Almost every one of us has a mercury thermometer at home, which is used to measure body temperature. Its damage can be very dangerous: mercury is the only metal contained in a liquid state at room temperature, inhalation of its vapor is fraught with poisoning. That is why you need to have a good idea of what to do if a mercury thermometer crashes . Below will be described the actions that should be performed in a similar situation.
So what to do if a mercury thermometer crashes: the first action.
To begin with, in no case panic, you need to limit access to the affected area. All people who were not involved in cleaning should be taken outside (or to another room) and the door of the room in which the thermometer was broken tightly closed. Be careful and careful not to stomp in dangerous places, so as not to later spread the balls of mercury on the sole of the shoe into other rooms.
What to do if a mercury thermometer crashes: the second action.
Wear rubber gloves and collect thermometer fragments and mercury balls. It is convenient to do this with a syringe without a needle, tape, tape or two sheets of paper. The last way is as follows: with the help of sheets of paper you connect mercury balls to each other, and then roll them onto paper. To remove the mercury balls from the gap, use a needle wound with a cotton swab dipped in a solution of potassium permanganate. As an option - the use of copper wire (mercury adheres to copper), but the copper content in the wire should be significant, and the surface of the wire should be cleaned from oxides.
The collected mercury and tools should be placed in a jar of water and tightly closed.
What to do if a mercury thermometer crashes: the third action.
Mercury vapor evaporates in smaller quantities at low temperatures, so it is advisable to ventilate the room, unless, of course, on the street is not plus thirty. Next, you need to treat the place where the thermometer crashed with a potassium permanganate solution at the rate of 2 grams of potassium permanganate per liter of water, and then with a soap-soda solution at the rate of 50 grams of soda and soap per liter of water.
What to do if a mercury thermometer crashes: the fourth action.
After the work done, you need to get rid of the cans of mercury. You should call the Ministry of Emergencies and find out where you need to take it, and until then put away from heating objects, in a cool place where there is no access to sunlight.
As for you, in the near future, increase the amount of fluid consumed, as mercury formations leave the body through the kidneys.
A few words about what you can’t do.
Do not allow mercury to come in contact with skin.
It is impossible to arrange a draft in a ventilated room.
You cannot sweep mercury balls with a broom, as hard rods can grind mercury balls, after which it will be difficult to assemble them.
You cannot collect mercury using a vacuum cleaner, as the air blown by the device facilitates the evaporation of mercury vapor.
Do not wash shoes and clothing that come in contact with mercury in washing machines. Ideally, it should be thrown away (clothing and shoes).
It is impossible to get rid of mercury with the help of sewers, since if it settles in sewer pipes, then it is almost impossible to extract it from there.
A broken thermometer should not be thrown into a garbage chute, since an insignificant fraction of mercury evaporated there can pollute a significant territory.
Do not pass this information by yourself. When such situations happen, you begin to reproach yourself for your neglect and inability to take action if necessary. If you know how to behave when a mercury thermometer crashes, “what to do” - a question that instantly arises in difficult moments, will not confuse you.