A thermometer is a very useful item that requires careful handling, because it contains mercury, a metal hazardous to health. If the thermometer breaks or simply becomes unusable, it becomes necessary to get rid of it, but many do not know where to throw the thermometer.
Instructions
Step 1
If the thermometer breaks, first of all, protect the place where the mercury got into, since this metal tends to spread throughout the apartment, for example, on the soles of shoes.
Step 2
Open the window, but make sure that there is no draft, otherwise mercury vapor will quickly spread in the air. Then proceed to collect the hazardous metal.
Step 3
Wear rubber gloves and a cotton gauze bandage. Mercury rolls into small balls, so it is most convenient to collect it with a rubber bulb or syringe. If neither one nor the other is at hand, then take a piece of scotch tape or a wet sheet of thick paper and run them over the balls, they should stick.
Step 4
Prepare a concentrated solution of potassium permanganate in a glass jar and place the collected mercury and fragments of a thermometer there, close tightly with a rubber lid.
Step 5
Call the Ministry of Emergency Situations and report the incident. When the rescue team arrives, give them rubber gloves, a cotton-gauze bandage and an object with which they collected mercury with the can. In addition, the responsibility of the Ministry of Emergency Situations also includes disinfection of the room where the thermometer crashed.
Step 6
When the disinfection is over, take care of your health. Rinse your mouth and throat with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, brush your teeth and take a few tablets of activated charcoal. Drink plenty of fluids as mercury is excreted through the kidneys.
Step 7
If the thermometer is intact, but has become unusable or is simply not used, then it should be handed over to one of the special services. As a rule, organizations that sell medical equipment have containers for the collection of mercury-containing and other hazardous waste. Call the help desk in your locality and find out if you have a similar organization. If yes, then contact this organization and specify on what day you can come and hand over the mercury thermometer. If not, refer to the next point.
Step 8
An unnecessary thermometer can be taken to a sanitary and epidemiological station or a state pharmacy. These institutions are required by law to accept mercury thermometers. All you need to do is come with a thermometer and write a statement. If, for any reason, specialists refuse to carry out an appointment, then you should complain to the regional or city health department.
