Detailed instructions on how to collect mercury from carpet at home

If you accidentally break a thermometer, you must act very quickly, since this problem can result in serious consequences. Mercury can penetrate deep into the floor covering and spread throughout the house literally at the speed of light. There are several secrets that will help you collect mercury quickly and efficiently. Everyone knows that mercury can poison the air, so you must approach the problem with the utmost seriousness and caution.

Why remove mercury?

Mercury vapor “running” along the thermometer scale is harmful and dangerous to humans. If you inhale them, you can get poisoned. Mercury belongs to the first class of danger, representing a cumulative poison.

It is the only metal that is in liquid form at room temperature. In the open air, mercury evaporates. Because of their shape, mercury balls easily roll from place to place around the apartment, getting stuck in the carpet pile, tiny crevices and cracks. They can get and settle even on animal fur.

Many European countries have already abandoned the use of mercury thermometers. In Russia, they still adhere to the opposite point of view: they believe that such thermometers provide maximum accuracy in readings.

Important! The mercury used in thermometers today is unique. Its volume changes gradually during the cooling and heating process. Evaporating, it has neither odor nor color. That is, you can only notice mercury in the form of a ball. An undetected droplet will evaporate for months.

Mercury in the air can be detected using an improvised indicator. It will help determine whether all the mercury was collected when the thermometer broke. Components, if necessary, are ordered at the pharmacy:

1. Filter paper is cut into small strips and dipped into a solution of copper sulfate. It must dry.
2. Already dry, moisten it in a potassium solution. It will change color to brown.
3. The strips are rinsed with water, dried and laid out in the dark.
4. If there are dangerous vapors left in the air, the paper will turn pink.

Have you ever collected mercury beads from a carpet?
Not really

An alternative to the dangerous “meter”

Our mothers and grandmothers had no alternative. A few decades ago, a mercury thermometer was the only available way to measure body temperature. But modern man has a choice. For example, a non-contact infrared and electronic thermometer. The table shows comparative characteristics of these devices, which will help you make your choice. Because even storing a mercury thermometer in a case, as practice shows, does not protect against damage to its integrity.

Table - Comparative characteristics of different types of thermometers

Sometimes it is quite difficult to understand that a thermometer has broken. If the mercury is still inside, but the scale “moves” when the position of the device changes, the thermometer must be discarded. If a toxic substance escapes, under no circumstances should it be washed down the drain. Nothing good will come of this. Don’t even hope that the mercury will “float” away from your home. It will simply settle on the underside of the pipe and continue to poison you with its fumes.

If the tip of the thermometer breaks after a fall, but the mercury does not leak out, do not be too careless. In itself, a violation of the integrity of the device is a reason to contact the emergency service and, following the algorithm described above, place the thermometer in a jar for subsequent delivery to the “competent authorities.” And most importantly, don’t panic. Panic is the worst enemy that erases all acquired knowledge from your head and makes you nervous until your knees tremble. Just dial the combination “01” from a landline phone - and an employee of the Ministry of Emergency Situations will remind you what to do in the current situation.

Video on the topic

What should you not do if the thermometer breaks?

Mercury is a dangerous metal. Her couples pose a threat:

• A broom is no help in assembling. Its hard rods break large mercury balls into smaller ones, which will be almost impossible to collect. Thus, mercury residues will lie in the living room for years, and the owners will not understand why their health began to deteriorate.
• Do not step on mercury with your feet, even in socks or slippers. The smallest particles will remain on the shoes.
• The brush drives the mercury into the deep fibers of the carpet. After cleaning, the floor covering will ultimately only have to be sent for recycling.
• Opening windows and doors at the same time will create a draft, giving the mercury more opportunity to spread throughout the house.
• Toddlers may be interested in mercury balls and want to play with them. When liquidating an incident, the presence of children is prohibited.
• You cannot shine light on mercury balls with ordinary lamps with very heating light elements. High temperature speeds up the evaporation process. At home, it is better to use a mobile phone flashlight.

Is it possible to flush it down the toilet?

Note! If collected mercury is sent down the toilet, it will settle on the pipes and still change the air.

This is the same if the dangerous substance had not been removed from the premises at all. The density of mercury is 13 times higher than that of water. The water stream is unable to carry mercury with it.

