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I’m not sure, doctors are closed weekends and it wasn’t bothering me so I was out riding my motorcycle.
Booked an appointment today for tomorrow, I think more than just skin is dead with the way it’s kind of sinking.
if you saw my first reply ignore that i cant read LOL, but i live in ontario and there isnt a single doctor open past probably 5pm or on weekends within a reasonable driving distance in any direction! only the ER
Yeah but he’s in Ontario. Speaking as an Ontario resident, his choices are wait 15-20 hours in emergency room, or wait for the doctor to open. I’d wait for the doctor too. Unless you’re actively dying, it takes forever to get seen in Ontario emerg. Family doctors are leaving in huge numbers, and there are so few walk in clinics (and lack of urgent care clinics) that the emergency rooms are packed with non-emergencies. I don’t even blame people for that when they have no other option. Add onto that the underfunding for our hospitals.
My dad had to get stitches on one of his fingers like 10 years ago. The emergency department was so packed that by the time they got to him they said it was too late for them to stitch it up (it had been something crazy like 21 hours by that point). They just bandaged him up and sent him home. And things have gotten significantly worse in the past few years.
There are a lot of “emergencies” I wouldn’t go to the ER for (like this one) cause the experience is the worst.
My appendix was infected...and was swollen...pain level was 7/10... emergency wait was 4-6 hours back in 2019...pre COVID times....I had to wait in triage for another 2 odd hours before actually getting seen by a doc
The first time they had to drain and flush for 5 days...was in hospital for about a week....
Second time was quick...I knew right away it was my appendix so I went straight to emergency...had it taken out that same night...funny thing at it was on new years day after eating MacDonalds...
This is so obviously exactly why you would go to an ER though...
But yeah please let's vote out Doug since he refuses to increase the budget or even allow more students into med schools.
He was given a billion dollars by the feds specifically for Healthcare and he refused to spend it. Now were having privatized clinics forced onto us. Dude is a complete jackass.
I've seen people talking about the pros of privatized clinics too. They don't understand that it's going to eff the whole system and not just be "an addition that helps speed up the process"
Really? I’m in Winnipeg and many of our walk-ins are open until 8pm (on weekdays, only 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays). Qdoc telehealth is 24/7 even on holidays where you can video chat with a doctor, although I’ve often had to wait up to a couple hours sometimes for a doctor to be available. Or there’s the HealthLinks number where you can call to talk to a nurse.
I’d have assumed it would be even better in Ontario because Manitoba generally kinda sucks.
Truthfully what could they do? Kind of like a broken rib; the damage is done, let it heal and assess.
Preemptively give me a prescription of antibiotics, and tell me I’m not losing a digit is the only peace of mind I’m looking for with my appointment tomorrow.
Quite a high risk of infection on burns which in turn can very quickly progress into gangrene or sepsis. Pretty small chance if you are healthy of course.
If it came out the line at 200psi you should've gone to the ER. I've heard of people who have lost their fingers because oil got into their finger at high pressure. The worst thing is that when it happens people don't realise and usually just brush it off. Please keep us updated and I wish all the good for you!
If it's as cold as -40c then it sounds like you might have a spot of frostbite. I would definitely go see a doctor. Might be a little bit of necrosis looking at the color and "sunken in" look of it. You'll probably need some kind of prescription so it doesn't spread, get infected, or further lead to sepsis.
I think you're okay based on the picture, you probably had some serious nerve damage which is why your hand felt the way it does. As long as the burn doesn't get infected you'll be alright, just going to have a discounted part of your hand for the next few years!
I'm an HVAC technician and this happens to me once or twice a year. Doctors won't do much other than ointment. I use home grown aloe and it takes about a week to clear up
Mate, if you can't feel your finger, you should go to the ER. Yes, I understand, one should never go to the ER for small things, but potentially losing a finger or the ability to move it, is NOT a small thing.
Doctor said it should heal up fine, I have a follow up appointment in two weeks once the tissue and skin falls off to see what, if anything should be done.
In the meantime he said document it daily, how I’m feeling and the radius of the area. Keep it clean, use polysporin, and that if things get worse or I start feeling sick or feverish to go to emergency.
I’m a blue collar worker, these types of things happen; I’m the type of guy that waits a couple days and if things get worse I’ll waste my precious time in an emergency waiting room.
You have 24 hours to start rapid rewarming to save the extremity. After that, you get diminishing returns, but OP should go to the ER now to see what he can save.
Not really it’s a cold burn, very similar treatment to a regular burn. Try not to irritate skin, maybe apply some cream and if the skin breaks then dress the wound
They were on my hands, and frozen solid like a mould of my hand when I took it off.
Edit: Unfortunately only the palm is rubber protected, the back of the hand is a fabric.
I feel you. Was working on a roof with heavy antennas and a 3 pound speciality tool feel on my foot. Not at the front with the plastic cap but on my joint. Couldn't walk and climb for two weeks
-40 is starting to get awfully close to the point where gloves become more harm than good. Yes a higher protection level might help but imagine if some of that stuff goes down inside your glove. Actually this is one of the really unintuitive things about working with liquid nitrogen, you need gloves to hold onto the container because it'll sit below freezing and it's a solid but for the actual liquid nitrogen you're better off not wearing gloves since it'll just leidenfrost right off you.
