something from a mechanic you can use as disinfectant

rosehips

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My characters were in a prison camp. A riot broke out (this may sound familiar, as some time ago you all helped me questions about the electrified fence). One character used the opportunity to raid the garage for tools and such. He and two other characters then escaped the camp, but one of the other two got shot in the leg. Character 1 had acquired needle nose pliers and other supplies from the garage, so he's going to operate on Character 2. It doesn't have to go particularly well, though I don't want Char 2 to die.

What could Char 1 have found in the garage that would work as a disinfectant? Paint thinner? Would it poison Char 2 through the wound and negate any benefit of its use as a disinfectant?

I thought of alcohol but don't know that that's something you'd find in a garage.

I could have them try to cauterize the wound but from what I know of that sort of thing they're far more likely to make things a lot worse trying to do that.

The goal would be to remove the bullet and stop the bleeding so the character can walk.
 

Calder

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If your character was shot in the leg and hasn't bled to death already, chances are that he won't, i.e. the bullet missed the major blood vessels. Since the first priority of the escapees would, I presume, have been to put distance between them and pursuers and to find a safe place to hide, things which take time, there's a good chance that the untreated gunshot wound shot could already have become infected. The unwounded character's task is to remove the bullet and any debris (bits of clothing etc.) which may have entered with it. To prevent the risk of infecting the wound himself, the simplest thing he can do is to boil his pliers and other equipment immediately before use. He could also use a warm solution of salt dissolved in boiled water to flush out the wound before bandaging it tightly, preferably with sterilised (boiled) cloth. The garage could have held a stock of salt for using on icy pathways, although I can't really come up with a reason why an escaping prisoner would take some with him. Perhaps he could find some salt in, or near the place they're hiding?

Another option would be to use a solution of a hand-cleaner, which you might find in a washroom just off the garage. These often contain not only agents to cut oil and grease from the skin, but also anti-bacterials to prevent infection of any cuts and grazes incurred while working, but, again, why would your escapee bother to take it in the first place?

Of course, the easiest thing would be to have your character raid a first-aid kit in the garage. If the escape meant living rough, or escaping through a hostile environment, it's entirely feasible for him to take a few medical supplies as well as tools etc. 'just in case.' He'd be thinking mainly of cuts, sprains and minor injuries, but would certainly take some disinfectant.
 
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cbenoi1

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Duct tape.

Won't disinfect, but will cut down on bleeding and prevent dirt from coming into contact with the wound.

-cb
 

King Neptune

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Paint thinner, gasoline (fundamentally the same as thinner), alcohol, which is used as a solvent, or some other hydrocarbon solvent all of these would be antibiotics, but stopping the bleeding would be a more immediate problem. Duct tape is great, and it lessens the chance of infection.
 

benbenberi

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Wouldn't the garage probably have a first-aid kit somewhere?
 

Tsu Dho Nimh

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Stop the bleeding (duct tape hold,ding a compression pad of anything, even sanitary pads from the woman's restroom, clean shop towels or t-shirts) and get the heck out of there.

Worry about disinfecting LATER. When you can break into a drug store or something.
 

Kitkitdizzi

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A garage might have denatured alcohol, used as solvent and cleaner. I've only been trained in wilderness first aid, but I was taught to not pour any sort of disinfectant/antiseptic in a wound because it can damage the tissue. Instead, that the wound should be flushed with water for at least five minutes to remove any debris, then an absorbent (as I carry a first-aid kit, gauze) pressed to the wound and wrapped to keep in place (I like the duct tape suggestions). I suppose that if they need to get the bullet out the alcohol could be used to sterilize the pliers.
 

MaeZe

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A garage might have denatured alcohol, used as solvent and cleaner. I've only been trained in wilderness first aid, but I was taught to not pour any sort of disinfectant/antiseptic in a wound because it can damage the tissue. Instead, that the wound should be flushed with water for at least five minutes to remove any debris, then an absorbent (as I carry a first-aid kit, gauze) pressed to the wound and wrapped to keep in place (I like the duct tape suggestions). I suppose that if they need to get the bullet out the alcohol could be used to sterilize the pliers.

