Many apartments still have mercury thermometers. They are familiar, and their testimonies are trusted.
Mercury thermometer
And the mercury contained in them does not cause any trouble until the thermometer breaks and mercury spills from it. It is necessary to have an idea of how to act in this case and where to dispose of the mercury thermometer.
Why mercury is dangerous
Mercury is classified as Class 1 toxic. It is unusually volatile and evaporates even at freezing temperatures. At room temperature, its evaporation rate increases many times. When inhaled, mercury vapor enters the lungs and spreads throughout the body. Its peculiarity is that it is extremely difficult to remove mercury that has entered the human body. And it brings considerable harm.
Mercury primarily affects the lungs, liver and kidneys. With high concentration and prolonged exposure, the human brain may be at risk.
Broken thermometer - how to dispose of it
If the thermometer has failed (crashed or cracked), immediate measures must be taken to dispose of it. You can’t just throw it in the bin - the consequences can be sad. But the degree of anxiety and the course of action depends on how exactly the thermometer is damaged.
Thermometer damaged, but no mercury leaked
- Prepare a hermetically sealed container in which the thermometer will fit. It is better to find a glass container - for example, a jar with a screw cap.
- First of all, it is necessary to wear rubber gloves, and carry out further actions only in them. They will protect from cuts, and if mercury still spills out, there will be no contact with it.
- Carefully inspect the entire thermometer to make sure that there is no leakage of mercury
- Carefully put the thermometer in the prepared container and close it
- Take the jar with the thermometer to the nearest point or container for disposal. In an extreme case - in a clinic or pharmacy.
Disposal container
Mercury leaked from a thermometer
If the thermometer is broken so that all or part of the mercury has leaked out, emergency measures are first required to reduce the effects of spilled metal vapors.
Broken thermometer
- Remove from the room where the spill occurred, children and animals. Liquid metal breaks up into small shiny balls that look beautiful. Children and animals will surely want to play with them. Not to mention that it is simply dangerous - they can push part of the balls into an inaccessible place.
Mercury balls
- Close all doors leading to the room. Under the door, put a rag soaked in a solution of soda.
- Open windows for airing the room. But avoid drafts. With a draft, mercury vapor will penetrate into other rooms, and the mercury balls will spread throughout the room.
Important: if the temperature in the street is higher than in the room, then it is better not to arrange ventilation. With increasing temperature, mercury vapor increases sharply.
Further actions depend on the possibility of calling specialists. In large cities, there are special mercury services that can dispose of broken thermometers. You can contact the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
If calling a specialist is not possible, then you should start collecting hazardous metal yourself. The chances of a successful cleaning will be higher if the mercury balls did not scatter throughout the room, but flowed onto a table or smooth floor. If mercury gets on the parquet or when flying over a large area, it will be difficult to collect it all.
- Wear durable rubber gloves on your hands, shoe covers on shoes and a gauze mask on your face.
Latex gloves
- This will protect against accidental contact with mercury and reduce the risk of inhalation of its vapor. It also does not hurt to change into synthetic clothing so that mercury balls cannot linger on it.
- Prepare a jar with a sealed lid and pour a little water into it. Water should be cold to reduce mercury vapor.
- If the spill of mercury is small, then this place can be fenced with a thick rope or wet rags. In case of awkward actions when collecting metal balls, they will not roll out of the fenced area.
- When collecting balls of mercury, do not touch them with your hands, even with gloves on. They should be moved with cotton swabs or tampons. You need to collect them on sheets of paper or napkins. It is useful to soak napkins with sunflower oil - the balls stick well to such a surface.
Mercury collection
- The thermometer itself and all collected mercury, along with napkins and cotton buds, should be placed in a jar of water and tightly closed with a lid
Jar of water, mercury and a cracked thermometer
- To collect small balls that have fallen into the cracks of the floor or rolled under the baseboard, you can use tape or a syringe.
Using a syringe
- All items that were used for collection, and did not fit in a container of water - shoe covers, gloves, syringes - put in a tight plastic bag and tie it tightly
- Take the container and bag to a specialized recycling center.
