All the cold cathode VR tubes are radioactive, as the cathodes include beta emitters to provide electrons for striking. There's not enough of it to worry about, unless you break them open, and accumulate a whole bunch of cathodes. Then you might have a problem.
What he said ^^^. The beta emitters are intended to pre-ionize the gas to ensure reliable, predictable striking of the glow discharge. Since beta particles cannot penetrate the glass envelope there is no danger of exposure from handling the tubes. Even if the tubes were broken the quantity of radioisotopes contained in them is very small. You would have to eat the cathode material to risk any health hazard.
Some VRs are radioactive; some are not. Military versions are more likely to be radioactive, so they can start reliably in the dark. In many cases the gas is radioactive, not the cathode. No special handling needed. If you break the glass don't panic, just ventilate the room for a while before clearing up.
Thanks for the info, I hate when the EPay sellers don't make a note that they are. I have a bunch of other OB2WA's that don't have the radioactive marking and consumer ones without. One of the boxes says contains Nickle-63, the other is just marked Radioactive, but both are RCA. I have seen the same in some Raytheon OB2's but did not purchase them as no need to knowing have radioactive stuff around.
Might have to buy a Geiger counter for the heck of it now, always wanted one with the Civil Defense Logo on it
Sandy
Might have to buy a Geiger counter for the heck of it now, always wanted one with the Civil Defense Logo on it
Sandy
Thanks for the info, I hate when the EPay sellers don't make a note that they are. I have a bunch of other OB2WA's that don't have the radioactive marking and consumer ones without. One of the boxes says contains Nickle-63, the other is just marked Radioactive, but both are RCA. I have seen the same in some Raytheon OB2's but did not purchase them as no need to knowing have radioactive stuff around.
Might have to buy a Geiger counter for the heck of it now, always wanted one with the Civil Defense Logo on it
Sandy
You are getting worried over nothing. The smoke detector in your hallway contains way more radioactive material than any VR tube.
A Geiger counter will tell you nothing about whether a tube has radioisotopes in it, unless you break the tube. The isotopes used (i.e. the Nickel-63 you mentioned) are beta emitters. Beta particles cannot penetrate the glass envelope, so a Geiger counter won't detect anything.
If you really don't want those tubes I will PM you my address and you can send them to me. I ain't scared
Defiant is correct. Read the Ni-63 MSDS. No photons are associated with decay. Only β particles are emitted and the envelope stops those, cold. Whoever made the decision to use Ni-63 was quite clever. There is no real safety hazard in those glow tubes. Beta decay of Ni-63 yields stable Cu-63. Common household smoke detectors are a much greater radiation hazard.
Radon in the gas mixture would have been a poor choice. The α particles it emits are of little concern, but its decay products are γ ray photon emitters.
Radon in the gas mixture would have been a poor choice. The α particles it emits are of little concern, but its decay products are γ ray photon emitters.
Polonium 210, which is a potent alpha emitter. It is believed that the Po210 contributes more to lung cancer risk than the chemical carcinogens in the tobacco.
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