Metalworking (rec.crafts.metalworking) Discuss various aspects of working with metal, such as machining, welding, metal joining, screwing, casting, hardening/tempering, blacksmithing/forging, spinning and hammer work, sheet metal work.

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Default What is mercury worth?

Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?
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On Jul 28, 12:08 pm, RB wrote:
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?



I see it for sale for about $6/lb, I see it asked for, willing to pay
$1.50/lb.

Find a taker for any price, its more of a liability (in the current
eco-climate) than an assett.

Googling ' mercury scrap price ' turns up a few listings.


Dave
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wrote:
On Jul 28, 12:08 pm, RB wrote:
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?



I see it for sale for about $6/lb, I see it asked for, willing to pay
$1.50/lb.

Find a taker for any price, its more of a liability (in the current
eco-climate) than an assett.

Googling ' mercury scrap price ' turns up a few listings.


Dave


Just beware -- it's hazardous, and he's trying to get rid of it, so by
the EPA's logic it's not 'useful scrap' it's 'hazardous waste'. If you
accept it from him you're not an amateur 'scrap dealer' you're an
'unlicensed disposal facility'.

In the Portland, Oregon area a homeowner can take that sort of thing to
the Metro gov'mint garbage transfer station and they'll deal with it for
you, where a commercial enterprise would have to spend a day signing forms.

Then instead of seeing it recycled they put it in a drum and ship it off
to a hazardous waste dump in Arlington, OR, where it sits until the drum
rusts through (but at least, as a homeowner, you don't have your name on
the drum forever more so you can be blamed for following the law 50
years down the road).

I'm so glad I have a wise and benevolent government taking care of me.

--

Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com

Do you need to implement control loops in software?
"Applied Control Theory for Embedded Systems" gives you just what it says.
See details at http://www.wescottdesign.com/actfes/actfes.html
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"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.
--
DT


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On Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:15:37 -0400, "DrollTroll"
wrote:


"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.



Except 5lbs is a lot less than a quart - and, obviously, weighs only 5
lb, not 28.
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Default What is mercury worth?

On Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:15:37 -0400, "DrollTroll"
wrote:


"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.


One of the kids WILL lift it, then drop it. That could be a problem.

Thank You,
Randy

Remove 333 from email address to reply.
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Yeah! And if one of them get a hernia who's to blame?

Bob Swinney
"DrollTroll" wrote in message ...

"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.
--
DT


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"DrollTroll" wrote in message ...

"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.
--
DT

Yeah! And if one of them gets a hernia, who's to blame?

Bob Swinney


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clare at snyder dot ontario dot canada wrote in message
...
On Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:15:37 -0400, "DrollTroll"
wrote:


"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.



Except 5lbs is a lot less than a quart - and, obviously, weighs only 5
lb, not 28.


Just a guess, but I'll hazard that your density exceeds that of mercury.
--
DT



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"Randy" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:15:37 -0400, "DrollTroll"
wrote:


"RB" wrote in message
...
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons: some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.


One of the kids WILL lift it, then drop it. That could be a problem.

Thank You,
Randy

Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small amount
of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll. That episode
cost the school district a few thousand dollars in monitoring and cleanup.
If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be a financial disaster.


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"ATP*" wrote in message
...

"Randy" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:15:37 -0400, "DrollTroll"
wrote:


"RB" wrote in message
.. .
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?

Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons:
some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly
heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.


One of the kids WILL lift it, then drop it. That could be a problem.

Thank You,
Randy

Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll. That
episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in monitoring and
cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be a financial
disaster.


Which of course was a knee-jerk bureaucratic reaction by some asshole.

Of course, the above quart demo would be done with frozen mercury.
--
DT






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"DrollTroll" wrote in message
...

"ATP*" wrote in message
...

"Randy" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:15:37 -0400, "DrollTroll"
wrote:


"RB" wrote in message
. ..
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?

Suggest someone bring it to a local HS/college lab.
Makes a great class demo:
Put it in a clear quart container. Put water in another clear quart
container. Have class pass by, each student lifting the quart of water,
then merc.
Most will not be able to lift the quart of mercury--for two reasons:
some
simply don't have the strength, but for many, it is so unexpectedly
heavy,
they think it's actually glued to the counter top, and stop trying.

2# vs. about 28#, more than a 25# barbell plate--not easy to lift off
balance or out of position.

