Metal working safety

[Loadstar]

Kinda looks like a old furnace and some flex you acquire for less than $200.

Reheating makeup air is not a big deal. As it pushes in air your exhaust is working even better off of a pressurizing building. Makeup air is just as simple. Plus you will be happy in hotter days because you are pushing air in and pulling air out. Air moving makes a sweating body's evaporative cooling work much better. I work on a lot of welding spot coolers, dust collectors, exhaust and make up air at factories. The big boy stuff is not real elaborate just simple push air in shove air out.

 

[PILOON]

I suspect that Silicosis might be the worst offender. (chop saws sand blasting and grinding)
Other things are bad as well such as welding galvanized metal but most welders are aware of that one.
Perhaps a mask while grinding would not be intolerable and a shop vac adjacent to your chop saw would help a lot.**
Or again a powerful wall vent fan directly behind the chop saw to move that silica laced air outside.

** the type that wood work shops use with a 4" suction hose.

 

[OutbackL130]

Started looking at PAPR welding helmets and I am very impressed with the miller 9400i papr. It's a bit pricey at over $1500, but thats a small price to pay for peace of mind when considering all the possible health issues from welding.

This seems to be the most feasible method of protection as I will not be able to tolerate wearing a respirator and I dont want to rely on ventilation alone as I'm sure I would still be breathing in some amount of fumes. Anybody have experience with PAPR welding helmets and advice on which one I should get?

Miller - Welding Helmets & Welder Safety Equipment and Clothing - Powered Air Purifying Respirator (PAPR)

 

[steverino101]

or you could do these for about 15.00.

Moldex N95 Particulate Disposable Respirator with Exhalation Valve - ActiveForever


i see you don't want to wear a respirator, but thought maybe you meant a full face with cartridges and that whole thingy.

 

[big bubba]

" I've been a metal fabricator for 7 years since I was 16."\

can't offer any direct advice other than you are leagues ahead of your age group peers in seeking out these safety issues early on w/the future in mind. no doubt, many career welders have eye & respiratory issues by middle age. have seen countless times road construction crews cutting concrete w/abrasive saws w/o eye, ear, or respiratory protection. if the population @ large would look into their own future occupational & personal health risks, some of the current health care nightmares would be avoided. (no politics please!!!) btw i'm not associated w/osha....just a retired shop teacher fortunately w/all digits intact & no health issues. best of luck

 

[Dr Dave]

Check into the fresh air masks for painters, there are full face and half masks. Some have there own pump, I used a half mask with a belted mounter filter which used air from your air compressor. These help keep you cool also.

I have thought about adding the hose to my welding helmet, this would supply cool and fresh air. I hate it when my lense fogs up. This would be like the fresh air supplied to race car helmets.

Dave

 

[Dr Dave]

Found a fresh air helmet on ebay, with auto darkening for 399

Dave

 

[bamboozled]

I am a hobby metal and wood worker, also do a lot of fiberglass (boat construction/rebuild). I wear a respirator as much as possible, unless I am and grinding metal outside and at all times with fiberglass. Why chance it? It's not that big of an inconvenience.

I use a large dust extractor with the hose in the output stream when grinding fiberglass to try to capture as much as possible at the source.

If you have your own shop get it set up with dust and fume extraction so that it doesn't impede your productivity and you'll be good to go. It has to be easy to set up and use or you will get tired of messing with it every time and stop using it.

 

[beeforty]

I work for United Airlines in San Francisco and we have been doing away with all open grinding, sanding etc due to "HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM" which is in all kinds of stuff like stainless steel, anti-corrosion coating , dyes .... All our sanders , Hi-speed cutters are now connected to HEPA vacuums with shrouds around the cutters. See this link @Wikipedia for quick info Hexavalent chromium - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Now I haven't heard of anyone getting CANCER in my almost 40 years in the biz but they sure forced this new tooling on us!

 

[varmint]

The complication with discussions like this is that no one really knows what you are being exposed to, how much, and most importantly, whether your body will be affected by what seems like random bad luck. Lots of workers have lots of exposure to bad stuff and seem to reach old age, but if you are the one who leaves a doctor's office with bad news, then none of that matters. Being safe when it comes to possible can be a hassle, but watching someone you care about die from emphysema or lung cancer when they didn't smoke is worse. And if the person dying is you... We are being exposed to more and more bad stuff all the time, and bad luck, or one too many genetic malfunctions, is not good.