recentlyi have heard about houshold cfl's having about the same amount of mercury in them as a thermometer, which has detered me slightly from using them for my next grow. this leads me to belive if a cfl pops over your crops it would probably be a good idea to discard said crop due to contamination, i don't knoe about you but i don't think it woud be a v good idea to smoke weed with a hint of mercury.

do you know anything about this, possibly using acrilic or glass to protect those presious buds from any mishaps. or could ice washing (bubble bags etc) help get rid of any chemical contamination should the worst happen

dr.gt

never heard of them popping
they're actually touchable when running
did u know?

don think they'll pop all of sudden

It's been my experience that when they 'pop'.... or go out, that they do just that... go out. I have accidently busted one once due to handling while it was still warm, it had some white powder in it..... so I laced me up a J and let'er rip.... okay so no, I'd never do that.....
Point is, I don't think you have anything to worry about... unless of course you break one over your buds and start shaking it about trying to sprinkle the goodness around... hehe.... just be careful, don't handle 'em when they're warm.

G'luck mate

ah, your starting to put my mind at ease. i have accidentally broke a household one when changin it, but i have heard of them poping for no apparent reason rather than just burning out. i'd be interested to know what (micron) size the dust particals contained in cfl's actually are... you know, if it does happen and i have a shitload of white dut on my buds:(

i dont know how much this will help, quoted it from... http://www.gelighting.com/na/home_lighting...q_compact.htm...

"What should I do if a CFL breaks?
Because there is such a small amount of mercury in CFLs, your greatest risk if a bulb breaks is getting cut from glass shards. Research indicates that there is no immediate health risk to you or your family should a bulb break and it's cleaned up properly. You can minimize any risks by following these proper clean-up and disposal guidelines:

Sweep up—don't vacuum—all of the glass fragments and fine particles.
Place broken pieces in a sealed plastic bag and wipe the area with a damp paper towel to pick up any stray shards of glass or fine particles. Put the used towel in the plastic bag as well.
If weather permits, open windows to allow the room to ventilate."

i have broken 1 before and no powdery substance went any where it just stank real bad and weird,

i had one pop last year ...scared the beejeebus out of me ..it was just as i opened the grow box up ..didnt actually break fully and shatter just had a crack at the base of it ..it had been on 24/7 for a couple of weeks (but it had been used for a couple of years prior ) i removed all plants and washed them down with warm water straight from the tap just in case and then put them back after an hour of leaving them outside in the breeze ..seemed ok no powder on em or anything