Scams are nothing new in the Tampa area. For years and years, unscrupulous folks have been trying to cheat homeowners out of their money. And in the dead of summer, scamming is at its worst! All kinds of unsavory folks come out of the woodwork, offering false claims about electrical, lighting, and other contract work that they have no intention of actually doing.

Just a few years ago, an energy efficient LED bulb might have cost you $20 or more. But today, you may be able to get as many as six bulbs for that price, and consumers are taking notice.

LEDs were always extremely energy efficient and long lasting -- the high upfront cost was the last thing holding them back from being the obvious choice for most household lamps and fixtures. But while we waited for those prices to drop, many consumers turned to CFL bulbs -- the curly ones -- as a more affordable way to reduce their energy consumption.

Now that LEDs are so accessible, some homeowners are upgrading and wondering what to do with their collection of CFLs, some of which may have thousands of hours of light left in them.

Managing the Mercury

The primary reason why CFLs need to be handled and disposed of carefully is because each bulb contains a small amount of mercury. The mercury content is so low that you don’t need to worry excessively about health risks in the event of a broken bulb, but if thousands of CFLs pile up together in the same landfill, the combined mercury content could prove hazardous. Even in trace amounts per bulb, the risk of soil and water contamination is real.

To avoid this problem, every CFL bulb should be disposed of at a recycling facility, whether it’s broken, whole, burned out or still good.

Recycle Right

Not every recycling facility accepts CFLs. If you have curbside recycling, check the service provider’s website for information specific to CFLs. It may be that they’re able to collect and recycle these bulbs, but only if they’re packaged separately for disposal. Some facilities may require you to deliver CFLs yourself.

In addition to municipal recycling centers, CFL recycling is offered by many business, including hardware and electronics stores. If you’re looking for your nearest CFL recycling location, use Earth911’s recycling search tool.

Accidents Happen

CFLs are made of breakable glass -- a fragile barrier containing the mercury vapor within. Because of the low mercury content, you don’t need to call out the hazmat team if you accidentally break a bulb. But as a precaution, you should still treat cleanup more seriously than you would with an ordinary incandescent bulb.

If a CFL bulb breaks, immediately clear the area of people and pets. If possible, open a window or door to ventilate the room. Turn off the HVAC system so that the mercury isn’t circulated throughout the home.

When it’s time to clean up the mess, leave the vacuum behind. Like your HVAC system, it can blow the mercury vapor around your home. Instead, sweep up all the glass and bulb components into a dustpan and deposit them into a plastic bag.

Use a damp paper towel to wipe down the area, and if necessary, use sticky tape to collect small glass shards. Place all cleaning materials into the bag and seal it up. Afterward, take the bag to your nearest CFL recycling location for safe disposal.

And if you need help with more substantial lighting issues, don’t take the risk of playing with electricity alone -- call up your local, licensed electricians.

Well, it happened again. The kitchen and bath pros who make up the via www.marketwatch.com

Giant windows are great if possible. That’s a big IF, though. Sometimes, natural light isn’t an option, either because the laundry room is subterranean or otherwise windowless. Obviously, in the image below, natural light is not an option. Yet, the color temperature of the ceiling light is neutral enough to make this laundry room bearable while another, poorer lighting choice could have made this tiny laundry room annoying to visit and kind of scary.

You didn’t think I was going to avoid talking about lighting solutions just because natural light is such a great option for laundry rooms, did you? So, how should you light your laundry room? For any type of laundry room, there are some fundamental guidelines.

I’ve already suggested that you ALWAYS USE NATURAL LIGHT, when and if possible. And for your other light sources? Consider choosing lights with a Color Rendering Index (CRI) of as close to 100 as possible. A light source’s CRI is, in effect, a metric by which to compare the ability of artificial light to render color as well as the sun. 100 is the maximum CRI. Some lamps, like low-pressure sodium lamps, can actually have really low CRIs, while there are now some LED lights with CRIs of 95 – 98. If the sun isn’t shining in your laundry room, there are plenty of excellent options that closely match natural light’s ability to render color and help you keep your clothes clean and fresh as can be.

Layer your lighting.

OK, so this is the main theme in pretty much all lighting design guides. Layering your light pretty much means that you should think about general light, accent lighting, and task lighting. In the main section of a house, this might look like mini recessed ceiling lights with square bronze trim, elegant track lighting to spotlight a painting or picture, and a reading light by the chair or some under cabinet lights illuminating the bar counter. In a laundry room it might look like the image below.

Sometimes, in larger laundry rooms, you can have all three kinds of light. But, generally speaking, laundry areas are on the smaller side and are too focused on pragmatism for decorations that would benefit from accent lighting. Keep in mind that this is a generalization with exceptions galore, but, generally, the two kinds of lighting you’ll find in laundry areas are ambient overhead lighting and task lighting, and this scheme usually takes the form of a ceiling light or two and under cabinet lighting.

Creative Options.

Is it driving you crazy to charge all of your devices? Smart phones, tablets, digital music players, digital cameras and more have made many facets of life more convenient, but they come with their own complications and annoyances as well. For one thing, all those devices need their batteries charged, sometimes every day, and it can be quite a pain to keep track of all the cords and adapters. Fortunately, with a little DIY talent or the help of an electrician, you can install combo outlets in your walls with built-in USB ports, making it easier to charge your gadgets wherever you’re at home.

Out with the Old, in with the New

To install a USB outlet, you need to buy an outlet kit from your local hardware store or from an online retailer. You can find various options with two or four USB ports combined with one or two traditional power outlets. If you are comfortable doing simple electrical work, you can probably install the outlet yourself; otherwise, an electrician can do the work and have you up and running quickly.

If you are a DIYer, the first step is to turn off the power to the circuit you are working with. After you turn the switch off at the circuit breaker, make sure you test the outlet with a light or other appliance before you proceed to make sure it doesn't have any current. Next, you'll need to remove the old outlet with a screwdriver and disconnect the wiring. Then, simply connect your new outlet, carefully following the manufacturer instructions. It's extremely important that you reconnect all the wires properly, including the ground wire.

Convenience and Simplicity for Your Devices

Once the new outlet is wired up and screwed into the wall, flip the circuit back on and you should be good to go. Give the new USB outlet a test drive with your phone or tablet, and then sit back and enjoy the convenience and simplicity. Unfortunately, you still need to have an appropriate cord around to take advantage of the USB outlet, but at least you can do away with the cumbersome adapter. That frees up space, since adapters are often so bulky that they cover multiple outlets even though they only use one. Plus, the built-in USB ports limit the electrical current to whatever amount is required to charge the device.

You don't need combo outlets everywhere you have a plug, but if you put them in highly-traveled areas like the kitchen, office and bedroom, you will have easy access to their charging power whenever you need it. Those readers who enjoy perusing their phones in the bathroom can even put a combo outlet by the sink – just make sure you don't get water on your device!

Recharge Your Life with the Help of an Electrician

If you need any help installing or upgrading outlets in your home, call an expert electrician today.