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Recycling Fluorescent
Lamps
 A
major challenge for facilities across the country has been
recycling spent fluorescent lamps. Recently, Colorado State
University, found a solution to their recycling problems in
the form of a device that made their problems history—the
Bulb Eater®, from Air Cycle Corporation of Broadview,
Illinois.
“The bulbs are brought to a specific location. I send one
person over there for a couple hours a week to crush the
tubes. It’s very quick and efficient, and I don’t have to
waste so much time trying to load a truck,” says Sheela
Backen, Integrated Solid Waste Program Manager at Colorado
State University.
This OSHA and EPA-compliant machine crushes over 1,000
fluorescent lamps (amount depends on size of lamps) and
packs them into a 55-gallon drum. The process is fully
enclosed and filtered, so that the glass, aluminum, and
harmful vapors are contained. When full, the drums are
picked up and transported to an EPA permitted lamp recycling
facility where the contents are separated, treated, and
ultimately reused. Backen utilizes their easy-to-use online
scheduling to arrange the drum pickup, and has been able to
reduce the needed labor from six to eight personnel down to
one.
For more information about the Bulb Eater, contact Air
Cycle at (800) 909-9709 or
www.aircycle.com. For more information about the
pre-paid EasyPak program, call (888)640-6700 or go to
www.LampRecycling.com.
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