Mercury Switch

Hello Guest,

Mercury switches are not used so often now, because of the toxicity of mercury metal and vapour at room temperature, of the glass phial is broken.

Try a Reed Switch on the fixed part, and a permanent magnet on the moving part.

Advise whether that would be suitable.

Kind Regards....

http://www.comus-intl.com/comustilttip.asp

Do you mean a tilt switch? Or a switch with wetted contacts? Or what?

absolutely a tilt switch, i want to connect some triggering devices pararllely to an alarm.

i want to to use other switch instead of tilt switch

Please explain why you want to want to trigger something from detection of a tilt.

Also, please register.

I think what everyone is too timid to ask is "Why do you want to use a device that is typically used in terrorist bombs?"

I wish terrorists would use them - as they are not easily portable they could blow themselves up.

Suggest a ball bearing in a plastic tube. will do same thing. Ball has to make contact with two filaments. If you can get a brass ball (pawnbroker) you will get better contact but if steel ball is heavy enough it should work. Sparking could cause erosion so best if tube is filled with nitrogen (liquid would be easy - local medics have flasks) or helium (from a novelty shop - buy a balloon full)

I am looking for a self leveling platform. Could this switch work in this type of device?

FOR A SELF LEVELLING DEVICE A PENDULUM ACTION IS USUALLY NEEDED (e.g. GIMBALS)

BALL SWITCH WILL WORK SAME AS MERCURY - KEEP BALL SMALL FOR FINITE WORK - HEAVY BALL WILL MOVE MORE VIOLENTLY - HIGHER ENTROPY.

BALL BEARINGS ARE QUITE GOOD FOR CHECKING FLOOR LEVELS AND OTHER SM0OTH SURFACES. ANY ROUGHNESS WILL MEAN A BIGGER BALL IS NEEDED

NOT QUITE SURE HOW YOU WANT IT TO OPERATE - WILL SWITCH ACTVATE A SOLENOID OR A MOTOR? REMEMBER IT IS STRICTLY ON/OFF - NO MODULATION.

How about a micro switch:-

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=micro+switch&btnG=Google+Search&meta

Find an Old round style furnace thermostat and take it a part. The use mercury switches. Not sure if the old style thermostats sold in the big box hardware stores still have mercury in them or not.

Hello Guest,

Mercury-based tilt switches are becoming harder to hind (due to toxicity), but you can now buy tilt switches without mercury. For example:

http://machinedesign.com/ContentItem/714/68041/TiltSensorSwitch.aspx

Oncque Corporation is a professional manufacturer of Roll Ball Switch and Vibration Switch in Taiwan. Founded in 1996, Oncque has developed a lot of new specification and new designed Roll Ball Switch and Vibration Switch in few years. Until now, Oncque gets more than 10 kinds of patents in this professional field.

You can visit its website, www.oncque.com, for more information!!