One of the most dangerous chemicals available for use in the carwash industry is Hydrofluoric Acid or HF. This Chemical is used in some wheel cleaner solutions marketed to carwash operations. Products containing Hydrofluoric Acid should be avoided. The chemical can cause severe injury and even death. It is extremely corrosive and is considered a contact poison. Due to the properties of HF, it is absorbed into the skin faster than most other acids.

Exposure to Hydrofluoric Acid can go undetected. This delays treatment and increases the seriousness and extent of the injury. The chemical penetrates the skin and can etch and weaken bones without destroying the skin. It can also be absorbed into the blood through skin and react with blood calcium, causing cardiac arrest. Hydrofluoric Acid can also be introduced into the bloodstream through inhalation and cause the body to excrete calcium found mainly in bones. Additionally, HF can find its way to the bloodstream through the eyes not only risking injury or death as previously discussed but also causing damage to corneas.

To illustrate the potential of HF to do harm one only need reference a story filed by reporter Bob Segall for a local Detroit, Michigan affiliate of NBC. The owner of a carwash in suburban Detroit had a teenage worker named Kelly. Kelly was cleaning tire rims when the rim cleaner leaked onto two of her fingers. Kelly went home at the end of her shift, not realizing that an ingredient in that cleaning solution was penetrating through her skin and seeking out her bones. No one at the car wash realized Kelly had been exposed to a potentially deadly chemical until she came to work the next day.

The two fingers on her left hand were black, they looked like sparrow claws, the owner of the carwash said. The chemical attacked her. Doctors tried to save the fingers, but they couldnt. They ended up cutting the fingers off at the knuckle.

The chemical that injured Kelly is Hydrofluoric Acid or HF. HF is not only dangerous, it is deadly! It is strongly recommended that all cleaners used in car wash operations be checked to assure they do not contain HF. There are many safer alternatives to assuring a clean car while protecting the safety and lives of employees.