Staff blunders: Times when we didn't heed our own advice

Believe us when we say we are unapologetic sticklers for safety here at Consumers Union. We think about it and talk about it all the time, but that doesn’t mean that folks on our staff don’t make the occasional safety blunder.

With that in mind, we recently asked fellow CU employees to share some of their most memorable safety mishaps. We got so many responses that we've decided to divide them into a series of blog posts over the upcoming months.

We’re intentionally withholding the names of the story tellers to keep embarrassment to a minimum. But those who offered to share their stories admit somewhat sheepishly that they learned their lesson. Below our first three staffers talk about their mishaps in their own words.

Under pressure
"I read with great envy our story on pressure washers a few years ago—this was before I even worked here—then ran out and bought one. The story explicitly said make sure you don't point it at yourself. Our video even had a guy who had really hurt his foot that way, as I recall. "I'll never do that," I said confidently. And, sure enough, the first time I used the device I managed to just brush the edge of my wrist with the stream. No skin left. Scar—small one—still there today to remind me always to wear hand and eye protection and never point it at yourself!"

Sales of pressure washers are up and so are related injuries. Read more about safety issues and watch our video on how to use pressure washers safely.

Getting steamed
"We have a teapot ... when the water gets to boiling it sounds off because of a plug in the spout—irritating—so much so that we end up removing it. So I am cooking something in a pan on the back burner and boiling water on the front burner in the tea pot and it is at a full boil with steam coming briskly out of the spout. The pan on the back burner needs adjustment and I reach across the spout of the teapot to grab it exposing my inner wrist to about one to two seconds of steam. I end up with a one to two-inch-wide swath of scalded skin across the inside of my wrist and up my thumb. Despite immediate cold water most of it blisters immediately and small patches are burned even deeper. Given it is on my wrist it is hard to keep it clean, not flex it (disrupting healing it) or hide it. For six weeks it is a painful, at times mildly infected big patch of skin. For three to four months it is abnormal. It is fine now. Stay away from steam."

To read more about burns and scalds, visit Consumer Reports on Health.

Hard wired
"About 15 years ago I was finishing my basement. I put in the rough wiring for above-the-sink lighting, but didn't tape off the end. A few nights later I was standing on a stool hammering close to the exposed wire. Make that too close. The metal cheek grazed the wire, tripped the circuit breaker and sent a numbing wave down my arm. I walked in the dark and reset the circuit breaker. Then, to distinguish myself from so many other do-it-yourself homeowners, proceeded to demonstrate to my wife exactly what happened. Exactly being the optimal word."

Unless you know what you're doing, most home wiring projects are best left to the experts. Underwriters Laboratories highlights the risks for do-it-yourselfers in "Common DIY wiring mistakes."

As activist Ralph Nader once said,  “Your best teacher is your last mistake.” This won't be our last word on the topic and we hope that by telling our own tales that we can help you learn from our bloopers before making your own.