On 09 Apr 2008 10:34:48 GMT, Jay Ts
wrote:
Jeff Liebermann wrote:
The State of Maine did some research on the handling of broken CFL lamps
to avoid mercury poisoning. Basically, let the mercury vapor dissipate
before cleaning up the mess. See:
http://maine.gov/dep/rwm/homeowner/cflreport.htm
Thanks for that, Jeff.
Y'er welcome. I hadn't even thought of exposure issues prior to
reading it myself.
I really wish I'd read that before breaking the bulb! ;-)
At the time, I just did what seemed like the best thing
to do, but I only got it about half right.
Nice trick, to use duct tape instead of a vaccuum cleaner.
I use a dust mask and a broom for broken glass. I've shredded at
least 2 paper vacuum cleaner bags trying to vacuum broken glass with
sharp edges.
Now I need to put a new vacuum cleaner on my shopping list.
Thing is, I have 2 of them, and I don't remember which one
I used to clean it up! I assumed that because I didn't see
any mercury, I was just vacuuming up a few tiny bits of
glass. Bummer.
I don't think the amount of mercury involved was sufficient to justify
a new vacuum cleaner. Just replace the bag and be done with it. If
paranoid, clean out the vacuum cleaner with a compressed air hose, but
do it outside.
I did some Googling for how much mercury is found in CFL lamps. The
numbers vary from 2.5mg to 10.0mg depending on size. Several
manufacturers advertise low or reduced mercury content in their CFL
bulbs. Methinks 20mg is far too high, unless it's a very large bulb.
It was huge. I'm not sure now, but it might have been a 150 watt equiv.
Some manufacturers will identify the amount of mercury in their lamps.
If you can identify the manufactory, you can lookup the mercury
content. Most of it will be vaporized when you broke the bulb, so the
real danger is doing the cleanup in a closed room. That's why I
suggested that if it happens again, give it time for the mercury to
dissipate.
Also, 5mg of Hg is a small volume thanks to the high density of
mercury. At 13.6g/cm3, 5mg will be only 0.000368 ml in volume.
http://www.allmeasures.com/formulae/static/materials/63/density.htm
I've worked with large amounts of metallic mercury. Safety is always
an issue but accidents do happen. When spilled, the easiest way to
pickup the droplets is by first freezing the area with dry ice (frozen
CO2). The mercury will harden, where it can be picked up with
tweezers or a broom. When the CO2 melts, errr.... evaporates, the
mercury returns to its liquid state.
Fortunately, I've already been through the heavy metal detox thing,
and know how to flush the stuff out of my body pretty quickly. (As
in a couple of years.) Metallic mercury isn't so bad, as compared
to methyl mercury. I was amazed at how quickly I started feeling
better after I had my mercury fillings removed.
Some medical details on heavy metal poisoning:
http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz..._poisoning.jsp
Heavy metals are stored by the body in various places, usually the
fatty tissues. They can sit there for years and not have any effect
on your health. However, as the fat content of the body cells are
consumed by exercise, the metals are extracted, disolved in the blood,
where it can do some real damage. This incidentally is why some
people feel really lousy when engaged in a weight loss program.
I've discussed amalgum removal with my dentist. He indicated that it
can often go wrong, where more mercury is released during the
extraction, than would ever be released by leaving them in place. The
issue is apparently controversial, and the procedure somewhat
expensive. He suggested that unless I exhibit symptoms of heavy metal
poisoning, to do nothing.
About 20 years ago, one of my wisdom teeth decided to crack open while
eating. I accidentally swallowed the entire filling and half the
tooth. Other than a compulsion to waste huge amounts of time
answering questions on usenet, there have been no obvious symptoms.
There is something to the colonics, chelation, detox, and similar
exercises in cleaning out the plumbing. I've done it twice, with some
minor positive effects. My guess is that I was feeling better only by
comparison, as I was feeling really lousy prior to and during the
flush. The accompanying change of diet was also a big help.
Incidentally, when I was much younger, I developed a rather large
number of dental cavities. The fillings in my teeth are evidence of
this era. When I was about 18, I suddenly decided that tooth paste
was a problem, not a solution. I switched to using baking soda, or
just plain water for brushing my teeth. I still had a few residual
problems for about 5 years, and one root canal, but otherwise have had
almost perfect teeth since then. I wish I had figured that out
earlier.
--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060
http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558