[hfd419]

Good morning all,

I'm new to the forum but had a question. It has been a while since doing a T12 to T8 retrofit. I had stuck in my head that if the lamp had gfreen writing or endcaps then that meant its Mercury content was low enough they could simply be thrown away.

Does anyone know if this is true? A lighting supplier looked at me in total disbelief when I mentioned it to him the other day. By the way this is based on Indiana.

 

[woodchuck2]

I honestly do not know much about them but when i had my supplier bring in a lighting consultant for a job he walked around with a tester pointing at the lights. These were all T-8's mind you but he was able to pinpoint which ballasts were upgraded and which were not. After talking with one supplier i am now pushing LED's. I can pick up a 4' LED Office light for $50 more than a 4' T-8 Office light. Seems like more money but you gain that back by not changing a ballast "with labor" in a couple yrs no less the gain in efficiency. Might better talk them right out of the T-12's and into LED's IMO. As far as ballast disposal my helper is also a junkie and he grabs everyone he can.

 

[going_commando]

The green caps mean the lamps are made by Phillips. They still should to be recycled properly.

 

[jamesgr81]

New

New lamps like T8 have a very low lead content. Recycling though, is still required in many states, can't just throw them in a landfill.

I think you're OK in Indiana to dump them but better check first...the hammer comes down if they find you dumping where it's not allowed.

 

[JBrzoz00]

I honestly do not know much about them but when i had my supplier bring in a lighting consultant for a job he walked around with a tester pointing at the lights. These were all T-8's mind you but he was able to pinpoint which ballasts were upgraded and which were not. After talking with one supplier i am now pushing LED's. I can pick up a 4' LED Office light for $50 more than a 4' T-8 Office light. Seems like more money but you gain that back by not changing a ballast "with labor" in a couple yrs no less the gain in efficiency. Might better talk them right out of the T-12's and into LED's IMO. As far as ballast disposal my helper is also a junkie and he grabs everyone he can.

I did a job where I converted most of the 8' 2 lamp T12s to 4, 4' T8s. The kit I used was from Atlas lighting i believe. It also came with a reflector and put out a lot more light than the old T12s. I agree with the LED though especially if they are on all the time. A bit more $ up from but in the ling run hopefully there will be no labor/replacement cost. Its win win in my opinion.

 

[HARRY304E]

Good morning all,

I'm new to the forum but had a question. It has been a while since doing a T12 to T8 retrofit. I had stuck in my head that if the lamp had gfreen writing or endcaps then that meant its Mercury content was low enough they could simply be thrown away.

Does anyone know if this is true? A lighting supplier looked at me in total disbelief when I mentioned it to him the other day. By the way this is based on Indiana.

Here is a link to the GE Lamp info I was talking about. It appears their that are TCLP compliant (able to be thrown away in regular trash in most states) are all marked with green etching of the logo.

http://www.geappliances.com/email/li...p_Disposal.pdf

The next link talks about TCLP compliance and disposal.

http://www.informinc.org/fs_P3tclp.pdf

 

[VinylHanger]

The green caps mean the lamps are made by Phillips. They still should to be recycled properly.

New lamps like T8 have a very low lead content. Recycling though, is still required in many states, can't just throw them in a landfill.

I think you're OK in Indiana to dump them but better check first...the hammer comes down if they find you dumping where it's not allowed.

Here's a list of States that still need recycling or special treatment. It's the same as Harry's link, but it works for me.

http://www.geappliances.com/email/lighting/specifier/downloads/A_Short_Guide_to_Lamp_Disposal.pdf