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I got mercury all over me and maybe in my mouth

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Elevenpog said:
It was a solid glass tube, there was nothing to grasp with pliers.
Click to expand...

What kind of thermostat was this?

The one's that I've seen nearly always looked like this:

s13.JPG


The leads on the end, if pulled perpendicular to the glass base, will fracture and open the vial.
 
So... when you called poison control, what did you tell them happened? This is one of those cases where lying is perfectly acceptable.
 
Feneant2 said:
So... when you called poison control, what did you tell them happened? This is one of those cases where lying is perfectly acceptable.
Click to expand...

I just said I think I got a little bit of mercury on me and might have swallowed a bit and the lady asked where I got it from and I just told her from a thermostat. She didn't ask prying questions.

Sounded fat.
 
Wouldn't DRANO work to dilute that shit?

I kid.

Man. Sorry to hear that! I hear Mercury never leaves your system if ingested.

Is my ignorance correct?
 
You can actually swallow mercury no big deal. 99.999% of elemental mercury passes through you unabsorbed.

When it binds to any carbon molecule and becomes an organomercury compound is when it becomes a bigger issue because it is easily absorbed. IE bioaccumulation in tuna.

Long contact times are worse than one acute ingestion.
 
I used to play with mercury all the time as a kid. I'm fine. I'm fine.

No effects at all.

I used to play with mercury all the time as a kid. I'm fine.
 
Elevenpog said:
I just said I think I got a little bit of mercury on me and might have swallowed a bit and the lady asked where I got it from and I just told her from a thermostat. She didn't ask prying questions.

Sounded fat.
Click to expand...

Is that like sniffing glue?
I'm picturing this conversation where you make it sound like you casually put mercury in your mouth without a reasonable explanation.
 
Elevenpog said:
I replaced an old thermostat and there was this glass tube of mercury in it and I took it outside with a hammer to try and tap off the tip so I could play with the mercury but when I tapped it it EXPLODED in my face and now mercury is all over the place and maybe I swallowed some I'm not sure. I called the poison control center place but the line is busy.

Am I gon die?D:
Click to expand...

To recycle mercury: break open glass thermometers, switches with a pliers over a catch pan, pickup droplets with suction using an eye dropper.

A hammer!!!
 
mrjminer said:
How would he get the no fear award for keeping his eyes and mouth open and close enough for mercury to get into them while he bashed it with a hammer? Get with the program dude!
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The little photo below the "Diamond membe"r and above the join date should explain that.
 
Elevenpog said:
I replaced an old thermostat and there was this glass tube of mercury in it and I took it outside with a hammer to try and tap off the tip so I could play with the mercury but when I tapped it it EXPLODED in my face and now mercury is all over the place and maybe I swallowed some I'm not sure. I called the poison control center place but the line is busy.

Am I gon die?D:
Click to expand...

You won't die. At worst it'll cause a little neurological damage but since you're a forum lurker like the rest of us it's unlikely you'll lose any brain cells you actually need. 😎
 
Haha.... I just was helping clear out an old house last weekend and noticed the old thermostat hanging on the wall. Removed a few screws and it was mine. I waited until the next day to free the mercury, but did not bash it. The picture above generally is the type you'll find and use some pliers to crack open the end with the metal contacts and you can then pour the mercury out.

I added it to my Mercury vile I have. Cool stuff!

To your question about how to get it out of the cracks, if you can see it in there, get a decently strong magnet and you can pull it out with the magnet. Put your magnet inside a zip lock bag first and it'll stick, then you can collect the Mercury.
 
Rubycon said:
What kind of thermostat was this?

The one's that I've seen nearly always looked like this:

s13.JPG


The leads on the end, if pulled perpendicular to the glass base, will fracture and open the vial.
Click to expand...

I was troubleshooting my parents' fireplace and noticed their tstat has that. How does that work, does it work on the principle that mercury will contract/expand based on temp and complete the circuit? Depending on the temp setting that bulb moves so guessing it alters how soon it will touch. Thought it was rather interesting of a design.
 
They are attached to a bi-metal coil. This coil will alter its shape with change in temperature. This will tilt the vial left or right making or breaking the circuit and correspond to a call for heat or cooling.

This design obviously needs to be level. RVs and boats would use a magnetic snap action so they are immune to angular changes. That design has no mercury switch.

Of course now everything is solid state.
 
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