Author Topic: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...  (Read 6611 times)

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Offline fiwiTopic starter

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I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« on: September 12, 2019, 03:55:32 pm »
Hello guys.
Today I worked on a desk for about an hour, but later I was told a low-temperature thermometer was broken on that desk earlier and have not been fully cleaned...
So I was exposed to the mercury-thallium alloy and... What should I do?
I don't think the food or drink I took was polluted, but those thing can still harm me by skin or even air, right? How serious damage could made to me?
Thank you all.
 

Offline schmitt trigger

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #1 on: September 12, 2019, 04:03:18 pm »
I would look for immediate guidance from a specialist. I.e. someone in the medical profession.
Not from electrical engineers.

We may have some experience, but I would not trust my health to advice received from an EE forum.
« Last Edit: September 12, 2019, 04:04:52 pm by schmitt trigger »
 
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Online IanB

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #2 on: September 12, 2019, 04:03:52 pm »
I would not worry too much about it. If you did not see the contamination it is not likely enough to harm you, especially with just one small exposure. Just do sensible things like washing your hands thoroughly and do not put your hands in your mouth.
 

Offline themadhippy

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #3 on: September 12, 2019, 04:27:36 pm »
Quote
What should I do?
get on the phone to you lawyer and instruct them to sue everybody involved,from the cleaner to senior management,after all thats  the american way.
 
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Offline tszaboo

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #4 on: September 12, 2019, 04:41:41 pm »
Step 1, chill out.
People swallowed mercury and survived. They put it in their veins with a needle and it was fine. It doesn't go through your skin. To inhale fatal dosages, you need to work in an enclosed environment, where they have massive amount of mercury around.

"What if I break a thermometer or light bulb?
If you break a mercury thermometer or light bulb, a small amount of liquid mercury may spill out. Liquid mercury can separate into small beads, which can roll some distance away. The mercury may also evaporate into vapour.

However, this small amount of mercury is extremely unlikely to cause problems for your health."
 

Offline wraper

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #5 on: September 12, 2019, 04:43:51 pm »
No significant harm. Just clean everything so there is no mercury left and ventilate room well.
 

Online IanB

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #6 on: September 12, 2019, 05:00:11 pm »
To those above thinking about mercury, remember that thallium was also involved, which is a poison. Even so, there is no cause for alarm from just being close to invisible amounts of it.
 

Offline Cyberdragon

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #7 on: September 12, 2019, 05:02:21 pm »
Evacuate the building and call hazmat so everyone freaks out over a tiny drop from the broken thermometer, cause that's what schools do. >:D *sarcasm self test passed*

If you had dropped an arc rectifier like <<< then it would be a different story, as there have been stories of it permanantly staining concrete floors and everything else.
*BZZZZZZAAAAAP*
Voltamort strikes again!
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Offline wraper

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #8 on: September 12, 2019, 05:21:37 pm »
To those above thinking about mercury, remember that thallium was also involved, which is a poison.
Should cause no harm unless ingested.
 

Offline StillTrying

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #9 on: September 12, 2019, 05:24:50 pm »
Evacuate the building and call hazmat so everyone freaks out over a tiny drop from the broken thermometer, cause that's what schools do. >:D *sarcasm self test passed*

When I was at school we were chasing the silver balls around the desk with our fingers for days after the mercury experiments. ::)
.  That took much longer than I thought it would.
 

Offline Stray Electron

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #10 on: September 12, 2019, 06:10:45 pm »
  Are you SURE that it even had mercury in the thermometer?   I hadn't seen it used in one for DECADES.  I've also never heard of one that had thallium in it.

   Thallium is extremely poisonous but if you ingested any then you be dead already.  Most of the people on this list have probably played with metallic mercury. It's just not that dangerous in the metallic form. OTOH organic mercury compounds are very toxic.
 

Offline Bud

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #11 on: September 12, 2019, 06:17:41 pm »
Quote
What should I do?
get on the phone to you lawyer and instruct them to sue everybody involved,from the cleaner to senior management,after all thats  the american way.
Also start a White House petition to ban thermometers. All of them, just in case.
Facebook-free life and Rigol-free shack.
 

Offline Tom45

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #12 on: September 12, 2019, 07:16:28 pm »
When I was at school we were chasing the silver balls around the desk with our fingers for days after the mercury experiments. ::)

Same here. I had a bottle of mercury that I played with.

If it is going to kill me it had better hurry up. I'm in my mid 70s so the odds are that something else will get me first.
 

Offline tszaboo

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #13 on: September 12, 2019, 07:28:24 pm »

remember that thallium was also involved, which is a poison
Now that you mention, the guy is dead, for sure.
Or at least he should be freaking out running for the USA healthcare, getting a 30000 USD bill for a checkup from your GP.

