A thermometer for measuring body temperature is a medical device that every family has today. It is primarily used to determine in what condition the patient, whether it is time to give him antipyretics, how the body is struggling with the disease. In the vast majority of cases, a mercury thermometer is used. Sooner or later, it will inevitably break. When a thermometer crashes in an apartment, the consequences can be very unpleasant and even dangerous. In the article we will talk about safety rules when using a thermometer, what problems it presents in a broken form, how to find out signs of poisoning, provide first aid, how to behave if this has already happened.
Safety regulations
You need to understand: when a thermometer crashes in an apartment, the consequences can become so serious that it can affect the health of all family members. To prevent this, everything should be done so that this does not happen.
Always remember that you should treat a mercury thermometer with special care. Inside it is a deadly chemical. Mercury in contact with the human body can cause serious damage. If you still crashed a thermometer in the apartment, you should clearly understand how to act in such a situation.
Do not worry too much about this. Thermometers fight with enviable regularity, if everything is done correctly, following the recommendations exactly, it will be possible to do without serious consequences. The main thing is to be prepared for any troubles.
To begin, remember the main rules for handling mercury thermometers:
- A thermometer is not a toy. Children should not be allowed to play with him, even just held in their hands, not being under your supervision.
- Store the mercury thermometer in a durable case, out of the reach of children.
- "Knocking down" the temperature from the thermometer, be careful. Beware of solid objects located nearby; do not handle it with wet hands. This will prevent impact and slipping.
- Have the baby measure the temperature when he is under your supervision. The kid can forget about the thermometer, in addition, children are known for their injustice.
What is the danger?
When a mercury thermometer in an apartment crashes, the consequences can be very dangerous. You must understand what to expect. The mercury contained in the thermometer is considered to be especially dangerous to humans. In fact, it is a poison with a cumulative property.
It is a metal unique in nature, since at ordinary temperature it remains in a liquid state. It begins to evaporate, emitting poisons, at a temperature of +18 degrees. This is the main danger when a mercury thermometer in an apartment crashes.
Exceeding concentration limit
As a rule, this medical device contains from 2 to 5 g of mercury. If all of it evaporates in a room of a standard area, the concentration of vapor of this metal in the room will reach 100 mg per cubic meter. This is three hundred thousand times the maximum permissible concentration of mercury for residential premises.
Of course, these are only theoretical calculations, since ventilation will not allow the metal to reach such a concentration, but it will still be very high. In addition, all mercury from a thermometer can only evaporate at a very high temperature.
As a result, if no action is taken when the thermometer in the apartment crashes, the concentration of this substance is 50-100 times higher than normal. This is also pretty serious.
If a thermometer crashes in an apartment, the consequence, which is considered one of the most dangerous, is that this metal has the ability to concentrate in the human body. Moreover, symptoms can be felt after a long time, which will make diagnosis extremely difficult. By that time, the incident with a broken thermometer could be forgotten.
Signs
When a thermometer crashes in an apartment, the consequences of mercury poisoning lead to certain symptoms. You need to know about them in order to diagnose in time, to provide effective and timely help.
From medical guides you can find out that paralysis, radical changes in the vital systems and the functioning of internal organs, and death can occur as a result of mercury poisoning. But if a person just breathes in pairs of this metal, one should not expect such serious complications.
In this case, the symptoms will be as follows:
- general weakness of the body;
- taste of metal in the mouth;
- vomiting and nausea;
- discomfort when swallowing;
- headache;
- loss of appetite.
With the untimely provision of the necessary medical care, the symptoms can intensify. In this case, you may see:
- loose stools with blood or mucous discharge;
- blood on the gums;
- discomfort in the abdomen;
- high temperature, up to 40 degrees.
In such a situation, it is necessary to immediately call an ambulance so that the patient is hospitalized. If doctors do not help him, the result can be sad, right up to the death of a person.
Especially should be wary of mercury vapor poisoning by pregnant women and children. In the fair sex, expecting a baby, this can cause intrauterine damage to the fetus. In children, even with short-term inhalation of mercury, fatal kidney problems can begin.
So both children and pregnant women who were in a room with a broken thermometer should definitely consult a doctor to make sure that everything went without serious consequences.
First aid
If mercury poisoning has occurred, it is important to provide first aid in order to minimize the negative effects on the body.
First, call an ambulance. Until the doctors arrive, the victim should drink as much water as possible. This will flush the body. Well, if the drug "Polysorb" is at hand. It is an enterosorbent that effectively helps with poisoning by poisons. It begins to act quickly, literally in a few minutes, has no contraindications, it can be taken at any age. The main thing is to determine the dosage, which depends on the weight of the patient.
Action algorithm
When the thermometer in the apartment crashed, what should I do? The consequences of this incident should all be well understood. The main thing is not to worry. If you carefully follow the instructions, you can easily cope with this situation without harming anyone.
So, if the thermometer in the apartment crashed, what to do, we will tell you the points:
- Remember that mercury begins to evaporate only at +18 degrees. To prevent this, we reduce the temperature in the room as much as possible. If it is below this mark, the metal will not assume a gaseous state. In this case, it is practically safe. Often it is enough to turn off the heating, open a window or turn on the air conditioning.
- Now we begin to eliminate the consequences. If you do not have time to come in contact with mercury, change clothes and change into those clothes and shoes that you will not mind throwing away. Ideally, clothing should be made of non-absorbent fabric, and shoes should be rubber. For example, a cellophane raincoat is ideal. Wear rubber gloves on your hands and cover your mouth and nose with a damp cloth. If a thermometer crashes in the apartment, what to do is worth remembering to immediately begin to eliminate the consequences.
