How long should you shake off the thermometer? How to shake a mercury thermometer correctly. You need to learn to shake the thermometer well

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A medical thermometer differs from a weather thermometer not in the composition of the liquid (mercury versus colored alcohol), but in the design itself. It is programmed to display the maximum temperature. The tube with mercury is specially narrowed in the place where it connects to the reservoir. As the temperature in the environment (armpit) increases, the mercury expands and is pushed into the tube. But if the temperature begins to decrease, then mercury cannot return back. She needs an impulse - and then the thermometer is shaken.

“The new thermometers are faulty. By the time you shake off the readings, your arm begins to fall off from tension,” people write on the forums. They are answered: “It’s a matter of skill. The nurses at the hospital are able to shake it off, probably they are taught.” Others agree: you have to wave your hands like a mill, only then will there be a result. And they give advice: “When buying a mercury thermometer, you need to check it. You can rub the tip to make the mercury rise, and then try to shake it off. If it shakes off easily, buy it. If not, ask for another one."

"City 812" turned to the only thermometer production plant remaining in Russia - Termopribor near Moscow - to find out whether there is any special technology shaking: at what angle should you hold the thermometer in your hand and in which direction should you wave it. No, it turned out that there is no technology, and employees of the factory quality control department sometimes spend an hour just shaking one thermometer. The factory check (double) takes place in a centrifuge.

Anatoly Khodun, an employee of the All-Russian Research Institute of Metrology, explained that although the thermometer is a metrological instrument, VNIIM’s responsibilities do not include studying it performance qualities. “The main thing is to show it correctly, and what cannot be used is not for metrologists, but for consumer advocates. And then, before, manufacturers and importers were obliged to carry out tests only at the main institute - our All-Russian Scientific Research Institute, but now it can be done anywhere. Finally, I myself remember Soviet thermometers - not all of them were shaken off at once.”

It’s better to buy an electronic thermometer; at least it’s not as dangerous as a mercury one, the expert advised. Or liquid, but mercury-free. Wholesale price without mercury thermometer(with gallium, tin and indium filler) – from 100 rubles. Externally, it differs from mercury in the color of the metal - blue. But it’s also hard to shake it off.

Mercury is produced in Russia, China and Switzerland. Russian manufacturers they say that problems often arise with Chinese products, but, to be honest, our Russian thermometers are also 70 percent Chinese, since all the components are made there, and only the scale is produced in Russia. Paper. Then they seal it and add polymer coating(not always) and packaged.

An electronic thermometer with a timer costs from 200 to 2000 rubles. Consumers praise electronic thermometers for the fact that they are safe for children, and are criticized for being inaccurate: “ Electronic thermometers, bought by me for 100 rubles, blatantly lied. Most often the temperature was shown below the actual one. 36.6 for mercury and 36.4 for electronic. After two buggy and lying thermometers, I had to go back to the mercury one for 20 rubles.”

Quality Director of the Termopribor plant Viktor Kozlov said that the thermometers still comply with GOST - Soviet, 1954. Since GOST does not stipulate standards for shake-off, consumers will have to be content with what they have. Sometimes there are thermometers with defects that cannot be shaken off. This happens if the mercury capillary is damaged, an air bubble gets into the crack and clogs the tube. But if the thermometer can be shaken (even if only in a centrifuge), it is considered to be working. According to plant employees, low-quality products are returned to them in 0.1% of cases.

Modern mercury thermometers are usually sealed in a polymer shell so that even if dropped, mercury does not leak out of them. Medical institutions As a rule, these are the thermometers that are purchased. Electronic ones, although they act 10 times faster, are not trusted. Russians, far from medicine, prefer ordinary mercury thermometers. Although everyone seems to know what a dangerous thing this is - mercury vapor from a broken thermometer.

“Everyone knows that thermometers in a shell are safer, but they still buy what is cheaper,” noted Viktor Kozlov. - However, they shake themselves no better. In general, after testing, we assign a category to all thermometers, and the price depends on it. The least tight thermometers, that is, those that can be shaken without problems, are called “clinic” and are more expensive. They are usually bought by doctors. Once upon a time, Russian thermometers were manufactured for export and, perhaps, their technical specifications, ease of handling were higher value than now. But for several years now, Europe has abandoned mercury thermometers due to their unsafety. The market is gone, testing may have become less stringent. There is now a worldwide campaign to completely phase out mercury thermometers by 2020.”