Can it be assembled using a magnet?

Mercury, although liquid, is a metal. Therefore, the method using a magnet will work - it will react to it. It is possible to collect the substance with its help, but this must be done in compliance with safety precautions. For work, use thick cotton gloves. At the end, the magnet is disposed of along with the mercury.

Is it possible to vacuum clean?

When cleaning the contents, do not use a vacuum cleaner: it will remain on all parts of the device. The next time you turn on the vacuum cleaner, it will emit toxic fumes. The device will heat up, and under the influence of temperature the mercury will become even more concentrated.

What not to do

An important rule is that it is forbidden to throw away things and objects that were used during cleaning, a broken thermometer and the collected substances into a regular trash can on the street. There are other restrictions:

1. It is not allowed to use a vacuum cleaner for collection. Heated air with a vacuum cleaner leads to faster evaporation of the liquid toxic substance. But the metal also lingers on elements of technology, which leads to further spread.
2. A tightly closed jar of toxic pellets also cannot be thrown away in the usual way. You should call number 01, where they will tell you what to do if the thermometer breaks, and where to remove (take) the collected mercury in the jar.
3. You should absolutely not sweep up the drops with a broom, as the particles will spread even more throughout the room. In addition, it will be difficult to find them afterwards.

Thus, if a mercury thermometer breaks in the house, you must follow the instructions. It is undesirable to act on your own, as you can cause irreparable harm to your body and the body of your household. The main danger lies not in a broken thermometer, but in improper collection of poisonous balls.

If a mercury thermometer is handled correctly, it does not pose any threat. It should only be stored in a special case and should never be given to small children to play with. The case will reliably protect the thermometer from falling, and even if it somehow breaks, the mercury drops will remain inside.

Preparing for cleaning

The success of assembling mercury depends on how well you prepare for this event:

1. First of all, pets are taken from the room and children are taken to a safe place.
2. If possible, reduce the room temperature to 18 degrees.
3. It is necessary to work only with rubber gloves and a fabric mask soaked in a soda solution. Feet are protected with shoe covers, which must be removed and disposed of after work.
4. It is best to collect mercury in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid - it will not leak out of it. You can pour water or potassium permanganate into it. The broken thermometer is placed in a separate container.
5. The entrance door to the room is closed, and the window, on the contrary, is opened.
6. To work you will need: a weak solution of potassium permanganate, a rubber bulb, a syringe, tape and thick sheets of paper.
7. The entrance is covered with a large rag soaked in a manganese solution.

Kits for neutralizing household mercury contamination

On sale you can find kits for collecting and neutralizing mercury.
These kits are available for laboratory, industrial and household use. Household kits are designed to handle minor mercury spills, such as a broken thermometer or light bulb.

PHOTO: docservis.ru One set allows you to disinfect a room up to 30 m².

The kit includes rubber gloves, a respirator for respiratory protection, a syringe for collecting metal, copper brushes and a sealed container. For demercurization, the kit includes the chemical composition HD-1B and nitric acid.

Each kit comes with detailed instructions for proper use. The cost of the kit is from 500 rubles.

How to delete?

The upcoming work area needs to be carefully inspected and the fragments carefully removed from the floor so as not to get injured:

1. Press the rubber bulb with your fingers (a vacuum should form) and bring it to the mercury drop. The metal is transferred into the prepared container using a syringe. Instead of a bulb, you can use a medical syringe.
2. It is convenient to push mercury balls towards you with sheets of paper, and “catch” small remains with tape.
3. If the collection is delayed, every 15 minutes you need to take a break and go out into the fresh air.
4. Neutralization of mercury occurs by collecting in the direction from the edges to the middle.
5. The jar with the contents is tightly closed and placed in a dark place. It is important that sunlight cannot penetrate there: it will provoke increased evaporation of the metal.
6. Not only the jar of mercury must be disposed of, but also the gloves, mask, and shoes used for cleaning.
7. If the thermometer fell and broke, and the mercury was not found, it is important to understand that it could not evaporate in a short period. This means that it is insidiously “hiding” somewhere (in cracks or under the baseboard). In this difficult situation, the most correct thing is to call a professional service.