One of the kids WILL lift it, then drop it. That could be a problem.

Thank You,
Randy

Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll.
That episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in
monitoring and cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be
a financial disaster.


Which of course was a knee-jerk bureaucratic reaction by some asshole.

That's today's reality, whether you agree with it or not.


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Whatever you do with it, ITS A FELONY! Just kidding, but you need to send
it to me. It is useful here in the Mother Lode for gold recovery.
--
Stupendous Man,
Defender of Freedom, Advocate of Liberty

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Default What is mercury worth?

Make motors,
Make mirrors

It is useful in the right hands, causes chills in some if they know, and
hasmat.

Martin
Martin H. Eastburn
@ home at Lions' Lair with our computer lionslair at consolidated dot net
TSRA, Endowed; NRA LOH & Patron Member, Golden Eagle, Patriot's Medal.
NRA Second Amendment Task Force Charter Founder
IHMSA and NRA Metallic Silhouette maker & member.
http://lufkinced.com/



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"Stupendous Man" wrote in message
...
Whatever you do with it, ITS A FELONY! Just kidding, but you need to
send it to me. It is useful here in the Mother Lode for gold recovery.
--
Stupendous Man,
Defender of Freedom, Advocate of Liberty


I still have a little over three pounds of it, which I intend to keep as
long as I keep my Hi-Standard Supermatic pistol. Lead builds up in the
muzzle brake, and mercury is the only thing that will get it out without
damage. I used it in a single-shot rifle in which I shot lead bullets, too,
but that one is long gone.

--
Ed Huntress


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On Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:00:01 -0400, "ATP*"
wrote:



Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll.
That episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in
monitoring and cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be
a financial disaster.


Which of course was a knee-jerk bureaucratic reaction by some asshole.

That's today's reality, whether you agree with it or not.

Back when I was a kid, we used a mixture od asbestos and plaster of
paris as a modelling "clay".Made all sorts of electrical aparatus with
mercury.
Some people think I'm crazy - mabee the "mad as a hatter" syndrome
from the mercury?????

Yes, the stuff CAN be dangerous - but the world has gone totally
overboard - anything that could POSSIBLY hurt us is controlled to the
enth degree - while WHAT IS KILLING US is largely unaddressed. (and
when "they" get around to addressing whatever that is, they'll go
overboard again, as usual)
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **
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clare at snyder dot ontario dot canada wrote in message
...
On Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:00:01 -0400, "ATP*"
wrote:



Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll.
That episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in
monitoring and cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would
be
a financial disaster.

Which of course was a knee-jerk bureaucratic reaction by some asshole.

That's today's reality, whether you agree with it or not.

Back when I was a kid, we used a mixture od asbestos and plaster of
paris as a modelling "clay".Made all sorts of electrical aparatus with
mercury.
Some people think I'm crazy - mabee the "mad as a hatter" syndrome
from the mercury?????

Yes, the stuff CAN be dangerous - but the world has gone totally
overboard - anything that could POSSIBLY hurt us is controlled to the
enth degree - while WHAT IS KILLING US is largely unaddressed. (and
when "they" get around to addressing whatever that is, they'll go
overboard again, as usual)
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **


The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of organic
compounds.

--
Ed Huntress


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On Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:55:55 -0400, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:


clare at snyder dot ontario dot canada wrote in message
.. .
On Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:00:01 -0400, "ATP*"
wrote:



Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll.
That episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in
monitoring and cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would
be
a financial disaster.

Which of course was a knee-jerk bureaucratic reaction by some asshole.

That's today's reality, whether you agree with it or not.

Back when I was a kid, we used a mixture od asbestos and plaster of
paris as a modelling "clay".Made all sorts of electrical aparatus with
mercury.
Some people think I'm crazy - mabee the "mad as a hatter" syndrome
from the mercury?????

Yes, the stuff CAN be dangerous - but the world has gone totally
overboard - anything that could POSSIBLY hurt us is controlled to the
enth degree - while WHAT IS KILLING US is largely unaddressed. (and
when "they" get around to addressing whatever that is, they'll go
overboard again, as usual)
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **


The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of organic
compounds.



I should hope not as they used to mix it with silver and poke it in
your teeth.

Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)
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"Bruce in Bangkok" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:55:55 -0400, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:


clare at snyder dot ontario dot canada wrote in message
. ..
On Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:00:01 -0400, "ATP*"
wrote:



Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll.
That episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in
monitoring and cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there
would
be
a financial disaster.

