Re: Update on lamp blowout

[Mike & Diane Wise <apistowise@bewellnet.com>]

Dave,

It looks like my  professional degree from the Colorado School of Mines in
Hazardous Materials Management might be useful after all. Mercury vapor lamps
use exactly that - elemental mercury (Hg) heated to a gaseous form. The greatest
danger would have been to any air breather that inhaled the mercury gas before
it condensed when it hit the water. Some of it may have dissolved in the water,
but not much. It isn't highly soluble. Your fish might be subjected to heavy
metal poisoning, but cold blooded animals aren't as sensitive to it as warm
blooded animals. There is a slight danger that some of the Hg will form Hg-salts
in the tank. If this is absorbed into your body you could end up with severe
problems. I doubt that this will happen since these lamps don't use a lot of Hg.
If it were my tank, however, I'd drain it down, heavily rinse all of the
equipment, and discard any gravel or porous decorations (wood, etc.).

Mike Wise

"David A. Youngker" wrote:

> I'm not sure just _which_ compounds are used in this application - never
> bothered to check into it. I'm hoping that simple water changes will remove
> the majority, especially coupled with having removed about a 1/4- inch of
> the substrate for any that might have "settled". If nothing else, I figured
> that the vacuuming would remove the glass shards caught up in it.
>
> Cleaned out the filters, too.
>
> What concerns me is the nature of those compounds, though. Mercury as an
> element isn't nearly as dangerous as either a vapor or just about any
> combination to form a compound. It normally affects the nervous system -
> there's a reason we have the phrase "Mad as a Hatter".
>
> Since there are no discernible immediate concerns, I wonder about their
> longevity and reproductive status.
>
>
>
> David A. Youngker
> nestor10@mindspring.com
>
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