Processing after

If the main work is completed and all the mercury is collected, this does not mean that you can relax:

1. The cleaned carpet is treated with a manganese solution. It eliminates the volatile properties of vapors and slows down their action. If the coating is light, replace potassium permanganate with soda.
2. Any bleaching agent is also suitable for treatment. Bleach is mixed with water in a ratio of one to five. Surfaces are treated with a damp sponge and left for half an hour. Then wash with plenty of water. The next day the procedure must be repeated.
3. The room is regularly ventilated after the incident. If possible, it is better not to close the window at all for some period of time.
4. The carpet needs to be beaten out in the fresh air - the sooner the better. During work, the respiratory system must be protected. It is advisable to go to non-residential premises.
5. If mercury gets on clothes, it is disposed of without any regret (even if we are talking about the most favorite T-shirt).
6. It is important to protect yourself as much as possible. After eliminating the incident, wash thoroughly in the shower, rinse your mouth and take a couple of tablets of activated carbon (sorbent). Now you need to drink more liquid (plain water or milk).

Important! A very popular question is how long does evaporation take. A ball of mercury with a diameter of 3 millimeters will take 3 years to completely disappear.

If you are interested in how to clean a white carpet, take a look here. This article will tell you how to remove cat and dog hair; this article will tell you how to get rid of various stains.

What to do if the contents of a broken thermometer have been lying on the carpet for a long time?

When mercury remained on the surface for a long time, only specialized services can help. Its representatives not only provide services for the collection of toxic material - demercurization, but also take measurements in the house.

However, calling a team of specialists costs money, and not everyone has the opportunity to pay. If you have to eliminate the consequences yourself, you can use the instructions given above.

Advice! Additionally, all surfaces will need to be treated with bleach. Not only the floor, but also the walls, furniture, doors and windows.

You can also call the Ministry of Emergency Situations, but they will only give verbal recommendations and will not come.

Where to put the collected mercury?

Remains of the thermometer and collected mercury should not be thrown into the garbage disposal. They must be submitted to the relevant service. It is also not worth making independent attempts to dispose of it (burying it in the ground or pouring it into the river). Only specialists have the right to deal with such matters.

If at least 2 grams of mercury evaporate, it will pollute 6 thousand cubic meters of air. When released into open spaces, mercury vapor spreads at maximum speed. Throwing mercury waste into the trash can endanger animals and people without them even realizing it.

In large cities, mercury waste is handed over to collection points of the SES and the Ministry of Emergency Situations. But in small towns and villages, of course, there are no such services. Local residents have to travel a long way or cope on their own.

Note! Not long ago, an interactive map appeared, which marks places where you can take old thermometers and other items hazardous to the environment. The number of such points is constantly growing.

Have you thrown mercury into the trash?

Not really

Useful tips

To avoid the need to carry out complex procedures, it is better to replace the thermometer with an electronic one.

After removing mercury and carrying out cleaning procedures, it is important to ensure that vapor concentration levels are normal. Use chlorine solution carefully, because this substance is also toxic. Do not throw away mercury or the thermometer with other accumulated garbage.

How to collect mercury correctly is shown in this video:

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How to recognize poisoning?

Acute poisoning occurs several hours after contact with mercury. Symptoms include:

• general weakness;
• lack of appetite;
• migraine;
• painful sensations when swallowing;
• bleeding gums;
• vomiting;
• metallic taste in the mouth.

In rare cases, the chest begins to hurt, chills and shortness of breath appear. Body temperature rises (sometimes up to forty degrees). The faster the mercury is collected, the less likely it is to be poisoned.

Advice! First aid for the victim is to take absorbents and drink plenty of fluids. You must call a doctor immediately.

Signs of poisoning are immediately noticeable only at high concentrations of the substance. The term “high concentration” means a mercury content of more than 100 micrograms per cubic meter. And it will take several hours to stay indoors. But unpleasant consequences can make themselves felt a couple of years after contact with mercury.

Chronic poisoning causes a predisposition to mental illness, liver damage and hypertension. In women, in addition, the menstrual cycle is disrupted or the course of pregnancy is more difficult.

A broken thermometer is not a reason to panic. If you follow the instructions strictly, there will be no trace of toxic mercury left.