How have you injured yourself brewing?

Not sure if there is one of these threads already, but I figured it's best to share our mistakes so that others don't suffer similarly. So I'll start while it's fresh.

Was standing on my radiator cover to adjust my brand new temperature controller. Stepped off of it back down to the floor directly onto several bottles that my HWMO had knocked over unbeknownst to me. Predictable results and lots of blood ensued. Don't think I'm gonna need stitches, but watching it closely to see. Moral of the story is obvious; don't stand on bottles.

UPDATE: No stitches, but some DermaBond. Yay for super-glued toes.

The most recent stupid thing I did was to shoot myself with hot wort when I thought the mash return had stuck.

Mostly just small burns when transferring mash or sparge water from the kettle to the mash tun. Flip flops, while comfortable, aren't always the best choice when brewing.

Burned my arm with boiling hot wort

Good god...you might want to invest in the Blichmann brewing gloves after that injury.

My liver perhaps... ? :rockin:

I've only had minor burns and things.

One time, I lifted up the lid of my MLT as I was filling it with 190 degree water. Of course, it shot directly at my chest. I immediately took off my wet clothes and ran cold water over the burn, but I do have a small scar on my left boob from this.

I've burned my arms on hot kettles and things, but no real injuries to report!

Yooper said:

I immediately took off my wet clothes and ran cold water over the burn, but I do have a small scar on my left boob from this.

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Pics or it didn't happen....hehehe

If I was a dog I would have learned by now, but my only injuries have been minor and always result from forgetting that there isn't a bucket to catch the water I'm draining from the kettle during the last sparge in order to clear the kettle for the wort boil. So I always end up draining a few ounces of hot sparge water on my feet before my dumb-a$$ moves out of the way.

I seem to have the same issue with the chiller outlet hose for some reason as well. That one really stings.

Again, if I was a dog I would have learned by now.

Barehanded grabbing the handles of BK after a full 60-90 minute boil to get it off the burner for cooling. Almost every freaking time I brew. I now keep an old set of ski gloves handy yet still forget.

Oh, and grabbing my IC by the copper after it has been boiling in wort and before turining on the hose. Holy sweet beer gods that crap is hot. I really am surprised I am not missing a finger/have huge scars on my hands with how often I injure them.

gcdowd said:

Burned my arm with boiling hot wort

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Eeesh...that's dedication right there.

chawagi said:

I seem to have the same issue with the chiller outlet hose for some reason as well. That one really stings.

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I did that the first time I used an IC. I had nooo idea the outlet water would get that hot that fast.

Did this by spilling decoction wort just after boiling.

Was taking a gravity reading to see if a beer had finished fermenting. On the way back to the cabinet to put it away, I dropped the hydrometer. And of course, I had no shoes on. Pulling shards of glass out of your feet isn't fun.

What the hell are all you guys doing when you brew?? I've been 3 beers past stupid and still have never hurt myself! (For those of you counting at home, that's 3 beers total...)

Homercidal said:

What the hell are all you guys doing when you brew?? I've been 3 beers past stupid and still have never hurt myself! (For those of you counting at home, that's 3 beers total...)

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The truly dedicated give their bodies for the art.

So far, mainly just a sore back from lifting full keggles and fermenters. I've since invested in a march pump and a back brace.

I've beat the hell out of my pride when the beer doesn't live up to my expectations.

On my very first brew I thought I was really clever and froze a milk jug full of water, planning to slice off the bottom and the handle and drop a gallon of ice into my wort to chill it. When it came to sawing through the plastic and ice with a serrated knife, things got a little slippery and my determination to prove my stupidity got me a knife in the thumb. The rest of the brew day became very stressful as I tried to sanitize things without bleeding on anything. I think it is very likely that some of my blood, sweat, and tears made it into that beer.

The unfortunate thing is that this isn't unusual in my kitchen. Anytime I say "dammit" or something in the kitchen, my roommates ask me if my blood is everywhere. I've made latkes for them three or four times and have yet to do it without slicing myself while grating potatoes and onions.

The worst was carrying my keggle out of the garage (about 8 feet) to put in the IC when it bumped into my calf, while wearing shorts. I had to clean some skin off the side once it had cooled.

Backed into my turkey fryer right after flame out & moving the kettle. Wearing shorts of course, nice scar on my leg from the outer ring on the fryer.

My wallet has taken a beating from brewing.

00radio said:

Was taking a gravity reading to see if a beer had finished fermenting. On the way back to the cabinet to put it away, I dropped the hydrometer. And of course, I had no shoes on. Pulling shards of glass out of your feet isn't fun.

