After learning that hot water bottles have expiration dates, a mother posted a warning on Facebook, along with information from an expert on the potential severity of injuries.
As winter approaches, many of us are searching for inexpensive ways to remain warm, whether it is by purchasing a heated blanket or using the much older, traditional method of simply donning some additional layers.
And when it’s time for bed, we frequently use our dependable hot water bottle to keep our toes warm. This strategy always seems to work.
However, one mother has advised others to continue cautiously, outlining critical dates to watch out for to make sure yours is still in good shape.
She shared pictures on the Family Lowdown Tips and Ideas Facebook page and wrote: “So it was only this year through this group that I learned about dates in hot water bottles, we just got a hot water [bottle] from Amazon for one of our daughter’s Christmas gifts, and I checked.
“I’m assuming it’s definitely not checked at all, and I shouldn’t worry too much? (I also got one from Home Bargains, that was 2018-2022).”
“Thanks everyone, I now know you go by the date on the flower and get rid after 2 yrs,” she added in an edit. It is a school day every day.
Knowing where to look is just truly half the battle, as the flower will only appear to people who don’t understand what it symbolises as a collection of dots and numbers.
Consumer expert Alice Beer supplied a little additional information in a recent appearance on This Morning, describing how a mother had contacted out on Instagram after her child sustained third-degree burns when a hot water bottle broke.
“These are not surface burns, these go really deep.”
Revealing how people are hospitalised at least once a week at Chelsea and Westminster hospital due to the issue, Beer said: “Half of hot water bottle injuries need skin grafts and surgeries.
“These are not surface burns, these go really deep.”
According to Beer, hot water bottles can often be used for up to three years before needing to be refilled.
A “daisy wheel” on the hot water bottle, with dots denoting the week of manufacture, can be used to determine when a product was created, she continued.
Beer said, “You don’t know about it because this is a brand-new hot water bottle under a fluffy cover,” while holding up an example. You wouldn’t need to remove it unless it became soiled. I’m sorry, but I believe this to be the most confusing method of printing a date.
“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.”
Three dots in the section of the one Beer had in the studio indicated that it had been produced in the third week of August 2022.