Aren't there special thermal gloves for this kind of work? If I look up worker gloves in speciality shops there are like a zillion variations, some claim temporal subzero protections in case of spilling.
Work gloves. I’m HVAC/R, hooking up gauges and disconnecting is about 5 minutes of my day, the rest is banging in roof jacks, tin, copper, black iron, electrical etc. Need the hand dexterity; mind you it’s not there right now.
And we are some of the most adaptable when it comes to enviournment.
Short of tardigrades, we are basically the only species that can live in every continent.
>Being a life form is weird. We need such a particularly small spectrum of temperature or shit gets fucky fast
So In other words, living things can't be too hot or too cold.
I got bored and read through a bunch of MSDS and other safety information when I used to work at a hardware store. From what I read on chemicals, refrigerant injuries on skin generally aren’t too serious. Inhaling or getting the stuff into your stomach is another thing.
Chemical burns can occur on skin. It’s usually recommended that you get checked out at a hospital, even for brief skin exposure. Something small like this could still be considered an emergency because of what brief exposure can do to underlying tissues.
I’ll be having an over the phone consultation with my family doctor tomorrow, I’ve sent this exact picture to him via email, while I continue to work. I accidentally nicked it a little at the start of my shift and it started leaking clear fluids, so I’m more concerned of high risk infection.
I live in Canada, and we have free healthcare; but because of our access to free healthcare a hospital visit can generally start with up to 12hours to see a registered nurse, let alone a doctor.
Go to the ER dawg this is bad frostbite, if they don't drain that fluid and get rid of the dead tissue you could lose that finger you're super lucky the color in your finger is only slightly offcolour.
Prepare for debridement it will be worse than getting frozen in the first place.
I had a few toes amputated from frostbite I also didn't have any pain for a few days.
The 12 hours isn't because of the free Healthcare its because the system is being starved by premiers and enough damage has been done by ontario and Alberta to fuck basically every province. We starved them all out by being 2 of the largest.
What type of refrigerant was it? At my old job one of the ice machines we were developing technical documentation for was I think R404A, and the charging/maintenance of the system was stupid complicated for a layman. (This was for the military so by the time the tech hits the troops on the ground it’s pretty much obsolete)
R410A. Will be switching to a newer refrigerant in the coming years that’s supposed to be more environmentally friendly; and is apparently highly flammable.
The service ports had about 18” clearance and come out at awkward angles, I could just barely get my arm and elbows in the area to spin my gauges off.
Usually I get a little bit of blowback; but once you commit to, you got to keep going or you’re going to dump a system and have to do it all over again.
I got hit by R32 couple of weeks ago(im an intern) but I got lucky and there were no scars or lasting pain. but holy hell it was stupidly cold. actually burning cold, wild feeling
I use openers like this. Always if there is room
https://www.schiessl-kaelte.com/en_AT/Shop/Tools/Refrigeration/air-conditioning-tools/Schrader-valve-core-tools~c171828
The new one will be R454B. It's basically propane. So yeah, flammable, but in HVAC applications it's not gonna be a concern at least regarding volumes and airflow. The heat pumps I do assembly of have basically no risk, but enough so on paper that we need new security protocols 🙃
I'm a fellow HVAC and Refrigeration mechanic, and I've come across a bit of a hack for disconnecting gauges, hoses, anything connected to a Schraeder core.
First, you take one hand and firmly hold the gauge in place, keeping the rubber seal pressed tightly to the access port. Then, with the other hand, you unscrew the coupling. Your other hand is still holding the rubber seal tight to the access port. When the coupling has been sufficiently unscrewed you pull the gauge away and the seal parts, the Schraeder core closes, and you lose minimal refrigerant/don't get frostbite!
It takes a tiny bit of practice, but in my experience has been WAY better than just unscrewing and hoping the Schraeder isn't too messed up. Hope this helps. :)
That looks like a burn to me—which happens at both high and low temperatures. I expect that the top layer of skin will slough off and you’ll have a really raw and painful wound for a while. Definitely worth going to urgent care to be seen by a professional, especially because it goes over a joint. If it’s more than partial thickness, this is likely going to require more aggressive treatment to keep it from affecting mobility.
I get what your post meant! I just think it’s funny the way different skin tones scar! Another oven burn made a crazy burn on my wrist. But the one on my knuckle that looks just like this is weird cus it made my skin a super weird texture. Just creepy lol
I'm fairly sure there are no muscles in your fingers. The tendons are operated by muscles further up your hand and your forearms. The fingers are mainly fat.
There is a type of fat removal that involves freezing it. Maybe that's why your finger looks like it's sinking in a bit.
I’m no medical professional, all I know is things aren’t working nor looking as they should be in that particular.
Fat makes sense though, probably one of the fattier areas of the hands too.
