My free compact fluorescent bulb from Yahoo arrived broken. How do I dispose of it safely?
Answer:
Stick it in a plastic bag and leave it outdoors or in a garage. Call your municipality and see if they have a special program for disposing of fluorescent bulbs (the regular long fluorescents contain 2-10 times as much mercury as a CFL, and are a much bigger problem). If not, put it in the trash.
The amount of mercury in a CFL is tiny, .005 grams or less, less than 1% of what's in a mercury thermometer.). It's not likely that you were exposed to much.
Throw it in the trash.
Most any store that sells them will properly dispose of them. For best results, contact a hardware store like Lowe's or home depot, or maybe an electronics store like circuit city or best buy.
Put it back into the package it came in and send it back to Yahoo...collect!
Many cities have disposals for the fluorescent tubes, simply take it there. If you are not sure, call your city or town and speak to whomever is in charge of recycling. If (sadly) there is no recycling program, this is a wonderful time to broach the subject with the city council and get one started.
Being second generation born into an electrical family, I can tell you that a small amount of the vapors will not hurt you (I know this from experience!)
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