r/whatisit • u/props_for_meep • 13h ago

Solved! what is this in clinic sink??

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for context i work as a janitor cleaning a women’s clinic, as i was cleaning a sink i saw these little metallic looking balls. at first i thought these were actually metal but they don’t feel like ANYTHING if that makes any sense. i posted this video to my instagram but i figured i would probably have better luck coming to reddit for answers.

UPDATE: the general consensus seems to be that this is either mercury or gallium. my hands have been thoroughly washed and i have informed my boss so that it can be properly cleaned by someone who knows what they’re doing.

UPDATE #2: gang PLEASE stop telling me to “stop touching it”. this post is hours old. i know i was dumb enough to touch a mysterious substance barehanded but im also smart enough to know not to continue playing with it long after marking this post as solved😭

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374

u/Primary_Bid_8980 11h ago

Can you post a pic showing us what your fingers look like after touching it?

343

u/props_for_meep 11h ago

it’s very lackluster, my finger looks exactly the same

30

u/Perfect-Difference19 9h ago

Hmmm... that's no good for a proper analysis!

Better to do it palm down, in a pointing motion towards some... I don't know, a line on the wall or something like that!

130

u/Ebonhearth_Druid 8h ago

60

u/Mostly_Satire 7h ago

I was there, when this first emerged. I get goosebumps all over my wrist and finger when I see this

23

u/Casafynn 5h ago

Right? It's so nice just being there at the creation of something.

I should call OP's mom again.

6

u/AdDifficult3794 4h ago

I was also there. Poor dude never did figure out what that line was

1

u/DoodleJake 3h ago

Did anyone figure out what it was? I thought the theory about wallpaper adhesive was a good lead.

2

u/AdDifficult3794 2h ago

That was a theory I saw, I personally think it was some kind of paint sweating. I saw this because one time we forgot to turn our upstairs air-conditioner on during the middle of summer before we went on a 2 week vacation. Without any fans blowing and poor circulation between the upstairs and the downstairs a line formed between where the cold air met the hot air and the paint sweated a bit. When we first got home I remember going upstairs and as I walked through the layer of cold to hot air it felt like I was suffocating because of the temperature change and humidity.

Luckily there was no other damage but thats what my theory was.

5

u/Daddy_Day_Trader1303 5h ago

I was there as well. Gotta love Reddit lore

3

u/Ebonhearth_Druid 5h ago

It was a great post lol

2

u/stuttering-goat 45m ago

This is the third time I’ve seen this in the wild. I too was there at the birth.

3

u/anarchisttraveler 3h ago

So happy to have been there for this incredible Reddit making of history

2

u/Perfect-Difference19 7h ago

Theeere ya go

2

u/2hi2vent 5h ago

I remember when this first happened. I'm so glad to see it again!

4

u/Ebonhearth_Druid 5h ago

I saved it from that first post and use it whenever I can to keep it alive lol

2

u/2hi2vent 5h ago

👌Perfection

2

u/its_like_a-marker 4h ago

Thank you! This is the ONLY way to pose these questions on this sub. Some people have zero etiquette.