Many people are turning to hot water bottles in a bid to keep warm as the traditional devices are a cheap way to 'heat the person, not the room' if you're trying to cut energy bills. But what many people don't know is that all hot water bottles should have a hidden code that will tell you if they're safe to use.
The number is important because people are now getting hot water bottles out of the cupboard after years of storage. Old bottles will degrade over time and can split open - covering you or your children in scalding water.
Consumer expert Alice Beer appeared on This Morning this week to explain the system, and why it is important. Alice sais she had been contacted by a parent whose child suffered third-degree burns after her hot water bottle had burst. Hospitals say it is a regular occurence.
Alice said: "Half of hot water bottle injuries need skin grafts and surgeries. These are not surface burns, these go really deep."
Hot water bottles can be used for around three years before they are replaced.
But the age of bottles is not always easy to tell. Whikle some have an expiry date, or manufacture date that is easy to read - m,any have a complicated system.
It involves a circle, and petals with dots.
Alice said: "I'm sorry, but I think this is the worst system for printing a date because it's so confusing. Inside you have got a daisy wheel date. It's got 12 segments and in the middle of this one you have got a 22. This one was made in 2022. Then you have 12 segments around the outside and those are the months.
"You can tell the month it was manufactured from when the dots end. It's got dots in eight segments so it was made in August."
The number of dots on a hot water bottle indicates the week it was made.
People should also avoid using boiling hot water, and should remove any cover to check the condition of the bottle.
A nurse who needed a skin graft after being burnt by a hot water bottle is raising safety awareness to help spare others the same pain.
Emma Walters returned to her Neath home after a night shift in Morriston’s Coronary Care Unit. “The house was cold so I filled a hot water bottle with boiling water.
“The bottle had a fur cover and I was wearing pyjamas. I went to sleep on my side with the bottle tucked into my stomach.
“When I woke up I had a large blister on my stomach. I wasn’t in pain but I realised it was a burn.
“I was seen by a nurse practitioner in the Emergency Department when I went into work. They said I needed to be seen by the burns department.”
Attempts were made over a fortnight to heal the burn with daily dressings. That failed, and by then it was clear a skin graft was required.
“They didn’t think it would heal otherwise. It was in a difficult place, on my stomach, with my clothes constantly rubbing against it.”
Surgeons carried out the graft using skin from Emma’s thigh. It took many weeks to heal and she was only able to return to work this month.
“Like many people, I thought it’s okay to use boiling water in a hot water bottle. Now I know it’s not.
“I want to raise awareness now so it doesn’t happen to anyone else. It’s such a simple accident but the implications are huge.
“There were financial implications with my job because they had to provide cover for me. But the physical pain and emotional trauma have been horrific. I can’t tell you how painful the graft was.”
Morriston Hospital plastic surgeon Jeremy Yarrow said injuries from hot water bottles were unfortunately all too common.
“We see patients throughout the year with these burns, not just in the winter as you might expect. Patients also use hot water bottles like a compress to relieve pain.
“The worst I have seen is when patients use them on areas with impaired sensation such as diabetic feet. That could have very serious implications including, in severe cases, amputations.
“Most injuries are caused by bottles bursting or failure of the rubber, particularly if it is old. We also see injuries from prolonged contact with the bottle or part of the bottle cover whilst patients are asleep.
“We can see more than 20 injuries of this type per year. Around half of these are children and more than half of patients require admission to hospital for wound care.
“I would encourage everyone to follow the safety tips to avoid these preventable injuries.”
Safety tips
- Fill the bottle with hot, but not boiling water
- Make sure the stopper is securely screwed on
- Fill the bottle to a maximum of three-quarters full
- Wrap the bottle in a towel to prevent direct contact
- Avoid taking the bottle to bed
- Frequently examine the bottle for signs of wear and tear
- Make sure it has been tested to BS1970:2006 standards
- Expel all air above the water level before sealing carefully, to prevent injury from the escaping hot steam
- Replace the bottle after two years
- Special care should be taken when used by those with sensory deficits, the elderly and children
