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Creosote Burns on the Skin

If you use a wood stove to heat your house, or if you use your fireplace often, you've probably developed a buildup of creosote on the inside of your chimney. Creosote is a gummy, dark brown or black substance that forms when the gases escaping from a fire cool to below 250 degrees and condense on whatever surface is nearest, usually a chimney pipe. Creosote needs to be cleaned away regularly, but doing so puts you in danger of getting a creosote burn.

  1. Identification

    • A creosote burn on the skin is a chemical rather than heat-based burn–the creosote doesn't have to be hot when you touch it to cause a burn. Prolonged contact with creosote causes skin irritation first. Then, if you don't remove the contact, it deepens to a chemical burn. In its mild form, it may itch and sting, but a deeper burn can be extremely painful.

    Treatment

    • If you get a creosote burn, first remove all traces of creosote from your skin so it won't continue to burn. Wash your skin, then run cold water over the burn. You may want to ice the area. Apply either petroleum jelly or Preparation H liberally. Once the burn has healed a little, you can try rubbing some plain, mint toothpaste on it. This may help ease the sting. Over-the-counter burn ointments may help as well.

    Prevention

    • When you have to be around creosote, be sure to wear gloves and protective clothing. You can reduce the buildup of creosote by building less smoky fires. Burn only dry wood, and keep your fire burning hot. If you keep a cooler fire going overnight in a wood stove, heat it up to a roaring fire for a while in the morning to burn away any creosote deposits from the previous night.

    Warning

    • If your creosote burn is an open wound, don't apply petroleum jelly as a treatment. That will keep air from getting to the wound and prevent it from healing. Instead, clean it well, apply ice or cold packs and keep the wound wrapped in gauze bandages.

    Considerations

    • If you have a large buildup of creosote in your chimney, don't delay dealing with it because creosote can cause a chimney fire or explosion. You probably want to hire a professional to handle it. You risk sustaining massive creosote burns by trying to clean up creosote if you don't know what you're doing.

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