- Prepare a potassium permanganate solution. The bigger, the better. To do this, dilute 20 g of potassium permanganate in 10 liters of water. Part of the solution is poured into a separate jar with a tight lid. In a separate container, prepare a soap-soda solution.
- Externally scattered mercury is a small metal ball. If they are scattered on the floor, it will not be difficult for you to collect them. Collect large ones with a piece of paper, pouring them into a jar. Those that are smaller - with tape.
- Carefully examine with a flashlight potential places where pieces of metal could be. It can be corners, crevices, skirting boards. If such a ball was in an inaccessible place, it will be possible to get it with a pear for douching or knitting needles. If mercury has rolled up under the baseboard, pluck it and pack it in a tight bag so that it can be disposed of later.
- When collecting mercury, be sure to use a flashlight - so the balls will be better visible.
- Having collected all the mercury without residue, thoroughly wash the floor using a soap-soda solution. Fold gloves, clothes and shoes in a bag and tie them tightly.
- When the thermometer in the apartment crashed, where to call, you also need to clearly know. You can easily collect mercury yourself, but they will tell you where to dispose of it in the Ministry of Emergencies.
- Now you need to thoroughly wash yourself. Rinse your mouth with soda several times. For prevention, drink a pack of activated carbon.
If the thermometer in the apartment crashes, what to do, you now know for sure. To ensure that mercury does not harm anyone, it is recommended that you close the room in which it happened for at least a week. In this case, you need to leave the window open. Regularly disinfect indoors. To do this, wash the floors with a soap and soda solution.
Mercury on the carpet
The situation can be much more complicated if you have a carpet in your room. If a thermometer crashed in such an apartment, how to collect mercury, you need to find out especially. In this case, certain difficulties will arise. As in a situation where dangerous balls fall on a fabric surface, it is very difficult to do something on your own. It is better to seek help from specialists.
The main thing is to start by removing all people and animals from the premises. Open the window, but avoid drafts. Call a specialist in the laboratory service, such institutions operate under the emergency departments or sanitary and epidemiological stations.
Employees using special equipment will determine how high the concentration of hazardous metal fumes in your apartment is, what things can be saved and which ones will have to be disposed of. Most likely, you will have to say goodbye to everything that turned out to be mercury.
If the thermometer crashed in the apartment on the carpet, you can throw it away or try to dry clean it. True, there is no guarantee that the thing will be cleaned qualitatively. In this case, it will be necessary to make sure that no traces of hazardous metal are left on the carpet. This can only be done with the help of special equipment. So you have to seek help from the Ministry of Emergencies.
Please note: if you decide to throw away a rug or any other thing, then you can not take it to a regular container site. You should use the services of a specialized organization for the collection of mercury-containing waste.
How long does mercury evaporate?
When the thermometer in the apartment crashed, it is impossible to establish exactly how much mercury is eroded. The evaporation process depends on a large number of factors, it can take from several weeks to several years.
Firstly, the amount of mercury that managed to leak from the thermometer. The fact is that the less substance remains on the surface, the faster evaporation will occur.
Secondly, the air temperature in the apartment in which the thermometer was broken affects. If the room is warm, then evaporation will occur faster. To prevent air pollution, open the windows as soon as possible.
Thirdly, the surface on which the thermometer was broken is important. If there are no gaps on it, it will be much easier to assemble balls of dangerous metal. But if mercury is on a carpet or furniture, then this will add additional difficulties. In this case, evaporation will occur as long as possible.
What absolutely can not be done
There is a list of actions that in no case can be taken so as not to aggravate the situation with a broken thermometer.
Remember that mercury balls cannot be collected with a vacuum cleaner or a broom. Due to the broom, the liquid metal will begin to crumble, and in the vacuum cleaner, warm air from the engine will contribute to its rapid evaporation. The consequences of such cleaning can only aggravate everything.
Mercury collected in a pot of potassium permanganate, do not dispose in a regular garbage chute. After some time, it will certainly break, then strangers will be in danger. How many there will be is unknown. Note that mercury, which flows from one thermometer, is able to pollute about 6 thousand cubic meters of air. The remnants of the thermometer, as well as things that come in contact with mercury, should only be disposed of at the place indicated by the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
You can not send things that were even in minimal contact with mercury to the washing machine. Even if you are going to use disinfectants. It is unlikely that this will be effective; you will only expose yourself to additional danger. Indeed, the disposal of mercury is a dangerous and complex process. Such actions will not only not save your things, but also damage the washing machine, which will make it impossible to use it later.
Do not think to flush mercury down the drain either. She will not have time to get to the sewage station, remaining in the "knees" of your own pipeline. After that, it will pollute and poison your air for a long time.
Real people experience
Finally, you need to remember the main thing: do not panic if you have a crashed thermometer in the apartment. Parents of young children who regularly get sick admit that this kind of trouble happens quite often. On average once every few years. Panic in this situation is your main enemy.
If, as a result of the incident, you are still very worried, just seek help from the rescuers by calling the Ministry of Emergencies. In this case, you will always be able to give qualified advice, they will tell you in detail the algorithm of actions, what to do in such a situation.
When the thermometer crashed in the apartment, in reviews of the consequences, people who, in practice, faced with a similar situation, admitted that the negative symptoms of poisoning almost never occur. If you act in accordance with the algorithm, you will avoid trouble. The main thing is to properly dispose of everything and be especially careful at the cleaning stage.
If you have a difficult case, for example, mercury has rolled into an inaccessible place and there is no way to remove it from there, contact specialized services for help. Their professional responsibilities include dealing with the consequences of such incidents. So they will definitely help you.
Today, many people refuse to use mercury thermometers for measuring temperature, but they still remain in demand. Some believe that the data they show is more accurate, others are attracted by their lower cost compared to peers. So use mercury thermometers without too much fear, but neatly and prudently.