CFL bulbs not what cracked up to be

I read Sandra Kaptain’s letter in support of going green, which is fine, but I think we should consider where we go green. There is more to say about the CFL light bulbs.

The mercury in the bulb is a small amount, but that mercury adds up quickly when the nation is using millions of the bulbs a year. These bulbs are almost entirely made in China, and already hundreds of Chinese light bulb factory workers have suffered mercury poisoning.

They don’t last as long as we are told. A quarter of them lose power and dim after about 40 percent of their life span.

If one breaks in your home, follow the EPA guidelines: People and pets leave the room; do not walk through the debris; open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes and shut off the AC or heat. On hard surfaces you do not vacuum or sweep it up. Carpeting is another story.

I was in a big box store and a woman reported that she broke a bulb and called the EPA, which came in and cleaned her house of mercury, and she later got a bill of between $2,500 and $3,000. I doubt that $40 savings did little to comfort her.

They have been known to catch fire when hung upside down in recessed lighting and they can switch on anything that uses an infrared remote control or sensor, like your TV changer or cellphone. The cause the dyes in expensive fabrics and paintings to decay.

If you turn them on and off too often, the ballasts will decay. Dimmers kill them quickly and outside temperature ranges make them burn out.

They produce constant ultraviolet and blue light, which can aggravate skin rashes. Exposure to mercury in children can have severe neurological consequences and is particularly toxic to fetuses and infants.

Robert Chmela

Elgin