^^^
That is not serious, for people with broken sarcasm-o-meter.
 

Offline wraper

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #14 on: September 12, 2019, 07:29:12 pm »
Thallium is extremely poisonous but if you ingested any then you be dead already.
You won't. It's not like you die from thallium instantly, it's slow acting.
Quote
I've also never heard of one that had thallium in it.
It's only needed in low temperature thermometers.
« Last Edit: September 12, 2019, 07:31:14 pm by wraper »
 

Offline james_s

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #15 on: September 12, 2019, 07:30:19 pm »
I played with mercury many times when I was younger. You don't want to eat the stuff but don't fall for the hype and hysteria either. Just wipe it up and forget about it.

I've heard you can sprinkle powdered sulfur on mercury and it will combine into something that is easier to clean so if it was spilled on something like carpet you could try that.
 

Offline StillTrying

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #16 on: September 12, 2019, 07:51:27 pm »
The mercury-thallium seems to be used to make thermometers that don't freeze down to -60 or even -200 C, I haven't seen anything on how toxic, or not the mix of the two is. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thallium.

it is used in trace amounts in selenium rectifiers

Do they give out red smoke, I used to blow them up just to see it. :(

Thallium poisoning usually results in hair loss.

Yep. ;D

For more information regarding mercury please call the Toxics and Health Hotline at the Michigan Department of Community Health 1-800-648-6942
https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdch_MercurySpillFactsheet_85689_7.pdf
« Last Edit: September 12, 2019, 07:58:10 pm by StillTrying »
.  That took much longer than I thought it would.
 

Offline SparkyFX

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #17 on: September 12, 2019, 07:52:57 pm »
Mercury in liquid form is not a big problem, it hardly reacts with anything, you do not want to inhale the gasses. Small amounts will evaporate over time if you leave the liquid in the room and never open the windows. So with kids around or on daily exposure it would be a big No-No.

Having sat at a desk for a day... i guess someone tried scaring off the new guy?

But if you are seriously concerned, go to a doctor and have the blood levels of heavy metals checked.

Should you just be curious about how dangerous it is (not), check out Cody´s Lab on youtube, he has got a whole series about what things to do or better not to do with mercury.

« Last Edit: September 12, 2019, 07:57:47 pm by SparkyFX »
Support your local planet.
 

Offline HighVoltage

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #18 on: September 13, 2019, 06:56:17 am »
There are plenty of YT videos that show how dangerous mercury vapor is for the cells in our bodies and especially the brain.

But, don't worry about touching liquid mercury.

As a kid, long before I knew about its dangerous properties, I played with liquid mercury for days and weeks and tried to suck it as high as possible in a straw and sometimes ended up having it in my mouth.
No worries!
There are 3 kinds of people in this world, those who can count and those who can not.
 

Offline Gyro

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #19 on: September 13, 2019, 09:28:53 am »
It has been demonstrated that Silver-Mercury amalgam tooth fillings give off Mercury vapour every time you rub them, even many years after they were inserted.
Best Regards, Chris
 

Offline German_EE

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #20 on: September 13, 2019, 05:36:12 pm »
Just remember,

"that which does not kill us makes us stronger".
Friedrich Nietzsche

Let us know if you develop superhero powers though  :)
Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks.

Warren Buffett
 
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Offline Red Squirrel

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #21 on: September 13, 2019, 07:38:02 pm »
You're probably fine but I would seek medical attention just to be safe.     Basically if it's regular mercury you're fine, but if it's organic mercury that stuff is very dangerous if it touches your skin.  If you have part of the thermometer and some of the mercury I would keep some in a vial to bring it for testing so they can see what type it is.  I don't think any thermometers would use organic mercury though. 
 

Offline Zero999

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #22 on: September 13, 2019, 08:23:27 pm »
I'm pretty sure thermimitors don't have organic mercury. The only time you get that from a thermometer is if it had being broken for awhile and was left in an acidic environment for long enough for it to form toxic salts, which clearly isn't the case here.

My main concern would be the thallium, rather than the mercury, because I know nothing about it and would go to a doctor as a precaution.
 

Offline tszaboo

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #23 on: September 13, 2019, 08:27:16 pm »
Thallium poisoning usually results in hair loss.

Yep. ;D
I just self diagnosed myself with acute early stage thallium poisoning.
 

Offline Red Squirrel

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Re: I got exposed to toxic material of a thermometer...
« Reply #24 on: September 13, 2019, 08:32:00 pm »
As a guy with long hair I'll definitely stay away from that stuff then.  I already lose enough hair as is in the shower.  :-DD
 


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