No matter how carefully the mercury is collected, there is no guarantee that all is collected. Therefore, even after carrying out all the actions, it is recommended to call the Ministry of Emergencies or paid organizations to check the level of mercury vapor in the apartment. Give them the collected mercury and objects in contact with it. It is advisable to dispose of everything in contact with mercury. But if there is something valuable among them, then this item must be put up for airing for several weeks.
Mercury got on difficult surfaces - carpet, upholstered furniture
If fleecy objects such as carpets, furniture, shoes are infected, then the complete elimination of the dangerous substance is impossible. It is recommended not to leave such things in the house. But just throwing them outside or in the trash is wrong. They must be immediately taken out to the street, but carefully - so that all the mercury that gets on them does not roll.
Already on the street to collect from them as many dangerous balls as possible, using all the precautions considered. If decontamination specialists are expected to arrive, then, of course, you need to entrust them with these procedures.
What can not be done with a broken thermometer
- You can’t just throw a damaged thermometer into a garbage chute, sewer or try to bury it in the ground
- Arrange drafts in an infected room
- Collect mercury with a brush or broom. With this cleaning, some of the balls will probably crumble and roll away to the side.
- Never use a vacuum cleaner! Not only because then it will definitely have to be disposed of. Vapors of mercury, and even heated in a vacuum cleaner, will be dispersed throughout the room.
In general, it is better to rely on the help of special services for mercury removal. Prior to their arrival, carry out only the most necessary actions - removing all people and animals from a dangerous place, isolate the infected room.
Ecological and human effects of mercury
The danger of improper disposal of mercury is its long-term impact on the environment and its inhabitants. Once in the soil, it is absorbed by plants, and with them it can enter the body of animals and humans. After that, it is difficult to get it out of there.
This substance can accumulate over the years, and when it reacts with acid derivatives, it forms even more toxic compounds. Its unusual ability to evaporate causes serious poisoning not only when the infected food is absorbed, but also when its poisonous fumes are inhaled.
In a person who has been exposed to mercury in one form or another, signs of poisoning may appear within a few days. With prolonged exposure to mercury poisons, dysfunction of many organs - liver, kidneys, lungs. As a result, this leads to the development of chronic diseases. If a large dose of this toxic substance enters the human body, it can lead to death. In history, many such cases are known.
It is not necessary to think that the small amount of mercury contained in the thermometer is incapable of dangerous effects. These few grams, if they are not properly removed on time, can seriously poison all those living in the infected room with their fumes.
Where should I take the mercury thermometer for disposal?
There is no complete order with the disposal of mercury thermometers and containers with collected mercury even in big cities. There are stationary points and terminals for the reception of mercury-containing items, and in Moscow and St. Petersburg there are even cars designed for the mobile collection of hazardous substances.
Old mercury thermometers must be taken there, even if they are not damaged. If similar points are not nearby or their addresses are unknown, then you should choose one of the following options:
- Call the Ministry of Emergencies. The employees of this service are able to disinfect the apartment themselves. As a last resort, they will advise on how best to cope with the infection and suggest recycling addresses.
- You can return the collected remnants of a thermometer and mercury to a clinic, sanitary epidemiological station or the nearest pharmacy
- There are paid services that carry out disinfection, accept hazardous waste and conduct analysis of indoor air after disposal.
In any case, it is worth checking the presence of mercury vapor in the room where the thermometer was broken. No matter how thoroughly the removal of the metal is carried out, there is still the possibility that part of it remains undetected. The check will detect the danger or convince of its complete absence.
Indoor mercury testing
How is the final disposal done?
After the collection of waste containing mercury, they go to the enterprises of demercurization. There, mercury is converted to a state that is not dangerous to the environment.
The thermal method consists in intensive evaporation of mercury in a specialized installation. At the end of the process, mercury vapors are trapped in cooled traps.
Mercury wastes are treated with reagents that convert pure mercury into sparingly soluble chemicals that are not toxic.
