It’s that time of year again…homeowners are thinking of upgrading their heating or cooling systems….which in some cases includes replacing older thermostats. Traditionally, thermostats used in residences, businesses and even instituitions contained mercury.
Not sure if you have one? Take the front cover off—-if you see glass tubes with a silver liquid inside, you definately have one of these dinosaurs. Mercury thermostats can contain 1 to 4 of these little glass bulbs. Each bulb(switch) contains about 2.5 grams of mercury.
Mercury is a highly poisonous substance. Just 1 gram of this silvery liquid can contaminate an 8 hectare lake making any fish inedible for 1 year! Not only is it harmful to the environment and amimals, it can also cause health problems in humans…impairment of vision, speech, hearing, loss of hair and teeth, lack of coordination, and in some cases death.
It is imperative that none of these vessels reach the landfill. NEVER under ANY circumstance, pour the mercury down the sink!
‘SWITCH THE STAT’ program administered by the HRAI( Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute), is Canada wide for safe disposal of mercury thermostats.
For more info go to www.switch the stat .ca
We would be happy to pick up your old Mercurty thermostat when we are in the neighbourhood…free of charge! It can also be dropped off at our Main Office location.