Unlike electronic and infrared thermometers, mercury thermometers always need to be brought into working condition. The fact is that, being classified as maximum, it does not reset the temperature readings when cooling and external mechanical forces are required to prepare it for the subsequent operating cycle. To properly shake a mercury thermometer, you will need to read the following.

Before starting the measurement, check whether the medical mercury thermometer requires forced initialization. The fact is that the temperature at which the measurement begins on the scale should not be higher than 35.5 degrees. And if the temperature of the previous measurement is preserved on it, then the next measurement will no longer be reliable, if it takes place at all. It is also necessary to shake the thermometer if the mercury column is divided into several parts, until they merge into one continuous part.

When telling how to shake a thermometer correctly, it should be noted that before starting such an important process, you must first make sure that there are no objects or furniture in the area where you wave your hand with a thermometer, regardless of their degree of hardness, since hitting the thermometer leads to its destruction with subsequent spillage of mercury . If you are not sure that you can hold the thermometer when swinging it, it is better to immediately entrust this task to someone at home.

Don't let children do this on their own. Turn your face towards a soft object of home furnishings, holding it in right hand the thermometer in such a way that it is held securely, but without excessive pressure with your fingers on the fragile glass of the case. If you have a ring on the fingers of your hand with a thermometer, then before shaking it is better to remove it so as not to accidentally crush the thin glass.

Next, we move directly to how to shake the thermometer. Using the method described above, take the thermometer in your right hand, stretch it forward and, lifting it up, sharply lower it. Do this several times, then check the thermometer readings according to the scale graduation. If the thermometer readings are still more than 35 degrees, then repeat this reset several more times until the desired result is achieved.

Another way of shaking is flick not the whole arm, but only the forearm with a bend at the elbow joint, with a sharp end of the movement in the horizontal direction away from you. Of course, it goes without saying that the reservoir tip of the thermometer should be directed, as in the first case, away from you. Once shaking is complete, you can begin measuring the temperature.

It is also worth noting that after measuring, you also need to shake the thermometer until the mercury drops to 35 degrees. The fact is that over the years, due to the adsorption of mercury by glass, the strength of the capillary effect increases, and over time the thermometer begins to show an increasingly higher temperature relative to the actual one. However, according to all standards, it is generally accepted that the shelf life of a medical mercury thermometer is five years, during which it shows a completely reliable temperature, even without shaking after use.

Many families still use a mercury thermometer to measure temperature; not everyone has switched to electronic options. But before you start measuring the temperature, you need to shake it well. Why do you need to knock down a column of mercury? Doesn’t it slide down on its own? No, this is not observed, so you need to shake it off properly so that the column goes down. When the thermometer is shaken poorly, it will indicate the temperature incorrectly. But this does not mean that the device is bad, you just need to learn how to use it correctly.

Maximum mercury thermometers, how they work

Temperature environment lower than body temperature, and the mercury column itself should fall down. However, this does not happen due to the design features. The tube through which the mercury creeps upward has a curvature and narrowing at the border with the flask. This is done to ensure that the mercury remains in place, and the result is available to everyone.
It should be taken into account that the cost of a mercury thermometer is much lower than an electronic one.

Otherwise, if the column dropped, it would be impossible to see the exact temperature, because immediately the column began to fall down. With this option, the indicators will be off. And you can return the thermometer to working condition only with sharp and repeated shaking. If the mercury column on the scale is 35 degrees or higher, the device must be brought into working condition by shaking.

You need to learn to shake the thermometer well

Before you shake the thermometer thoroughly, you need to make sure that it cannot touch any objects. Otherwise, the device will break and you will have to call a demercurization service, since mercury is a poisonous element, or rather its vapors are poisonous. If it is necessary to measure a child’s temperature, under no circumstances should he be allowed to shake off the thermometer on his own.
It is better not to give thermometers to children, as they often break them and then play with mercury balls.
To correctly knock down a column of mercury, you need to stand in front of the sofa with your face, hold the thermometer in your right hand, pointing the mercury flask forward. The thermometer should not be held too tightly, as there is a risk of crushing it. But it is not recommended to take it weakly; it may jump out of your hand. There should not be any rings on your hand at this time. You need to raise your hand and then lower it very sharply. Make several such movements and check the column. If it doesn't come off, shake it off again. Place the finished device under the armpit and hold it for at least 10 minutes, otherwise the value will not be accurate. Take it out and look at the reading. You need to hold the thermometer so that the mercury column reflects the light. It will be impossible to see anything differently. After the measurement, the thermometer is put into a case out of the reach of children.