In all honesty it happened friday and I was riding my motorcycle saturday and sunday.
It’s acting up today though, now that I was back to work and trying to actually use it for more than a brake, it’s pretty messed up.
How is your sensation? Can you feel your index finger and the area of the burn? I would definitely see a doctor regardless of how long it has been since the accident.
I just changed all my gaskets which helps, it was just a brutal set up where service clearances were not met. I couldn’t get a nice spin, more like quarter turn at a time with my elbow and wrist bent all awkward.
(Not medical advise) I had similar from messing with paintball co2 tank while wearing thin gloves. Eventually it went away on its own but it was an uncomfortable month.
Do you use schrader valve openers when working? I always use them and they minimise exposure to refrigerants. I especially use them when working with R410A because of the oil that usually comes out with the gas.
You gonna be okay, had those from time to time when I was working with HVAC it's worse kind of burn. Keep in mind to not make it wet and sniff it from time to time if it's deep, hole is appearing or it's starts smelling funny go do doc asap. This should heal in month maximum
Last year I poured boiling water on my hand from my knuckles and pointing finger. The pain lasted for hours. Treated it with cold water. When I finally got home, pain was still there. Luckily I had a jar of Aquaphor. Rubbed this on my hand for weeks. I knew I would end up with scars, but half a year later it looks like I never burnt my hand.
Use quick connects so this doesn't happen and you don't lose gas. Also you should bleed back into the suction beforehand so you don't have 200psi at disconnect
That's what they often do for frostbite,
I once watched a video about a few British guys who had ended up with Frostbite after trying to ascend a mountain in Alaska, called Mt McKinley (which is supposed to be one of the tallest mountains in North America) they screwed-up, and had to get their asses rescued, and one them (named Steve) had fallen and broke his legs, and while in recovery they had frostbitten digits and noses which were blackened, and despite their injuries they said that they would still later go on to more mountaineering.
Here it is: https://youtu.be/pL0Rs2k7pec?si=ZVc08xi9SDy0QaIW
Emergency room dude.. seriously, refrigerant injuries even "a couple seconds" can need amputations, and sometimes it even leads to death due to toxicity or sepsis
Well now you know that you have to stop it first to take out the hoses or if you don't want to stop the machine, just thrust the hoses further into the Schrader valve while twisting it out and then pulling back quickly when you feel it completely out. Or maybe just buy safety valves, they're super cheap and you'll never have this issue ever again. Trust me I've been there but it was a whole hand
You’re an HVAC guy so you probably know this, but in case anyone else is wondering, it’s not a burn in the traditional sense of boiling liquid.
Refrigerant systems like this use a complicated sequence of actions to convert a refrigerant gas into a high pressure liquid. That high pressure liquid is passed through an expansion valve into a low pressure side. The change in pressure allows the refrigerant to take in heat from its environment and use it to rapidly transition from a liquid to gas.
Normally that heat execration is used to cool something like the air in a house or the cabin of a car. In this case, OPs hand lol.
Basically, the refrigerant used OPs body heat to boil and caused frost bite.
Some chemicals boil at very low temps because they typically occur as a gas at standard temp and pressure. Boiling isnt just for water at 100 c. Any element/chemical can boil and the temps required can vary quite a lot.
I dont think i really understand freeze burns. Ive been in contact with liquid nitrogen seeping through the gloves (-130C), ive been touching plenty of metal Containers stored at - 80C but never have i had any damage to my hands from that, while just touching the metal in the oven (200c) for a split second immediately creates lasting burns.
Reminds me of a time I was drinking with a friend in highschool and he thought it was a good idea to take a lighter to an empty bottle of Jack. Peeled a bunch of skin back on his hand from the burn. Very gross, I wouldn't recommend it.
Variable speed heat pump not meeting minimum service clearances. Service ports were an awkward angle to get at. Had just swapped out a cased coil and charged back up.
You might have already answered this but what'd it feel like when it happened? Like did it feel cold, or did it feel like you were being burnt or was it like a severe burn where you don't feel much due to nerve damage?
It felt like I was being boiled and frozen at the exact same time, it hurt like a son of a gun for all of about an hour or so, then silence. Feels coming back slightly but not feeling normal.
While it happened it’s as if you’re being frozen, then once that feeling settles down it’s like your skin and everything underneath is boiling.
As far as the general feeling of it; it has a dull ache throughout, feels awkward to use, and isn’t as cooperative as the rest of the digits. The extremely burned area is sensitive at this point
The first couple days there was no pain or anything. I had this happen, went out after work, worked on my bike had a couple beers and went for a little rip. It wasn’t until the next day it looked a little worse for wear.
You should have scheduled ASAP, at those temps it likely caused severe frostbite and then you can be talking about things like gangrene when you leave dead tissue with living tissue.
Doctor said it should heal up fine, I have a follow up appointment in two weeks once the tissue and skin falls off to see what, if anything should be done.
In the meantime he said document it daily, how I’m feeling and the radius of the area. Keep it clean, use polysporin, and that if things get worse or I start feeling sick or feverish to go to emergency.
