Thermometer broke!

[jac8724]

Just woke up this morning to find my glass thermometer shattered in the gravel- the little silver balls are all in the gravel. Tried to get the glass shards out as best i could...so how bad is this? Does my water have mercury poisoning? should i do instant 100% water change? Or is it safe?

Im gonna work on getting all those little silver balls out of the gravel. good thing my gravel is white.

 

[rich311k]

They have not used mercury in a thermometer in years. The stuff is deadly, you would be in bad shape just by touching the balls. It is non toxic nothing to really worry at have fun fishing them out.

 

[Hurley]

What kind of thermometer? Most thermometers don't use mercury anymore because of the health hazards. It’s probably an alcohol based mixture. I would just do a couple water changes to help remove the mixture.

 

[jac8724]

Its a thermometer from petsmart so if they stopped using mercury im sure this one doesnt have it. Time to go buy a plastic one! My pleco was probably trying to hang off of it. I hope he doesnt have any injuries =( Thanks for putting my mind at ease.

Im doing 50% water changes every day this week anyways cause a fish just died from columnaris, so its a good week for this to happen.

 

[Ulan]

If the thermometer is old, there's still a chance that it contained mercury. "Little silver balls" sounds like mercury to me. Alcohol-based fillings are usually stained blue or red. They are miscible with water and would not be visible. It might be kerosene-based, though, which is not miscible. Mercury is not miscible with water, either.

Unfortunately, there is no easy solution to that. Definitely wear protective gloves when you deal with it. It easily evaporates, so be quick. I would first remove the droplets with some kind of pipet (turkey baster?). I would remove the fish, drain all the water and completely remove that part of the aquarium decor that came in contact with the mercury.

 

[rich311k]

The little silver balls are the weights at the bottom of the thermometer that makes the business end stay down. No way Petco is selling a thermometer with mercury in it.

 

[krytan]

The little silver balls are the weights at the bottom of the thermometer that makes the business end stay down. No way Petco is selling a thermometer with mercury in it.

:iagree: i would be very surprised if it was mercury.


Have you considered using a digital thermometer?

 

[Ulan]

The little silver balls are the weights at the bottom of the thermometer that makes the business end stay down. No way Petco is selling a thermometer with mercury in it.

Ok, yes, completely forgot about those. That's definitely better for the fish.

I'm really glad that the times of herding mercury puddles with knives are over.

 

[jm1212]

the one in your tank was probably just dyed water.

we havent had Hg thermometers in years...they always worked the best though.

 

[Notophthalmus]

You'll still want to get the balls out, as they likely contain lead or tungsten, but it's not nearly the threat that mercury could be. As jm1212 mentioned, Hg thermometers are more precise and accurate than alcohol thermometers, so they are still used in some laboratory, medical, and industrial applications where that extra precision is important, but they are seldom sold for home use any longer.