My antique alcohol thermometer

Antiques & Vintage is one of the communities of my preference, however, I see that little is written in it.
The last post was 9 months ago; the average time a woman's gestation lasts. So today we are going to break that silence to bring it to life with a few letters.

Today I am going to tell you about the oldest thermometer we have at home, which is more than 40 years old. Since I was a teenager, I see it hugging a wall and it still works perfectly.

This one was made in China, with a wooden base to be used in a vertical position. Covered by a metal plate with two graduated scales. In the center there is a glass tube, through which the liquid circulates and with its upper level, allows us to know the ambient temperature.

In its upper part it has a flying fish as a logo. A perfect image that in my mind recreates the temperature changes. Lower when the fish is in the sea, and higher when it jumps out of the water.

On the right is its Fahrenheit scale, which ranges from 10 to 120 degrees, and on the left is its Celsius scale, which ranges from 10 to 50 degrees.

Temperature measurement is the main function of a thermometer, hence they are used for various applications: medical use, in open and closed premises, and even to know the internal temperature of a meat or other food.

The best known thermometer is the one we use to know if we have a fever or not. Many of us can remember that mercury inside the thin glass tube. Of the times that when it fell to the floor it would break, spilling that silver colored liquid, forming small balls that when touched would move or divide into smaller ones.

Something that entertained the most curious people, including myself. We squeezed them with our fingers to see how they separated, and how they also joined together to make a ball of larger diameter.

What many did not know, was that these magic balls, is a liquid metal. Very toxic, causing damage to human health, even death, if swallowed, penetrated through a wound or by inhalation.

To avoid these problems, they began to be manufactured with alcoholic solutions, which under the physical principle of Thermal Dilatation, can change their volume, rising to higher temperature and falling to lower through the glass tube.

This alcoholic solution is at the bottom of the numerical scale, and its color varies according to the dyes used.

This old thermometer has a red dye, but there are also those with blue color.
It is a more ecological proposal because if they break, they do not cause damage to humans, other forms of life or nature. However, we should always keep it away from a heat source to avoid a fire if its liquid is spilled.

In my medical experience, contact thermometers with mercury inside are the most accurate, but due to the risks described above, many people opt for alcohol thermometers or digital thermometers.

Thermometers with infrared technology do not require direct contact with the skin and record the temperature at a certain distance. There are also others that have gas inside along with mercury.

Well, I hope you liked knowing this environmental thermometer, which has been part of the objects in my house, and that you have been able to know something interesting about them.

Thanks to those of you who read me.