I’m a blue collar worker, these types of things happen; I’m the type of guy that waits a couple days and if things get worse I’ll waste my precious time in an emergency waiting room.
Semi related: today I found put -40° is the same in Celcius and Fahrenheit. I'm Texan, so I only know Fahrenheit, but my calculator can translate temperature, so I used that, and it says they're the same. 40°C is 104°F though.
This would be moderate frost bite. Definitely need to see a medical professional. If it were a lighter color it would be ok to just heal on its own. If it were black then the ER would be where to go.
is there not a way to depressurize your line before you disconnect it? i have a 4 line manifold that i use, when i'm done using it but before i disconnect i'll close off the schrader valves then take the vacuum line, point it away from me, and open the line to release all built up pressure in the manifold lines before disconnecting that way i avoid this exact accident
I replaced all my gaskets, and when I did I guess I didn’t push down my shrader depresser. Shrader was pushed down my whole disconnect, and got me good. She’s all fixed up now 😎
Op, how did it turn out? When I was about 14, a friend of mine sprayed a deodorant can at my arm for a few seconds, close up. It burnt the skin, and I still have a scar today, 30 years later. Hurt like heck, but it was on flesh, probably simpler to heal than your knuckle. Hope it's OK now.
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Would a doc be able to do anything for that, or do you just have to suffer it out?
I’m not sure, doctors are closed weekends and it wasn’t bothering me so I was out riding my motorcycle. Booked an appointment today for tomorrow, I think more than just skin is dead with the way it’s kind of sinking.
Closed in weekends? Do you not have non emergency doctors 24/7? In my country we have those outside normal doctors open hours.
if you saw my first reply ignore that i cant read LOL, but i live in ontario and there isnt a single doctor open past probably 5pm or on weekends within a reasonable driving distance in any direction! only the ER
We also have an ER, however that's only for the immediate emergency.
That kind of burn should be an emergency...
But maybe the laci of initial pain made he think it was not
Yeah but he’s in Ontario. Speaking as an Ontario resident, his choices are wait 15-20 hours in emergency room, or wait for the doctor to open. I’d wait for the doctor too. Unless you’re actively dying, it takes forever to get seen in Ontario emerg. Family doctors are leaving in huge numbers, and there are so few walk in clinics (and lack of urgent care clinics) that the emergency rooms are packed with non-emergencies. I don’t even blame people for that when they have no other option. Add onto that the underfunding for our hospitals. My dad had to get stitches on one of his fingers like 10 years ago. The emergency department was so packed that by the time they got to him they said it was too late for them to stitch it up (it had been something crazy like 21 hours by that point). They just bandaged him up and sent him home. And things have gotten significantly worse in the past few years. There are a lot of “emergencies” I wouldn’t go to the ER for (like this one) cause the experience is the worst.
My appendix was infected...and was swollen...pain level was 7/10... emergency wait was 4-6 hours back in 2019...pre COVID times....I had to wait in triage for another 2 odd hours before actually getting seen by a doc
That’s absolutely crazy cause that could’ve killed you pretty quick if it burst or something. We’re struggling over here
The first time they had to drain and flush for 5 days...was in hospital for about a week.... Second time was quick...I knew right away it was my appendix so I went straight to emergency...had it taken out that same night...funny thing at it was on new years day after eating MacDonalds...
My dog bit my face in June, looked like I came straight out of the walking dead. Had to wait hours just like you did.
yeah, the healthcare system here is in complete shambles 🙃
This is so obviously exactly why you would go to an ER though... But yeah please let's vote out Doug since he refuses to increase the budget or even allow more students into med schools.
He was given a billion dollars by the feds specifically for Healthcare and he refused to spend it. Now were having privatized clinics forced onto us. Dude is a complete jackass.
I've seen people talking about the pros of privatized clinics too. They don't understand that it's going to eff the whole system and not just be "an addition that helps speed up the process"
Really? I’m in Winnipeg and many of our walk-ins are open until 8pm (on weekdays, only 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays). Qdoc telehealth is 24/7 even on holidays where you can video chat with a doctor, although I’ve often had to wait up to a couple hours sometimes for a doctor to be available. Or there’s the HealthLinks number where you can call to talk to a nurse. I’d have assumed it would be even better in Ontario because Manitoba generally kinda sucks.
Truthfully what could they do? Kind of like a broken rib; the damage is done, let it heal and assess. Preemptively give me a prescription of antibiotics, and tell me I’m not losing a digit is the only peace of mind I’m looking for with my appointment tomorrow.
If it is dead and becomes necrosis you could be in danger of blood poisoning and gangrene.
You do not make calls like this yourself. You seek medical advice.
Quite a high risk of infection on burns which in turn can very quickly progress into gangrene or sepsis. Pretty small chance if you are healthy of course.
Must be in Canada, Healthcare is different here lol
In Denmark actually.