Which of course was a knee-jerk bureaucratic reaction by some asshole.

That's today's reality, whether you agree with it or not.

Back when I was a kid, we used a mixture od asbestos and plaster of
paris as a modelling "clay".Made all sorts of electrical aparatus with
mercury.
Some people think I'm crazy - mabee the "mad as a hatter" syndrome
from the mercury?????

Yes, the stuff CAN be dangerous - but the world has gone totally
overboard - anything that could POSSIBLY hurt us is controlled to the
enth degree - while WHAT IS KILLING US is largely unaddressed. (and
when "they" get around to addressing whatever that is, they'll go
overboard again, as usual)
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **


The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of
organic
compounds.



I should hope not as they used to mix it with silver and poke it in
your teeth.


If you mean by "I should hope not" that metallic mercury is relatively safe,
yes, that's the example often used in explaining it.

--
Ed Huntress




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Ed Huntress wrote:

The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of organic
compounds.


This is true, with one exception: mercury is absorbed very easily
through the lungs as a vapour, and can cause illness as a result.
However, this only happens when there is a lot of mercury vapour in the
air. You would need a large spill, time, and possibly heat to cause it.
Opening a bottle or spilling a few drops won't cause harm.

To put some of the scare stories into perspective, you can eat small
amounts of mercury without coming to any harm. I also read about a guy
in Germany who injected himself with mercury in an attempted suicide.
Some doctors started monitoring for research, and while he suffered some
health problems, he was still alive several years later.

It is pretty damn hard to kill yourself with elemental mercury.

Best wishes,

Chris

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ATP* wrote:

Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small amount
of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll. That episode
cost the school district a few thousand dollars in monitoring and cleanup.
If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be a financial disaster.


This is sad, and quite unnecessary. You pick up all the drops, and check
it isn't spilt under the bench, and you'll be fine. Anything remaining
which is too small to see is insufficient to cause harm. The biggest
danger is if you get a hidden spill, which doesn't get cleaned up.

Best wishes,

Chris

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RB wrote:
Estate sale, fellow has about 5 lbs of liquid metallic mercury.
it was used as adjustable mass/weight in benchrest rifles.
Owner/heir is concerned about EPA issues etc.
But it has a value somewhere.
Do scrap metal dealers buy it?
Is there a price/lb?


It isn't worth a lot, unless you have large quantities that you can sell
to a company which purifies it. I have an almost full 76 lb flask of
mercury, which I'm going to use one day for building a real showpiece of
a barometer. Probably in an art deco style. I bought the mercury for
next to nothing. People just want to get rid of it.

It is insanely cool, though. Great fun to play with. You can float
chunks of lead in it. Pour it, play with the drops. It's especially
surprising that it has a similar viscosity to water.

You can also pretend that the flasks contain nuclear waste, which is funny.

Best wishes,

Chris

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On 2008-07-30, Bruce in Bangkok wrote:
On Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:55:55 -0400, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:


[ ... ]

The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of organic
compounds.



I should hope not as they used to mix it with silver and poke it in
your teeth.


They still do that with teeth which don't show in your smile. I
got a mercury amalgam filling within the last year in Northern VA.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
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On 31 Jul 2008 00:07:12 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, "DoN.
Nichols" quickly quoth:

On 2008-07-30, Bruce in Bangkok wrote:
On Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:55:55 -0400, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:


[ ... ]

The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of organic
compounds.



I should hope not as they used to mix it with silver and poke it in
your teeth.


They still do that with teeth which don't show in your smile. I
got a mercury amalgam filling within the last year in Northern VA.


I did, too, and it surprised the hell out of me when I heard that
familiar crunch and squeal of the burnisher, packing in the amalgam. I
didn't think they used merc fillings any more.

--
Imagination is more important than knowledge...
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)


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Larry Jaques wrote:
On 31 Jul 2008 00:07:12 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, "DoN.
Nichols" quickly quoth:


On 2008-07-30, Bruce in Bangkok wrote:

On Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:55:55 -0400, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:


[ ... ]


The danger of mercury lies primarily with its organic compounds. Liquid,
metallic mercury itself is not particularly toxic. The problem, of course,
is that letting it out into the environment allows the production of organic
compounds.

