Hi fellas, as cautious as I am accidents can still happen , I have burnt my right lower leg. It’s bad, I’m having it treated and looked after, When I was lighting a Tilley Ex4 it didn’t light up as I was doing other things while it was pre heating, so I re soaked my torch and tried again, it light up so I removed the torch but burning metho must have dripped onto my pants before I could blow out the torch, I felt something stinging in my pants leg I looked down and saw I was on fire. I quickly pattered out the flames but the damage was done, bad burn to leg, burnt my pants and polyester thermal underwear making it worse.
Heck, Darryl, sorry to see you’ve been injured. Good of you to post as a warning and wishing you a speedy recovery. John
Such an unfortunate thing to happen and so unknowly quickly. Like others best wishes for a comfortable speedy recovery.
Omg that is a really nasty burn Burning alcohol is especially dangerous as it can burn with nearly invisible flames, shifting the point of notice from when you see you're on fire to when you feel you're on fire Posts like this are for me an extra reminder to take good care. Accidents like this happen when you least expect them and when your mind is occupied with other things than the task at hand. I hope your leg heals quickly.
@Darryl Durdin Sorry to hear of your injury. These things are always waiting to happen on anyone in the hobby. The flames of burning methanol or denatured alcohol are very pale and not particularly obvious to easily sight. On a bright environment, they are almost invisible. Just ensure the wound is always kept dry and surgically clean. Don't skip the antiseptics and other medications. Keep it away from damp environments if possible. You might have a harder time bathing at the moment. Depending on your bathroom conditions, you might even need to avoid your usual light ups in it for the time being .
I recently read that honey is a very good antiseptic and contributes to the reconstruction of the skin during burns. Speedy recovery @Darryl Durdin
Jeez Darryl, that looks bloody painful! Hopefully it'll be ok given time. I messed up myself a few months ago and the shock really made me take safety a whole lot more seriously!
My goodness, that was a shock seeing your burn. Do take good care through the healing process. I am certain you have good care around you. Your post is a salient reminder to us all that mishaps can occur more easily than we think and we must all think about staying safe every time we light stuff. Best wishes.
Thanks for reminding us all again about the hazards in our hobby. All the best for your fast recovery.
Thank you everyone for your concerns and well wishes. I’ve had it covered and dressed with a what’s called a silver dressing that I have to moisten twice daily, it’s coming along. I get the dressing changed again on Friday next. Here’s the latest picture
Darryl, Your post has reminded us all about the nature of the beast we tinker with. I for one, was firing up a newly fettled old Ohio made Royal iron that had caused me a lot of grief repairing. I double checked everything before gingerley lighting it up on Shellite. Hang in there and keep making good progress.
@Darryl Durdin I can sincerely recommend this: Vetramil pomata miele 10 gr | eBay (You can most likely get it cheaper near you). We use it on humans - our dogs - horses etc. It really works wonders. By the way your wound looks - I’d recommend a good layer and no dressing in the daytime (to get max air) and a thin layer in combi. with a jello-net bandage for burn wounds at nights. I’ll bet you a cold Fosters, that you can see the difference after a few days. All the best. Cheers
Hi there, my leg is coming along. There’s been no infection. I’ve had what they call a silver dressing that I had to wet down twice a day, that how they work with the moisture. Now I put a new dressing every day beterdine antiseptic spray let it dry and redress, is all good and thank you for asking
Phew, looks like a good recovery. It's a long time since I did myself such an injury but can remember the urge to scratch it, peel it, etc!
