At 11:29 AM -0500 05/28/2005, Claire Hart wrote:
Having read the posts on what to do with old CRTs and also the
dangers of photon beams zapping out of the ray guns and getting us
all, I am left with questions on two trains of thought:
(1) Is it wiser to buy a flat-panel monitor? Are we safer? Are
our kids safer? They spend quite a bit of time in front of those
monitors (both are gamers, and one is a design communications major,
so he's going to be in front of computer screens for a LONG time).
Should I consider replacing my sons' CRTs for flat-panels? (I'm on
a PowerBook.)
In the old days, CRTs were mostly "plain glass". So they did radiate
forward a quite bit -- that's why yer mom told you to not sit so
close to the TV. But modern CRTs have a lot of lead (shielding) in
the glass, and much much better masks (the thing that you see between
pixels if you look real close), so the radiation leakage is minimal.
The radiation is ruled by the inverse-square law. That means it
falls off very very quickly as you move away from the screen. Bottom
line: If you sit more than two feet away from the screen, I wouldn't
worry about it.
Of far greater concern, for both CRT and LCD, is eye strain in
general. Staring at any type of monitor for long hours is tuff on
the eyes! Reducing the brightness and adjusting the contrast can
make a big diff. And try a longer keyboard cable, so you can sit
farther away from the screen.
Also keep in mind that there are still specific uses for CRTs. If
you're into serious graphics or video work, CRTs currently have much
better color reproduction and response (faster frame rate). LCDs are
improving, but they're not there yet. Well, ok. I saw one LCD that
had what I consider pro-quality color reproduction. But it was
$22,000. :)
(2) Is CRT recycling actually a for-profit possibility? I am not
close to Oregon, so it would be hard for me to ship my CRTs.
However, would this be a viable start-up business option? How would
one learn how to properly & safely dismantle, sort, and ship these
things?
There are a number of companies that recycle equipment for profit.
Due to the extensive environmental laws and regulations, I think it
would be very risky start-up!
FWIW,
- Dan.
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