Ballast disposal

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kbsparky

kbsparky

Senior Member
Location
Delmarva, USA
We are considering doing a project where several hundred existing flourescent fixtures have to be removed and disposed. These fixtures were installed when the building was built, circa 1960's
A check of the labeling on some of the fixtures' ballasts does not reveal the wording "does not contain PCB's" or similar such wording as one might find today.

I know that many early fluorescent ballasts had PCB's in them, something that is now considered a hazardous substance and requires expensive disposal procedures.

My questions are twofold:

First -- how can one tell if these ballasts do contain the dreaded PCB's ...

and

Second -- what has been your experience in dealing with and disposing of them?

Edited to correct date
 
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We have this thing called a "Bulb Eater". It crushes various sizes of fluorescent lamps into a 55 gallon drum. It has a hepa filter on it to remove any dust or powder after the lamps have been destroyed. The company then picks up the drums when the are full and takes them away for disposal. We crush a lot of lamps, I'm talking thousands a year and the dervice is very good. As far as the ballasts, I would have to refer to the state or local ordinances on that one.

http://www.aircycle.com/products/be55vrsu/
 
On a project like this, we might have to provide positive documentation that the ballasts were properly disposed of.

While throwing a few into various dumpsters and trash bins here and there might be one solution, the lack of proper documentation might prove to be difficult to explain later on. This is the era of ligitation with environmentalist whackos out there.:mad:

Thanks for the links, we are checking this out.


Edit to correct spelling
 
I can skid up stacks of old ballasts and return them to the supply house. They have vendors that can dispose of them for me (for 1 dollar per ballast) and provide me with Certificate of Disposal.
 
mdshunk said:
I can skid up stacks of old ballasts and return them to the supply house. They have vendors that can dispose of them for me (for 1 dollar per ballast) and provide me with Certificate of Disposal.
Click to expand...
NOW you're talking some sense. :smile:

Which suppliers perform this service? Hagemeyer, Rexel, or ?
 
i know that rexel has a ballast and bulb disposal program; i'm sure a lot of other supply houses do to. you just need to check w/ the ones in your area. they should be able to help you out.
 
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