Motion Pro Mercury - Manual (Page 2)

1 – Put on rubber or latex gloves.
2 – If there are any broken pieces of glass or sharp objects, pick them up with care. Place all broken objects on a paper
towel. Fold the paper towel and place in a zip lock bag. Secure the bag and label it as directed by your local health or
fire department.
3 – Locate visible mercury beads. Use a squeegee or cardboard to gather mercury beads. Use slow sweeping motions to
keep mercury from becoming uncontrollable. Take a flashlight, hold it at a low angle close to the floor in a darkened
room and look for additional glistening beads of mercury that may be sticking to the surface or in small cracked areas
of the surface. Note: Mercury can move surprising distances on hard-flat surfaces, so be sure to inspect the entire
room when “searching.”
4 – Use the eyedropper to collect or draw up the mercury beads. Slowly and carefully squeeze mercury onto a damp
paper towel. Place the paper towel in a zip lock bag and secure. Make sure to label the bag as directed by your local
health or fire department.
5 – After you remove larger beads, put shaving cream on top of small paint brush and gently “dot” the affected area to pick
up smaller hard-to-see beads. Alternatively, use duct tape to collect smaller hard-to-see beads. Place the paint brush
or duct tape in a zip lock bag and secure. Make sure to label the bag as directed by your local health or fire
department.
6 – OPTIONAL STEP: It is OPTIONAL to use commercially available powdered sulfur to absorb the beads that are too
small to see. The sulfur does two things: (1) it makes the mercury easier to see since there may be a color change
from yellow to brown and (2) it binds the mercury so that it can be easily removed and suppresses the vapor of any
missing mercury. Where to get commercialized sulfur? It may be supplied as mercury vapor absorbent in mercury spill
kits, which can be purchased from laboratory, chemical supply and hazardous materials response supply
manufacturers.
7 – Place all materials used with the cleanup, including gloves, in a trash bag. Place all mercury beads and objects into
the trash bag. Secure trash bag and label it as directed by your local health or fire department.
8 – Contaminated carpeting should be removed and disposed of in accordance with federal, state and local regulations
9 – Contact your local health department, municipal waste authority or your local fire department for proper disposal in
accordance with local, state and federal laws.
Text from the www.epa.gov web site.
Procedures for a small Mercury spill clean up