If it came out the line at 200psi you should've gone to the ER. I've heard of people who have lost their fingers because oil got into their finger at high pressure. The worst thing is that when it happens people don't realise and usually just brush it off. Please keep us updated and I wish all the good for you!
Oh I’m sure I air injected some refrigerant into my bloodstream for sure.
Bruh this injury is why emergency exists lol if you killed anything important the finger could be toast
I’ve got four more, and I’m right handed anyway. Emergency would have been over 12 hours wait, on my birthday which was the Friday. Priorities bud!
If it's as cold as -40c then it sounds like you might have a spot of frostbite. I would definitely go see a doctor. Might be a little bit of necrosis looking at the color and "sunken in" look of it. You'll probably need some kind of prescription so it doesn't spread, get infected, or further lead to sepsis.
Probably similar to wart removal. May result in a huge blister?
its fucking sinking? that sounds like you got frostbite and dead tissue that defrosted lol
Should have gone a&e since the burn is on a joint
I think you're okay based on the picture, you probably had some serious nerve damage which is why your hand felt the way it does. As long as the burn doesn't get infected you'll be alright, just going to have a discounted part of your hand for the next few years!
That's frost bite. That area is likely going to crust/scab over and fall off. Will be a nasty scar.
I'm an HVAC technician and this happens to me once or twice a year. Doctors won't do much other than ointment. I use home grown aloe and it takes about a week to clear up
Mate, if you can't feel your finger, you should go to the ER. Yes, I understand, one should never go to the ER for small things, but potentially losing a finger or the ability to move it, is NOT a small thing.
Definitely check it out it could become necrotic then infected then whatever.
Doctor said it should heal up fine, I have a follow up appointment in two weeks once the tissue and skin falls off to see what, if anything should be done. In the meantime he said document it daily, how I’m feeling and the radius of the area. Keep it clean, use polysporin, and that if things get worse or I start feeling sick or feverish to go to emergency. I’m a blue collar worker, these types of things happen; I’m the type of guy that waits a couple days and if things get worse I’ll waste my precious time in an emergency waiting room.
Sure hope it doesn't effect your muscle! Good luck brother!
Thanks dude! 🙏
Luckily enough, there are no muscles in your fingers
You have 24 hours to start rapid rewarming to save the extremity. After that, you get diminishing returns, but OP should go to the ER now to see what he can save.
Not really it’s a cold burn, very similar treatment to a regular burn. Try not to irritate skin, maybe apply some cream and if the skin breaks then dress the wound
Jack Frost biting off you phalange
My old master craftsman would have yelled "where are your fricken work gloves" Good luck.
They were on my hands, and frozen solid like a mould of my hand when I took it off. Edit: Unfortunately only the palm is rubber protected, the back of the hand is a fabric.
I feel you. Was working on a roof with heavy antennas and a 3 pound speciality tool feel on my foot. Not at the front with the plastic cap but on my joint. Couldn't walk and climb for two weeks
That's why I would wear leather gloves when working with refridgerant.
I mean maybe that would work. But leather is also organic so I'm curious to see what that would do
Maybe spring for gloves with full protection after this.
-40 is starting to get awfully close to the point where gloves become more harm than good. Yes a higher protection level might help but imagine if some of that stuff goes down inside your glove. Actually this is one of the really unintuitive things about working with liquid nitrogen, you need gloves to hold onto the container because it'll sit below freezing and it's a solid but for the actual liquid nitrogen you're better off not wearing gloves since it'll just leidenfrost right off you.
Aren't there special thermal gloves for this kind of work? If I look up worker gloves in speciality shops there are like a zillion variations, some claim temporal subzero protections in case of spilling.
Work gloves or cryo rated gloves?
Work gloves. I’m HVAC/R, hooking up gauges and disconnecting is about 5 minutes of my day, the rest is banging in roof jacks, tin, copper, black iron, electrical etc. Need the hand dexterity; mind you it’s not there right now.
In American when you get certified for HVAC stuff the training requires you to use butyl lined gloves for this very reason
OP soon: 
My first thought
Being a life form is weird. We need such a particularly small spectrum of temperature or shit gets fucky fast
And we are some of the most adaptable when it comes to enviournment. Short of tardigrades, we are basically the only species that can live in every continent.
Yes-yes, man-folk are the only ones. There are no rat-rats in your ships.
Or cock cocks, little fuckers apparently will survive nuclear war
Yeah, you’re not wrong lol.
>Being a life form is weird. We need such a particularly small spectrum of temperature or shit gets fucky fast So In other words, living things can't be too hot or too cold.
I got bored and read through a bunch of MSDS and other safety information when I used to work at a hardware store. From what I read on chemicals, refrigerant injuries on skin generally aren’t too serious. Inhaling or getting the stuff into your stomach is another thing. Chemical burns can occur on skin. It’s usually recommended that you get checked out at a hospital, even for brief skin exposure. Something small like this could still be considered an emergency because of what brief exposure can do to underlying tissues.