I should hope not as they used to mix it with silver and poke it in
your teeth.

They still do that with teeth which don't show in your smile. I
got a mercury amalgam filling within the last year in Northern VA.


I did, too, and it surprised the hell out of me when I heard that
familiar crunch and squeal of the burnisher, packing in the amalgam. I
didn't think they used merc fillings any more.

I asked my dentist about it recently when I got a filling replaced, he
used the modern plastic filling but said that mercury amalgam was still
an option and was more durable than the plastic fillings.

--
Imagination is more important than knowledge...
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

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In article ,
Christopher Tidy wrote:

ATP* wrote:

Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount
of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll. That episode
cost the school district a few thousand dollars in monitoring and cleanup.
If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be a financial disaster.


This is sad, and quite unnecessary. You pick up all the drops, and check
it isn't spilt under the bench, and you'll be fine. Anything remaining
which is too small to see is insufficient to cause harm. The biggest
danger is if you get a hidden spill, which doesn't get cleaned up.


In the 1960s, the standard lab cleanup approach for spilled mercury was
to sprinkle flowers of sulfur on the floor, sweep it around, wait a
while, and vacuum it all up. One can do this periodically to catch
undetected spills, as the sulfur is cheap and harmless.

I recall reading this in lab handbooks of that day as well.

Joe Gwinn
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"Christopher Tidy" wrote in message
...
Joseph Gwinn wrote:
In article ,
Christopher Tidy wrote:


ATP* wrote:


Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll.
That episode cost the school district a few thousand dollars in
monitoring and cleanup. If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would
be a financial disaster.

This is sad, and quite unnecessary. You pick up all the drops, and check
it isn't spilt under the bench, and you'll be fine. Anything remaining
which is too small to see is insufficient to cause harm. The biggest
danger is if you get a hidden spill, which doesn't get cleaned up.



In the 1960s, the standard lab cleanup approach for spilled mercury was
to sprinkle flowers of sulfur on the floor, sweep it around, wait a
while, and vacuum it all up. One can do this periodically to catch
undetected spills, as the sulfur is cheap and harmless.


The sulphur is a common method, although I have read at least once that it
is ineffective. I would be interested to know if this is true.

The vacuum cleaner is a really bad idea. It will just help to vaporise any
remaining liquid mercury.

Best wishes,

Chris


Sweeping is a bad idea. It breaks up the droplets.

Here are some recommendations from EPA. They sound a lot less draconian than
some of the things we've heard from other sources:

http://www.epa.gov/mercury/spills/index.htm#whatnever

--
Ed Huntress


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Joseph Gwinn wrote:
In article ,
Christopher Tidy wrote:


ATP* wrote:


Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount
of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll. That episode
cost the school district a few thousand dollars in monitoring and cleanup.
If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be a financial disaster.


This is sad, and quite unnecessary. You pick up all the drops, and check
it isn't spilt under the bench, and you'll be fine. Anything remaining
which is too small to see is insufficient to cause harm. The biggest
danger is if you get a hidden spill, which doesn't get cleaned up.



In the 1960s, the standard lab cleanup approach for spilled mercury was
to sprinkle flowers of sulfur on the floor, sweep it around, wait a
while, and vacuum it all up. One can do this periodically to catch
undetected spills, as the sulfur is cheap and harmless.


The sulphur is a common method, although I have read at least once that
it is ineffective. I would be interested to know if this is true.

The vacuum cleaner is a really bad idea. It will just help to vaporise
any remaining liquid mercury.

Best wishes,

Chris

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In article ,
Christopher Tidy wrote:

Joseph Gwinn wrote:
In article ,
Christopher Tidy wrote:


ATP* wrote:


Some idiot science teacher in a local middle school sprinkled a small
amount
of mercury on a lab table to show the kids how the drops roll. That
episode
cost the school district a few thousand dollars in monitoring and cleanup.
If a quart of mercury was dropped, there would be a financial disaster.

This is sad, and quite unnecessary. You pick up all the drops, and check
it isn't spilt under the bench, and you'll be fine. Anything remaining
which is too small to see is insufficient to cause harm. The biggest
danger is if you get a hidden spill, which doesn't get cleaned up.



In the 1960s, the standard lab cleanup approach for spilled mercury was
to sprinkle flowers of sulfur on the floor, sweep it around, wait a
while, and vacuum it all up. One can do this periodically to catch
undetected spills, as the sulfur is cheap and harmless.


