The mercury thermometer in the apartment broke: what to do at home, where to put mercury? Is mercury dangerous from a broken thermometer: the consequences

The thermometer broke - a catastrophe of "apartment" scale with possible severe consequences. The article describes all the actions for self-elimination of mercury at the household level.

Mercury is a dangerous substance that belongs to the toxins of hazard class 1.

What is the risk of mercury from the thermometer? Mercury - the symptoms of

In the 19th century, mercury was used in the manufacture of felt for hats, and the eccentric behavior of hatter-makers became the source of many anecdotes and ridiculous stories. Over time, when the source of deterioration of the mental and physical health of haters was identified, chronic poisoning with mercury vapor was called "hatter's disease".

Interesting fact. Lewis Carroll created the image of his hero - the Mad Hatter - after studying the anamnesis of real patients-hatsmen of one of the medical institutions.

Symptoms of hatter disease:

• uncontrolled rhythmic hand movement( tremor of hands),
• sharp mood swings: from depressive states to joy,
• obsessions,
• worsening general physical condition, including dysfunction of the heart, kidneys, lungs.

In science for "hatterness" there is a term - "Mercury"( in the table of chemical elements, mercury is listed as Mercury).

The risk to get acquainted with the symptoms of mercury exists for all:

• having in the home medicine cabinet a usual medical thermometer,
• tonometer with mercury,
• using fluorescent lamps.

If a glass capsule breaks, mobile mercury balls break free, you panic looking for the answer to the question: "What to do? !"

What if the mercury thermometer was broken at home?

Do not ignore the incident!

Calm down, act quickly and comprehensively.

Step 1 .Take the children, the elderly and pets out of the room and open the windows.

Important! Do not arrange a through ventilation! A draft can disperse mercury balls around the room!

Step 2 .Prepare a solution of potassium permanganate.

It is prepared as follows:

• 2 g of potassium permanganate powder( "manganese") dissolve in a small amount of hot water.
• Add 1 liter of cold water to the obtained potassium permanganate concentrate and 1 tablespoon of normal table vinegar.
• Stir thoroughly.

Reference : 1 teaspoon of "potassium permanganate" powder is 15 g.

Important: Dissolved crystals of potassium permanganate, getting on the skin and mucous, can cause a burn!

In addition, for demercurization( mercury removal) you will need:

• glass jar with a tight lid. The jar should be partially filled with ordinary water,
• rubber pear( syringe) or medical syringe,
• wide adhesive tape.

Step 3 .Wear a damp gauze dressing and rubber gloves. Replace gloves and shoe covers can be plastic bags or polyethylene stretch film.

Important. The dressing should be wet, not wet! Step 4 .Collect mercury.

How much mercury is in the thermometer?

Remember : in the medical thermometer there is only 2 g of toxic substance.

How to collect mercury from a broken thermometer from the floor?

What can not be done?

• Touching mercury balls with unprotected hands
• Stepping on mercury
• Sweeping with a broom or brush
• Vacuuming with a vacuum cleaner

The easiest and most effective way to self-demercurize is with an adhesive tape.

• Gently glue an adhesive tape 20 cm long on the surface with mercury balls and fragments of a thermometer.

• Remove the adhesive tape with a smooth slow motion, avoiding sharp jerks of the tape.
• Tape the adhesive tape gently in a lump and place in a jar of water.

The operation should be repeated several times until you collect all the relatively large mercury balls.

Small balls can be collected using a pear or syringe.

Important : Use the pear properly. Do not press it like a pump, but only suck in air with mercury.

If the metal ball is rolled out of the container, try narrowing the hole with a needle.

Once the first ball is "caught" - send it to a jar of water. When all the mercury is collected, seal the jar tightly with a plastic lid. Place the can in a cool dark place.

Thoroughly rinse the floor with a solution of potassium permanganate with a tissue wipe( wash the floor with this solution for several days).

Wipe napkins, gloves, shoe covers in a hermetically sealed container and pour a demercurization solution of potassium permanganate( water-manganese solution) .

Important: Do not use additional chemicals for wet cleaning after demercurization!

Where to throw out a mercury thermometer?

Collected mercury, container with gloves and other objects in contact with mercury balls, take it to the mercury intake point. The address of the item can be found in the department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.

Important! !! Do not dispose of water with mercury in the sewer or in the yard! Do not throw a can of mercury into the trash can!

What should I do if the thermometer is broken on the carpet?

Video at the end of the article " Deadly mistakes in the collection of mercury . How to collect mercury correctly! "will tell you how to remove mercury from the carpet without compromising your health.
After cleaning the mercury:

• roll the carpet from the edges to the center,

• is packed as tightly as possible into the plastic film, remove the
• from the living area.

Important! !! Things that come in contact with mercury are subject to delivery to the "Reception point for mercury-containing waste"!

Where to put mercury from a broken thermometer? Disposal of mercury from thermometer

1. Assemble mercury in the manner described above.
2. Fill the location of mercury balls with a solution of potassium permanganate.

To slow down the process of releasing mercury vapor, a soapy-soda solution also helps. To prepare it you will need:

• 1 liter of hot water
• 30 g of
• soda 40 g of grated soap

All components thoroughly mix until the soap is dissolved. Treat the solution with a localization site for mercury( after the mercury is collected! ).

3. Gently collect the bedding( collect, turning from the edges to the center to stop the rolling of small balls) and place it in a dense cellophane bag.
4. Call representatives of the Ministry of Emergency Situations( telephone number "01").

How long should I ventilate the room where the mercury thermometer broke?

IMPORTANT: The room where the mercury device crashed after the demercurization should be ventilated for 7 days.

If this is a dwelling, staying in it should be limited to children and the elderly.

Is it dangerous to keep a broken thermometer at home?

Many people consider talking about the dangers of mercury with an empty shock of air. It always recalls childhood and stories about mercury balls, constantly rolling in drawers of a desk or about pranks with the substitution of coins.
The conclusion of all these stories is one: all the childhood lost with mercury and is still alive!

However, no one talks about the general deterioration of the environment, which leads to a deterioration in the health of not only adults but also children. The world around us is full of toxic plastic, poisoned water, genetically modified products.

Weak human immunity is difficult to bear the impact of mercury vapor.

How quickly does mercury evaporate from a broken thermometer?

Important: : At the maximum allowable concentration of mercury vapor in the atmosphere of 300 ng / m³, within a few minutes after breaking the thermometer this value grows to 4783 ng / m³

Fact : 2 g mercury evaporates and pollutes 6000 m³ of air.

Mercury poisoning from thermometer: symptoms and signs

Mercury is a very volatile substance. Metal vapors, together with air, enter the lungs. Then, about 80% of the poisonous substance along with the blood penetrate into all organs of the body and poison the body.

As a result, a person feels:

• nausea
• difficulty in breathing
• joint pain
• headaches
• weakness, etc.

Mercury poisoning requires urgent hospitalization of : mercury does not spare the central nervous system and the kidneys.

Is it dangerous to keep a broken thermometer at home? Science claims: it's dangerous!

Where to go if the thermometer broke?

1. "Extraordinary" number, familiar from childhood "01"
2. City Emergency Rescue Service
3. Urban Sanitary and Epidemiological Station

Video: Deadly mistakes in mercury collection. How to collect mercury correctly!

Video: How does mercury destroy brain neurons?