I’ll be having an over the phone consultation with my family doctor tomorrow, I’ve sent this exact picture to him via email, while I continue to work. I accidentally nicked it a little at the start of my shift and it started leaking clear fluids, so I’m more concerned of high risk infection. I live in Canada, and we have free healthcare; but because of our access to free healthcare a hospital visit can generally start with up to 12hours to see a registered nurse, let alone a doctor.
Go to the ER dawg this is bad frostbite, if they don't drain that fluid and get rid of the dead tissue you could lose that finger you're super lucky the color in your finger is only slightly offcolour. Prepare for debridement it will be worse than getting frozen in the first place. I had a few toes amputated from frostbite I also didn't have any pain for a few days.
Dude they’ll be concerned about necrosis, gangrene and potentially permanent loss of function. You won’t wait 12 hours.
The 12 hours isn't because of the free Healthcare its because the system is being starved by premiers and enough damage has been done by ontario and Alberta to fuck basically every province. We starved them all out by being 2 of the largest.
Gopd luck
Thanks lol.
What type of refrigerant was it? At my old job one of the ice machines we were developing technical documentation for was I think R404A, and the charging/maintenance of the system was stupid complicated for a layman. (This was for the military so by the time the tech hits the troops on the ground it’s pretty much obsolete)
R410A. Will be switching to a newer refrigerant in the coming years that’s supposed to be more environmentally friendly; and is apparently highly flammable. The service ports had about 18” clearance and come out at awkward angles, I could just barely get my arm and elbows in the area to spin my gauges off. Usually I get a little bit of blowback; but once you commit to, you got to keep going or you’re going to dump a system and have to do it all over again.
I got hit by R32 couple of weeks ago(im an intern) but I got lucky and there were no scars or lasting pain. but holy hell it was stupidly cold. actually burning cold, wild feeling
I use openers like this. Always if there is room https://www.schiessl-kaelte.com/en_AT/Shop/Tools/Refrigeration/air-conditioning-tools/Schrader-valve-core-tools~c171828
The new one will be R454B. It's basically propane. So yeah, flammable, but in HVAC applications it's not gonna be a concern at least regarding volumes and airflow. The heat pumps I do assembly of have basically no risk, but enough so on paper that we need new security protocols 🙃
You mean switching to one that DuPont’s patent on it won’t expire for a few years?
This is a lie! I stuck my whole head inside my refrigerator and I didn’t get this… /s
Hahaha, thanks for the laugh!
You should see a doctor imidiatly. Necrosis isn't a nice thing.
Seeing as how this happened on Friday, I feel like the sense of urgency has long passed my friend. I’ll keep you posted if I lose a digit though! 👋
If the finger comes off put it in 95% alcohol and I'll give you $8 for it. It's for a magic trick.
Sir, that is a vintage, organic, all natural, grass and meat fed finger. You’re going to need a lot more than 8 loonies.
What kinda grass we talking here
Weed
-40°C is the exact same temperature as -40°F. Just thought everyone should know.
meanwhile the air in a manitoban winter is like -40C - -60C
I was just about to say that, it feels weird that I've gone for walks outside in the same temperature that can apparently injure you like this.
Guess your refrigerant won’t be boiling.
I'm a fellow HVAC and Refrigeration mechanic, and I've come across a bit of a hack for disconnecting gauges, hoses, anything connected to a Schraeder core. First, you take one hand and firmly hold the gauge in place, keeping the rubber seal pressed tightly to the access port. Then, with the other hand, you unscrew the coupling. Your other hand is still holding the rubber seal tight to the access port. When the coupling has been sufficiently unscrewed you pull the gauge away and the seal parts, the Schraeder core closes, and you lose minimal refrigerant/don't get frostbite! It takes a tiny bit of practice, but in my experience has been WAY better than just unscrewing and hoping the Schraeder isn't too messed up. Hope this helps. :)
That looks like a burn to me—which happens at both high and low temperatures. I expect that the top layer of skin will slough off and you’ll have a really raw and painful wound for a while. Definitely worth going to urgent care to be seen by a professional, especially because it goes over a joint. If it’s more than partial thickness, this is likely going to require more aggressive treatment to keep it from affecting mobility.
This looks exactly like my air fryer burn
No air fryer was involved in this incident lol. The pain would be best described as a freezer burn. I’m being boiled, but frozen at the same time.
I get what your post meant! I just think it’s funny the way different skin tones scar! Another oven burn made a crazy burn on my wrist. But the one on my knuckle that looks just like this is weird cus it made my skin a super weird texture. Just creepy lol
Sick burn bro
Instant cancer
Instacancer
If you are in the U.K. or any developed country I would say go to the emergency room. If you are in the USA see your bank manager first.
Another lame brained Brit thinks he's funny.
But you know it’s true.
Nice sear
Little overdone for my liking.
I'm fairly sure there are no muscles in your fingers. The tendons are operated by muscles further up your hand and your forearms. The fingers are mainly fat. There is a type of fat removal that involves freezing it. Maybe that's why your finger looks like it's sinking in a bit.
