Hot things can burn you -- everyone knows that! but, just how hot is "Hot"?
Anything
that is more than a few degrees hotter than your body can burn you. The
hotter something is, the more dangerous it is.
Just how bad the burn will be depends on how tough your skin is (older people and very young children have more delicate skin) and on how long the heat is touching your skin, as well as on how hot the thing is.
This table shows how hot some everyday things are.
A hot summer day : 30°C (86°F)
Body temperature : 36.9°C (98.4°F)
Hot bath water : 40.5°C to 42.5°C (105°F to 108.5°F)
WATER AT 43°C (109°F) CAN SCALD!
Central-heating pipes : 80°C (176°F)
Hot coffee : 95°C (203°F)
Boiling water : 100°C (212°F)
A pressure cooker : 120°C (250°F)
A candle flame : 205°C (400°F)
A match flame : 205°C (400°F)
A kitchen oven : 220°C (430°F)
A laundry iron : 230°C (445°F)
Hot cooking oil : 230°C (445°F)
Hot tailpipes : 540°C (1000°F)
A coal fire : 600°C (1,110°F)
Burning wood : 650°C (1,200°F)
An electric fire : 900°C (1,650°F)
A lighted cigarette : 930°C (1,700°F)
A gas flame (fire or cooker) : 1000°C (1,830°F)
Burning charcoal : 1100°C (2,010°F)
Fireworks are really, really hot!
Even the 'safe' kinds of fireworks which you can hold, like Sparklers, can be ten times as hot as boiling water. Other fireworks can be twenty times as hot as boiling water!
Boiling water : 100°C (212°F)
Sparklers : 1000°C (1,830°F)
Other Fireworks : 2000°C (3,630°F)
Be very, very careful even with 'safe' fireworks, and never, ever play with any other fireworks! Fireworks are beautiful, fireworks are fun, but fireworks are not toys!
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