This ^

Pretty much anything used as a solvent will have some antiseptic properties as most bacteria have lipids in their cell membranes that would be dissolved or damaged by the solvent. But the solvent would do damage to your living cells as well and there's no reason to think they'd do more good than harm.

Ethylene glycol and propylene glycol used in antifreeze are not a very good disinfectants to my knowledge.

If you want to use something in the garage for the sake of the story, perhaps choose the bathroom cleaners. They might have bleach or a surface disinfectant in them. Be sure to dilute them, especially bleach if you use that. Washing with soap and water is still probably the most effective means of preventing wound infection.

I wouldn't try to irrigate a bullet wound unless you had something made specifically for that purpose. A bottle of sterile eye wash might be found in any garage as a first aid measure. That would do. Still wash the outside of the wound first so you are not pushing contaminants into the wound.
 
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WeaselFire

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I thought of alcohol but don't know that that's something you'd find in a garage.

Put it in anyway. Mechanic has a bottle of cheap whiskey hidden in a tool drawer. :)

That said, alcohol is used as a degreaser and in many garages, usually as mineral spirits or denatured alcohol. Brake cleaner is also basically alcohol with some hydrocarbons and is harmless to human flesh.

But, bullet wounds are a different animal than simple cuts and scrapes. Best fix is clean water rinse with soap (every garage has soap) and bandaging with cotton. Quick fix is fire, hot poker or even coals on the wound both clean and cauterize. Depends on what your story needs.

Jeff
 
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Bolero

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In terms of disinfecting tools - if you pour solvent over, then set fire to it so it burns off on the surface of the tool, would that make it more effective?
(Not suggesting that for the wound!)
 

Tsu Dho Nimh

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In terms of disinfecting tools - if you pour solvent over, then set fire to it so it burns off on the surface of the tool, would that make it more effective?
(Not suggesting that for the wound!)

Depends on the solvent. but dipping a scalpel blade in alcohol and burning it off was common.

Most pathogenic bacteria are fairly easy to kill
 

redfalcon

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The would have alcohol for cleaning off brake rotors, it is also used with a rag to remove dust when painting, it drys supper quick. They would probably also have cleaning/disinfecting wipes to get the grease off their hands.
 

WeaselFire

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In terms of disinfecting tools - if you pour solvent over, then set fire to it so it burns off on the surface of the tool, would that make it more effective?

Fire is a great disinfectant. Don't need anything else, alcohol at that point is just a fuel.

Jeff
 

armydillo978

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As a mechanic, I've worked in diesel shops and regular auto shops. First aid kits are hit or miss. The diesel shop (where we worked on 18 wheelers) had top of the notch kits. The auto shops....were damn near empty half the time. I would never recommend using any fuel/anti brake fluid ATF/kerosine on wounds. As MaeZe mentioned, it'll damn the tissue more than help. He had a good suggestion with diluted bleach.

You could take shop rags to bind the wound....but most of them, even the clean ones, still have oil residue in them. If it's modern time you could take Pigmats (https://www.newpig.com/universal-absorbent-mats-pads/c/5001?show=All) and but them on the wound then taoe em up with plastic seat covers and shop rags.

Some of the mechanics in our shop have seperate containers of hand sanitizer.....at most, I'd used that or water...or both. Now, I'm down here in the south, so we don't keep salt in the shop so that's not an option.....unless your character raids the ever present food packet leftover drawer. Where condiment packages from damn near every fastfood place are kept. As Calder mentioned......take the salt packets left in the drawer from McDonalds or Popeyes and mix it with water and flush the wound.

As for booze in the shop.....never seen it. At most, some of the guys toke up.

I wouldn't try to cauterize the wound though....two guys have blow torches here....but that's a last resort. Bind it.

When I was in the Army I was shot three times in the back in Iraq.....we just put field dressings on 'em, strapped 'em tight with bandages and humped out. I made it fine for a day and we actually used duct tape to bind wounds up...though we usually had a few scars, but were alive. :)

Bandage that bitch up and get moving.

As Tsu Dho Nimh said.....first CVS or Walgreens ya come across, jack it. Think "No Country for Old Men."
 
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