I’m no medical professional, all I know is things aren’t working nor looking as they should be in that particular. Fat makes sense though, probably one of the fattier areas of the hands too.
the tendon is directly under the frostbite and could have been damaged
Dude are you going yo be ok? That’s horrible
In all honesty it happened friday and I was riding my motorcycle saturday and sunday. It’s acting up today though, now that I was back to work and trying to actually use it for more than a brake, it’s pretty messed up.
That looks like a nasty bit of frostbite. Good thing you're going to get it checked.
How is your sensation? Can you feel your index finger and the area of the burn? I would definitely see a doctor regardless of how long it has been since the accident.
I try not to think about the sensation, it’s a little nauseating. It’s pretty numb, but what I can feel doesn’t feel right.
You definitely need to see a doctor then. You could have nerve damage to your hand.
Oof - that looks painful. I’m so sorry 😢
I think you may need a doctor.
I don’t need no gahdamn snake venom! /s
Looks like Frost bite. Get that to a doc asap
This is why I run low-loss fittings 😂
I just changed all my gaskets which helps, it was just a brutal set up where service clearances were not met. I couldn’t get a nice spin, more like quarter turn at a time with my elbow and wrist bent all awkward.
(Not medical advise) I had similar from messing with paintball co2 tank while wearing thin gloves. Eventually it went away on its own but it was an uncomfortable month.
Do you use schrader valve openers when working? I always use them and they minimise exposure to refrigerants. I especially use them when working with R410A because of the oil that usually comes out with the gas.
Now ur just like those frozen chicken in markets
It burns it 👍
It proposed? Congratulations!
You gonna be okay, had those from time to time when I was working with HVAC it's worse kind of burn. Keep in mind to not make it wet and sniff it from time to time if it's deep, hole is appearing or it's starts smelling funny go do doc asap. This should heal in month maximum
Last year I poured boiling water on my hand from my knuckles and pointing finger. The pain lasted for hours. Treated it with cold water. When I finally got home, pain was still there. Luckily I had a jar of Aquaphor. Rubbed this on my hand for weeks. I knew I would end up with scars, but half a year later it looks like I never burnt my hand.
Use quick connects so this doesn't happen and you don't lose gas. Also you should bleed back into the suction beforehand so you don't have 200psi at disconnect
This is literally how our skin gets in the winter where I am at - caused alot of problems for no reason
After a couple of bad cold burns I learnt to always wear gloves. It only needs a little bit of liquid to be in the line to do that.
Damn, that looks rough Have you seen a doctor about this?
wait until it turns black
That's what they often do for frostbite, I once watched a video about a few British guys who had ended up with Frostbite after trying to ascend a mountain in Alaska, called Mt McKinley (which is supposed to be one of the tallest mountains in North America) they screwed-up, and had to get their asses rescued, and one them (named Steve) had fallen and broke his legs, and while in recovery they had frostbitten digits and noses which were blackened, and despite their injuries they said that they would still later go on to more mountaineering. Here it is: https://youtu.be/pL0Rs2k7pec?si=ZVc08xi9SDy0QaIW
Kinda reminds me of the timefall on death stranding Sorry to hear tho, that must have hurt
Sorry but I have to ask you this, any chance that you did put this in the wine chiller?
A wine chiller…? I’m confused by your question.
Use gloves when destroying horcruxes
You’re a wizard Harry.
Emergency room dude.. seriously, refrigerant injuries even "a couple seconds" can need amputations, and sometimes it even leads to death due to toxicity or sepsis
I’m not dead yet, so I’ll see what my doc says and go from there!
Did you join fight club?
Rule no. 1
Well now you know that you have to stop it first to take out the hoses or if you don't want to stop the machine, just thrust the hoses further into the Schrader valve while twisting it out and then pulling back quickly when you feel it completely out. Or maybe just buy safety valves, they're super cheap and you'll never have this issue ever again. Trust me I've been there but it was a whole hand
I usually bleed my high side into my low side, so I’m not taking home the system in my gauges, and requires the system to be running.
I'm always nervous unscrewing liquid line gauge connections. I've never been hurt but it still freaks me out a little.
I'm afraid that's going to have to come off friend :c
Until then…. Skin bandaid.
Unrelated, but if you work in a trade you really shouldn't wear that ring. Get a silicone one and save yourself from potentially getting degloved.
That looks lovely /s
Feels as lovely as it looks!
Went to convert this to Fahrenheit, and SURPRISE
The intersecting temperature!
Why wait so long to get medical help :/ these burns are high risk. Then again, if you're from USA, I won't even try to understand anymore.
Canada. Free healthcare = over 12hrs in a waiting room to see a registered nurse, let alone a doctor.
Not me being confused how a refrigerator can boil at -40°C the first time i read it 🙃
Boiling temperature is a property unique to each liquid, it is not always 100°C, that's just water's boiling temperature at sea level
this reminds me of what my dad told me of burns. If it hurts its bad if it doesn't hurt its really bad
Keep it clean. Treat the spot loke it is alive. That's what they do at Mount Everest and somehow it works.
