From a legal standpoint, regulation on CRTs aren't too harsh on the national level (state and county laws can and will vary so read up on those). As far as the EPA is concerned, as long as you aren't breaking them outside and aren't stockpiling them you are fine. CRTs (with both intact and busted vacuums) are NOT considered hazardous waste by the EPA as long as they are kept and transported in a covered room/container (not outside). This means that broken CRTs cannot be transported in the bed of a truck. This classified them as hazardous waste and can open you up to fines. Here is everything you need to know about CRTs as far as the EPA is concerned:
Frequent Questions: Regulation of Used Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) and CRT Glass | Wastes | US EPA
OSHA and your local environmental laws may have something else to say, however, so I'd look into those. As far as my personal ethics goes, here are my does and don'ts for CRTs:
DO:
-Use gloves when taking apart CRTs for recycling.
-Keep the plastic case intact.
-Reassemble plastic case around the CRT to make it easier and safer to transport to and for my CRT recycler.
DONT:
-Release the vacuum (under any circumstance. If I can't get what I need to get, I'll leave it as a bonus to my recycler)
-Give just the CRT to my recycler without the case (I always put the case back when recycling the CRT. It is much safer for them)
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