Can a broken thermometer cause mercury poisoning?

A broken mercury-containing thermometer can be toxic if the vapors are inhaled. The risk of poisoning from touching or swallowing mercury from a broken thermometer is low if appropriate clean-up measures are taken.

What happens if you put mercury in your hand?

Mercury does not absorb through your skin instantly. Elemental mercury does absorb through your skin, but at a very slow pace (very slowly). As long as you don’t expose your skin to the metal too much and you wash your hands after then you would be fine.

How quickly does mercury evaporate?

Based on experiments conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the evaporation of mercury droplets in air was modeled as an exponential decay, and values for the decay constant, kd , were estimated; values for k −1 d ranged from 0.7 days to 2.2 days over a temperature range of 302 K to 310 K.

What to do if you broke a thermometer?

Slowly and carefully squeeze mercury onto a damp paper towel. Alternatively, use two pieces of cardboard paper to roll the mercury beads onto the paper towel or into the bag. Place the paper towel in a zip locking bag and secure. Make sure to label the bag as directed by your local health or fire department.

What happens if you accidentally break a thermometer?

Symptoms of mercury poisoning If a thermometer has broken, spilled liquid metal is unlikely to bring critical consequences, if we mean by this concept paralysis, irreversible changes in the systems of vital activity and death. Breathing in mercury vapor from a broken thermometer can manifest the following symptoms: metallic taste in the mouth;

Do all thermometers with silver liquid contain mercury?

But not all thermometers with silver liquid contain mercury. If the thermometer has silver liquid and is not labeled as “mercury-free,” assume it contains mercury. Mercury can be poisonous in certain situations. Most oral and rectal thermometers contain about 0.5-0.6 grams of mercury.

How do you clean up a broken mercury thermometer?

Prepping for Clean Up of a Broken Mercury Thermometer 1 Have everyone else leave the area; don’t let anyone walk through the mercury on their way out. 2 DO NOT allow children to help you clean up the spill. 3 Mercury can be cleaned up easily from the following surfaces: wood, linoleum, tile and any similarly smooth surfaces.

How do you dispose of broken thermometers?

Put on rubber, nitrile, or latex gloves before handling mercury contaminated objects or broken mercury thermometers. If there are any broken pieces of glass or sharp objects, pick them up with care. Place all broken objects on a paper towel. Fold the paper towel and seal it in a Zip-Lock style bag.