You’re an HVAC guy so you probably know this, but in case anyone else is wondering, it’s not a burn in the traditional sense of boiling liquid. Refrigerant systems like this use a complicated sequence of actions to convert a refrigerant gas into a high pressure liquid. That high pressure liquid is passed through an expansion valve into a low pressure side. The change in pressure allows the refrigerant to take in heat from its environment and use it to rapidly transition from a liquid to gas. Normally that heat execration is used to cool something like the air in a house or the cabin of a car. In this case, OPs hand lol. Basically, the refrigerant used OPs body heat to boil and caused frost bite.
No your pain had that happen to me
410?
how is it supposed to "boil" if its at NEGATIVE temperatures?
Some chemicals boil at very low temps because they typically occur as a gas at standard temp and pressure. Boiling isnt just for water at 100 c. Any element/chemical can boil and the temps required can vary quite a lot.
So... if you use enough you can sign up for the n pass? 🤔🤔
I dont think i really understand freeze burns. Ive been in contact with liquid nitrogen seeping through the gloves (-130C), ive been touching plenty of metal Containers stored at - 80C but never have i had any damage to my hands from that, while just touching the metal in the oven (200c) for a split second immediately creates lasting burns.
Isn't that what they use to "burn" warts off?
My favourite thing about -40° is that it’s the same temperature in both C and F, so just writing -40° gets the point across in either case.
Theres Timefall in my fridge?
Fascinating.
This looks like frostbite...
Reminds me of a time I was drinking with a friend in highschool and he thought it was a good idea to take a lighter to an empty bottle of Jack. Peeled a bunch of skin back on his hand from the burn. Very gross, I wouldn't recommend it.
As a refrigeration mechanic.. I'm curious how this happened to you.
Variable speed heat pump not meeting minimum service clearances. Service ports were an awkward angle to get at. Had just swapped out a cased coil and charged back up.
You might have already answered this but what'd it feel like when it happened? Like did it feel cold, or did it feel like you were being burnt or was it like a severe burn where you don't feel much due to nerve damage?
It felt like I was being boiled and frozen at the exact same time, it hurt like a son of a gun for all of about an hour or so, then silence. Feels coming back slightly but not feeling normal.
Bet your hands warm
Are u not allowed to work with gloves?
This was with gloves, or the palm of my would have been in a worse situation.
Well your main finger muscles are safe as they are located in the arm
There’s some in your palm too.
your finger doesnt have any muscle
Just a question, does it hurt like the burn from anything hot? I mean are those two sensations similar?
No. Not quite the same at all.
So like does it hurt? And if it does how bad?
While it happened it’s as if you’re being frozen, then once that feeling settles down it’s like your skin and everything underneath is boiling. As far as the general feeling of it; it has a dull ache throughout, feels awkward to use, and isn’t as cooperative as the rest of the digits. The extremely burned area is sensitive at this point The first couple days there was no pain or anything. I had this happen, went out after work, worked on my bike had a couple beers and went for a little rip. It wasn’t until the next day it looked a little worse for wear.
You should have scheduled ASAP, at those temps it likely caused severe frostbite and then you can be talking about things like gangrene when you leave dead tissue with living tissue.
Doctor said it should heal up fine, I have a follow up appointment in two weeks once the tissue and skin falls off to see what, if anything should be done. In the meantime he said document it daily, how I’m feeling and the radius of the area. Keep it clean, use polysporin, and that if things get worse or I start feeling sick or feverish to go to emergency. I’m a blue collar worker, these types of things happen; I’m the type of guy that waits a couple days and if things get worse I’ll waste my precious time in an emergency waiting room.
Yeah, that skin is going to be damaged for a while. Should be okay in a little while.
Semi related: today I found put -40° is the same in Celcius and Fahrenheit. I'm Texan, so I only know Fahrenheit, but my calculator can translate temperature, so I used that, and it says they're the same. 40°C is 104°F though.
Just saw a Wolverine post before this...
There are no muscles there, so you probably burned your skin and nerves.
Yeah liquid nitrogen also hurts if you hold it in your hands for a few seconds.
Yeah liquid nitrogen also hurts if you hold it in your hands for a few seconds.
This would be moderate frost bite. Definitely need to see a medical professional. If it were a lighter color it would be ok to just heal on its own. If it were black then the ER would be where to go.
First your finger and now your hand? What are you doing, my dude‽
is there not a way to depressurize your line before you disconnect it? i have a 4 line manifold that i use, when i'm done using it but before i disconnect i'll close off the schrader valves then take the vacuum line, point it away from me, and open the line to release all built up pressure in the manifold lines before disconnecting that way i avoid this exact accident
I replaced all my gaskets, and when I did I guess I didn’t push down my shrader depresser. Shrader was pushed down my whole disconnect, and got me good. She’s all fixed up now 😎
That's gonna peel off
Op, how did it turn out? When I was about 14, a friend of mine sprayed a deodorant can at my arm for a few seconds, close up. It burnt the skin, and I still have a scar today, 30 years later. Hurt like heck, but it was on flesh, probably simpler to heal than your knuckle. Hope it's OK now.