Wednesday, May 5, 2010

BEWARE OF MERCURY BEHIND OLD MIRRORS

SR, a reader, sent this tip: if you open the back of an old mirror, be aware that mercury droplets may collect at the bottom of the frame. The mercury vapors are toxic.

7 comments:

Saul Ricklin said...

I presume the SR is me, Saul Ricklin. Be aware that mercury droplets can collect at the bottom of old mirrors even if you do not open the back

Anonymous said...

Mercury is not very volative at 25 C has vapour pressure of 0.002mm, it will be noticed as a small balls (Quicksilver) should not be touched by bare hand and should be properly disposed.

Unknown said...

Yea, so make sure that you dont let your lips lick any old mercery mirrors!
I mean, PLEASE, people, dont let your loved ones lick any valuable antique pieces. Don't you know they could die or have serious brain damage.
Let's use some commmon sense here, PLEASE for the love of God!

Unknown said...

Oh dear, one more thing to give us nightmares!
Why are we taking old mirrors apart in the first place?
BTW, I work in the Hazardous Waste industry. This seemingly little, but actually serious, hazard will become the topic of a lively discussion in our office. Will we make our garbage landfills reject loads with old armoires, vanities and mirrors in them because of this hazard in order to protect the public and the workers handling these items? Will antique stores have to have biohazard warnings on their doors.
Common sense has left the building!

Anonymous said...

I'm surprised that my brother (82) and myself (80) are still alive and healthy. We always played with the mercury from broken thermometers.

Anonymous said...

I understand the danger of handling mercury, I just can't help but remember paying with mercury at school on our desks back in the 60's. As far as I know, there have been no repercussions.

Anonymous said...

BACK IN THE EARLY 50'S MY BROTHER ACCIDENTALLY BROKE AN ORAL THERMOMETER. HE AND I PLAYED WITH & ROLLED THE MERCURY AROUND FOR DAYS AND KEPT IT IN A SMALL GLASS JAR, PROBABLY FOR MONTHS. THE ONLY THING WRONG WITH EITHER OF US IS THAT HE'S NOW A SOCIOPATH - SERIOUSLY. SO I DOUBT THAT THE MERCURY HAD ANY ILL EFFECTS ON US.