Bulb Eater

The lamps are separated into glass, metal, and mercury. Once the glass and metal are clean of the mercury, they can be recycled to make new products. The mercury-bearing phosphor powder is retorted and distilled to separate the pure mercury and phosphor powder for re-use. 

Machine Benefits

• Eliminate storage hassles - Reduce your needed storage space for lamps by crushing up to 1350 T8 4' lamps per 55-gallon drum (The Bulb Eater® lamp crusher crushes all length lamps, see a picture to better visualize size reduction).
• Reduce handling - Handle your spent bulbs once. Simply roll your Bulb Eater® lamp crushing system on a 55-gallon drum dollie (sold separately) to the work area or into a storage area. Save roughly 20 hours of labor per 1000 lamps by crushing rather than boxing the lamps!
• Safer work environment - EPA studies show an estimated 2-3% accidental breakage rate while boxing lamps prior to pickup. The 0.001% emission rate from the Bulb Eater® lamp crushing system provides for less mercury vapor emission. Your workers are not only safer, but your liability is reduced!
• Cut costs - By pre-crushing the lamps, facilities are able to save money on their lamp recycling costs. Savings are typically anywhere from a dime to $1 per lamp!
• Nationwide recycling program - Enjoy "special" discounted national rates for lamp recycling. Fully permitted trucks are used for transportation and Certificates of Recycling are provided once the lamps are recycled.

Extended Description

The Bulb Eater® 3 is the next generation of Bulb Eater® Lamp Crusher which crushes spent fluorescent lamps of any length into 100% recyclable material while capturing over 99.99% of the vapors released. The system, which is mounted onto a 55-gallon container, can hold up to 1359 4-foot fluorescent lamps

The Bulb Eater® 3 lamp crusher unit is equipped with a side-mounted dust filter unit containing the highest quality HEPA filter available. This works in conjunction with an activated carbon filter located in a steel canister. The activated carbon filter actively captures and neutralized the mercury vapor released from the lamps during crushing. A recent study showed non-detectable levels of escaped mercury vapor even after crushing 1500 lamps (Bulb Eater® 3 Air Emissions Report). The Bulb Eater® 3 features a new 5 stage filter system, a digital control with LCD display, self-diagnostic fault codes, and a higher motor speed for increased lamp waste per drum.

In addition to providing OSHA and ACGIH compliance, the Bulb Eater® 3 lamp crusher frees up valuable storage space normally filled with boxes of spent whole lamps, reduces handling and related labor costs, and typically cuts recycling costs by 50% or more.

Technical Specs

Type: Bulb Eater® 3 with Intelli Technology

Capacity of 4' T12 Lamps¹: 875 

Capacity of 4' T12 U-Tube Lamps¹: 450

Capacity of 4' T17 Lamps¹: 300

Capacity of 4' T8 Lamps¹: 1350

Capacity of 8' T12 Lamps¹: 400

Capacity of CFL Lamps¹: 3000

Description/Special Features: Single model that crushes linear, CFL, and U-tube lamps
Lower angle entry tube, cyclone separator, five Stage filter system
No casual connections of hoses
On board controls with Intelli Technology

Includes: T12 Entry Tube, Filter Installed, Spinner Assembly and Carbon Canister, CFL/U-Tube chute sold separately, Drum Not included

Material of Construction: Steel, Plastic and Rubber

Compliance: *Only available in the Continental US (48 states), Canada, & District of Columbia.  Not Available in CA, MN, MO, ME, VT, NH, CT, RI, PA and WV.

¹Individual experience may vary.

CFL Lamps and T5, T8, T12 Lamps