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I've done something similar, but, pulled a broken thermometer glass out of my feet after taking a temp reading.

On my first all grain batch I have a few too many beers, my wort was chilling with the coil chiller while I was sanitizing my glass carboy... Swirling it around with clean water I dropped it on the garage cement floor it shattered in to my cooling wort and I slit my wrist in 2 places... Have drunk I wobble into the bathroom and patch myself up...

From now on I NEVER dring and brew at the same time

Cheers 17

I may or may not have a lingual strain. I still brew

I put the chiller in to hard and had hot wort fly in my eye once and I forget about the co2 trapped in the fermentation freezer and stuck my head in to look at my baby's and for lit up

Burned my hands whilst cleaning keg taps with BLC. Didn't know BLC could burn so didn't wear gloves or rinse frequently. Couldn't feel any burning until I finished cleaning the taps - after 5 mins. then it started to tingle. and then left with red burn mark on back of my hands.

No big deal I guess. no scar and not really that much pain. gone completely in a week.

I rinse my hands every minute these days whilst cleaning taps.

Once, I put my immersion chiller into the boiling wort and had water stuck in the chiller boil out and shoot me in the arm. Luckily this wasn't a major injury.

Was brewing in flip flops (bad idea) and burnt the crap out of my ankle with the bottom lip of my keggle, that thing was scorching.

Flip-flop related injury - I went to dump that last little bit of hot water out of the HLT and got some on my mostly bare foot. I just held my foot against the propane tank for a while because it was nice and cold despite the 80ish ambient air temp.

Was splashing flame-out wort in my brew pot trying to get DME off the chiller and splashed some out on my sneaker. Hopped around for 30 seconds before pulling the shoe and sock off. I think I burned myself 4 times that weekend while brewing.

Also - was making a starter on the kitchen stove in April. I put a teaspoon of yeast nutrient into an already boiling 2L starter flask - boiling wort shot about 3' into the air. I managed to get out of the way, but the SWMBO heard the eruption and the sizzle ... talk about out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Right before I started brewing one day I went across the street to help a neighbor with a pickax. I ended up smashing my right ring finger between the handle and a stone in the ground. That brew day was painful and bloody.

Homebrewing I can say I have gotten minor cuts and burns, I have learned. I brew in waterproof boots and have leather welders gloves in my brew day supplies and use them whenever I am going to lift anything.

On a side note I have been sprayed from the top of my shins all the way up my frontside with 160F caustic (sodium hydroxide aka lye with extra stuff to make it work better) in the brewery due to mechanical failure. Fast reflexes and knowing exactly what to do saved my eyes and my skin from nasty burns/chemical burns.

I have also gashed the areas that would be where my kidneys are and my upper legs on zwikles. Those little bastards are nasty and vicious.

Considerable liver damage, numerous minor burns, and cut myself on a burr on a turkey fryer. Considering how potentially dangerous dealing with very hot steel, heavy hot liquid, and glass can be, I guess my safety consciousness has been of significant benefit.

kman6234 said:

Once, I put my immersion chiller into the boiling wort and had water stuck in the chiller boil out and shoot me in the arm. Luckily this wasn't a major injury.

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THAT I've done; I didn't even think about the potential for that to happen the second time I used my wort chiller.

I always wear a face shield when working with caustic. The one time I didn't was the time a hose clamp worked loose and I got hit in the face with a stream of, fortunately, cold caustic solution (cleaning beer lines with a pump). You know how the MSDS says that one of the biggest dangers of lye is that it is anaesthetic to the corneas? That's a damn lie. Hurt like hell.

I doubt anyone will ever top Gordon Strong's experience in lowering a lighted sulfur candle into a whiskey barrel he was planning to use to age barley wine. There was still quite a bit of whiskey, or more to the point, alcohol vapor in it and the community almost lost one of our best.

djt17 said:

Backed into my turkey fryer right after flame out & moving the kettle. Wearing shorts of course, nice scar on my leg from the outer ring on the fryer.

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This, only it was strike or sparge water for me. Got a nice trapezoidal scar on my leg from the burner. It has since faded and I have gotten a kettle with a ball valve and no longer have to pick it up to transfer water.

Just minor burns and knuckle scrapes. I'm usually bleeding at the end of a brew day.

Rubber bung of the wrong size almost went right into carboy, digging it back out with hooked screw driver let go and sliced right up my hand .

Brewed during a snowstorm and while I was trying to fix something near the propane burner I pressed up against the ring and burned my forearm. Nothing bad, but so far only injury.