How to Care for an Alkaline Burn

Alkaline burns can come from various household cleaners, from mixing concrete, or any number of activities involving lime, lye, or various alkalines. You will recognize a lime burn because a small green ring will spread across the area exposed to the alkali and it will slowly dissolve the skin. Here are some ways to help stop the burns and ease the pain.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Clean water
• Wash cloth
• Vegetable oil
• Plastic wrap

1. Dip the affected area in cool, clean water. This may be alarming at first because the dissolved skin will float off of you, but this should ease the pain a little and get any excess alkali powder or liquid off of your skin.
2. Carefully rub the affected areas with a damp wash cloth. This will hurt, but it should help remove the remaining alkaline.
3. Spread vegetable oil on the affected area. This will ease the pain a little if it's cool and it will also make the burns stop spreading across your skin.
4. Wrap plastic wrap around the area covered in vegetable oil, this will hold the oil close to the skin and also help keep you from getting infections, because your skin will be exposed at this point.
5. Seek medical attention. Have someone drive you to a hospital, or if there is a medical professional nearby, have them treat you. For severe burns an ambulance may be required, but just be sure to have it treated professionally.

Tips & Warnings

• These steps are only temporary measures to ease pain and slow down the burning process, you must seek professional medical help if you are suffering from alkaline burns.
• Prevention is your most important tool, wear protective equipment when working with alkalines so you are never in this predicament.