just chuck them in the trash like the rest of us.

 

[Doc8404]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Around here hazordus waste is once per year and they skipped 2015. I got rid of about 20 gallons of old gas and a large 250watt spotlight from church that said it contained mercury.


Where exactly are you? My county excepts most of this all the time

 

[dmdx86]

Yeah, it's tough to get rid of HazMat around here. The county has a waste collection depot but it's open only like a couple times a month for an hour at a time. Tough to make it out there.

I have a stash of CFLs and traditional fluorescent tubes that are waiting for disposal. I've resigned myself to just throwing them in a corner in my attic..

 

[bubbatime]

You know, your neighbors have thrown away millions of these things in their regular trash. You saving two or three for recycle is not going to make a difference.

 

[stephen9666]

Hey OP,

Did they tell you they weren't accepting them anymore or are you assuming because the bins weren't where they used to be?

Googling doesn't show anything saying HD is stopping the program. They still say they take them on the HD website.

 

[Bebop]

Most communities have some kind of collection center. It is usually operated by waste service that operates in your city. I have one near me that opens twice a week. That's where I dump my used oil and other stuff.

 

[Leo99]

I just throw them in the trash. Every time I throw one away because it burnt out, I'm always thinking that the bulb was supposed to outlast me. Ha! You stupid bulb.

 

[JHZR2]

At my HD, despite being clearly marked "CFL Only", the non-english speakers/illiterates drop off full size tubes all the time. Im sure HD will pull this courtesy if idiots abuse it.

 

[Panzerman]

I ve smashed the florescent lights and throw them away my whole life. Bad gas I dump on my firewood to burn camping. Of course I ve also dumped used motor oil on dirt roads to keep dust down as a kids. Had it all over me from splashing out on the road. Surprised I don't have cancer-right.
The world lived this long because all that environmental bull is just that. Guess what, the planet is going to do what it's going to do and we all are going to die anyway.