Mercury Thermostat

Have you guys ever seen a mercury thermostat installed in a house built in 2004? I only see mercury thermostats in older homes. There were other indications that the home may have not been built in 2004.

But at yard sales and change from electronic .
Some like the simple Thermostats .

Mercury in Thermostats

:):wink:

Marcel I include a link for recycling the old thermostats in my reports. I have a discretionary upgrade comment for them. Do you think anyone would install one on a 2004 house?

Many of these are now Mercury-FREE
Look like the older but not the same…

Still available in 2004, weren’t they?

I only upgraded mine a few years ago. They work great. ;):slight_smile:

That is correct Joe, I see them everywhere. :slight_smile:

My 80 yo mother has a fancy programmable job, and calls me over constantly to adjust the temperature.

All the major manufacturers ceased production of mecruy thermsotats by 2009. However, several states, including California, banned the sale and/or installation of mercury thermostats prior to that date.

Likewise, many states prohibit the disposal of mercury thermsotats in the trash and require any that are removed from service be recycled.

The non-profit Thermostat Recycling Corporation, funded by thermostat manufacturers, operates a national take-back program for mercury thermostats. Over 3,000 HVAC wholesale distributors across the country participate in the program as free collection sites for waste mercury thermsotats.

For more information on mercury thermostat laws and places to recycle, visit www.thermostat-recycle.org

It was definitely a Mercury one. I had just never seen one in a newer house and I was already skeptical about the age it was listed at. I guess its not a good indicator of a homes age though

Not sure why the Feds have an issue when they shove CFL bulbs down our throats everyday.

Bingo a very large % end up in the dump .

well do not buy Bob go led better bulb anyway

crap! You mean I can’t give the Mercury to my kids to play with like we used to do in science class?!

Just another law that forces you to buy something you don’t need…

Do I need to post a poll do see how many homeowners throw away their thermostats?

If it’s still on the wall, it’s not doing any harm to anyone!

If they were so damn concerned about it, they wouldn’t be selling new thermostats at Home Depot because you know Billy Joe Bob is going to throw off the right-hand side of the road soon as he’s done changing it out!

Not yet as $25 for 60 watt is still too high.(soon)

When in doubt about the age of a house, take a peek at the casting date inside the toilet tank. They will usually give you a pretty reasonable indication of timeframe.

Also, AFCIs became required in the NEC for residential bedroom circuits in 2002 and the requirement was extended to most rooms with the 2008 edition. Depending on when the AHJ adopted this can also help you bracket the age. The house you inspected should have them in bedroom circuits only if it was built in that timeframe.

Of course the are indicators and not absolute. I don’t try to tell my client when the house was built. I simply use that knowledge to help me inspect the house better.

Thanks for the suggestions!

I wasn’t sure if I was going to say anything or not. I was going to ask that next but the thread did not really go into the direction I was hoping for. Not even close.

As Chuck mentioned, the toilet date is pretty good indicator. I look for that every time. Sometimes there is no date though.
Furnace maintance record sometimes helps out also. :slight_smile:

That usually only works for New Homes (Those less than 50 Years)…
:slight_smile:

You have to be more creative when making age determinations on homes over 100 years…

Foundations and Attics Joe. I can be very creative since my teacher was a builder since the 1930’s. ;):slight_smile: