Use drain cleaners carefully while doing pre-Lunar New Year cleaning to avoid chemical burns, the Sunshine Social Welfare Foundation said on Saturday.
The foundation said that it has helped three people who sustained chemical burns caused by drain cleaners, two of whom burned their skin as well as their eyes.
One of the people, surnamed Hu (胡), poured drain cleaner into a blocked pipe in a bathroom, which caused the liquid to burst out and cause second-degree burns on her face, it said.
Photo: CNA
The cleaner she used did not work well when she first poured it in, so she tried again by adding hot water afterward, which also failed to unclog the drain, Hu said.
She switched to another brand, but burned herself when the cleaner splashed back out as soon as she poured it in, she said.
She immediately flushed the burnt area with water and continued flushing in the ambulance, which helped reduce the degree of the burn, she said.
She later learned that the two products should not be used successively in a short period of time as the ingredients and usages differ, she said.
The foundation sought professional advice from a plumber, surnamed Chen (陳), who said that most chemical drain cleaners contain a strong alkaline component or strong acid, which causes heat and chemical reactions to dissolve oil, dirt and other blockages.
The products are extremely corrosive and react violently when mixed with water, Chen said, adding that ingredients and usages differ from product to product, and some can be mixed with hot water, while others cannot, so people should read the instructions carefully.
Chemical drain cleaners can also damage pipes and cause them to break, especially old brittle pipes, he said.
He advised people to avoid putting food, oil and hair into drains to prevent clogging.
The foundation urged people who buy chemical drain cleaners to read the instructions carefully, adding that the warnings on the packages should be obvious and easy to understand.
Products should be displayed in stores according to their properties and usages, it added.
Those who burn themselves with drain cleaners should remain calm and flush the affected area with water immediately, but must not immerse the area in water to prevent the chemicals from touching other parts of the body, it said.
When being taken to a hospital, people should inform medical personnel of the cause of the chemical burns and the type of products they were exposed to, it added.
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