The sulphur is a common method, although I have read at least once that
it is ineffective. I would be interested to know if this is true.


I've heard the assertion, but don't know if it's true either. I'm a
little suspicious, because sulfur was considered effective for at least
a century, that is until mercury became anathema.

The Handbook of Batteries used to have a section on mercury batteries.
In older sections, it said that you could extend the shelf life of a
mercury battery by freezing it (true of all batteries, actually), and
gave a helpful little chart plotting life versus storage temperature.
(The battery doesn't really freeze in a domestic freezer.) In later
editions, the section became vestigal, and it was claimed that freezing
didn't help, but no reference was cited, or reason given for the change.
Then it disappeared altogether. You can probably guess the timeframe.
And motivation.


The vacuum cleaner is a really bad idea. It will just help to vaporise
any remaining liquid mercury.


Not if the flowers of sulfur are along for the ride. That was the whole
point of using flowers of sulfur.

Joe Gwinn


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On Jul 31, 6:34 am, Larry Jaques
wrote:
I did, too, and it surprised the hell out of me when I heard that
familiar crunch and squeal of the burnisher, packing in the amalgam. I
didn't think they used merc fillings any more.


Yup. I got one a month ago. Still popular because it's cheap
and lasts a long time and is a lot safer than it was.
My former dentist had been a mechanical engineer before he
became a dentist. (Just think of all those years in university...) He
told me (and showed me, because I was doing some mechanical design
work at the time and we talked as much as I could with my mouth full
of his fingers and tools and rubber dams and air drills and vacuums;
my very own little machine shop) that the mercury and silver were now
prepackaged in a small plastic vial that has two compartments. The
amounts of each element in the vial are very precisely measured; it
was the surplus of mercury or poor mixing that used to cause problems
when dentists had to measure out the bits and mash them together.
Anyway, this vial is put into a shaker that vibrates it so hard that
the barrier between the compartments breaks and the mix occurrs, very
violently and completely. Any leaching of mercury out of your teeth
will likely take a lot longer to kill you than the other things we
face.

Dan
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On Thu, 31 Jul 2008 19:42:13 -0700 (PDT),
wrote:

On Jul 31, 6:34 am, Larry Jaques
wrote:
I did, too, and it surprised the hell out of me when I heard that
familiar crunch and squeal of the burnisher, packing in the amalgam. I
didn't think they used merc fillings any more.


Yup. I got one a month ago. Still popular because it's cheap
and lasts a long time and is a lot safer than it was.
My former dentist had been a mechanical engineer before he
became a dentist. (Just think of all those years in university...) He
told me (and showed me, because I was doing some mechanical design
work at the time and we talked as much as I could with my mouth full
of his fingers and tools and rubber dams and air drills and vacuums;
my very own little machine shop) that the mercury and silver were now
prepackaged in a small plastic vial that has two compartments. The
amounts of each element in the vial are very precisely measured; it
was the surplus of mercury or poor mixing that used to cause problems
when dentists had to measure out the bits and mash them together.
Anyway, this vial is put into a shaker that vibrates it so hard that
the barrier between the compartments breaks and the mix occurrs, very
violently and completely. Any leaching of mercury out of your teeth
will likely take a lot longer to kill you than the other things we
face.

Dan


you do realise that the mercury that leaches out of fillings is
removed from your body in your urine.
it doesnt usually accumulate in your system.
Stealth Pilot
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Joseph Gwinn wrote:

The vacuum cleaner is a really bad idea. It will just help to vaporise
any remaining liquid mercury.



Not if the flowers of sulfur are along for the ride. That was the whole
point of using flowers of sulfur.


If the sulphur method works, to use the vacuum cleaner afterwards is
probably okay. But I've heard of people just vacuuming up the drops of
mercury, which is a really bad idea.

Chris

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In article ,
Christopher Tidy wrote:

Joseph Gwinn wrote:

The vacuum cleaner is a really bad idea. It will just help to vaporise
any remaining liquid mercury.



Not if the flowers of sulfur are along for the ride. That was the whole
point of using flowers of sulfur.


If the sulphur method works, to use the vacuum cleaner afterwards is
probably okay. But I've heard of people just vacuuming up the drops of
mercury, which is a really bad idea.


No doubt. Most people do not read the instructions.

Joe Gwinn
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