What do you guys use? I'm trying to find something a step up from disposable... a rubber/silicon facepiece with the replaceable filters would be good. Even better would be something that has tubes to move the air intake to my back, away from the fumes. I think I found some 3M products that could work, but I want to see if the HAMB recommends anything. I'm looking in the sub $50 price range. And of course it needs to be slim enough to fit under a normal welding helmet, and needs work with spectacles. Thanks, Eric
I have never seen a need to use a respirator welding. Unless you have a lung disease or are welding some exotic metal. A good fan for ventilation is normally all you will need. We dont weld that much to worry about this normally.
is breathing the smoke created by burning metal bad for you? whodathunkit. I don't know anyone who uses one... though I guess it's not a bad idea
A good fan might be ok... but for $15-40 I can have peace of mind, and I'd rather not take chances with my health. I've gone home with a cough after welding all day... Any recommendations?
Ever get galzanize poisoning, kind of sucks. At the short I work at we use these respirators that are rrefered to as a Bodymans mask. I am not sure of the name but they are gray with disposable filters and are the same set up as the painters 3m respirator.
I worked as a welder on the assembly line at the Lansing Mich. Fisher Body plant (Oldsmobile) during the '70s, mig-welding and brazing 9-10 hours a day, for years, I welded countless thousands of galvanized trunk panels working under overhead fans to dissipate the toxic fumes, would have to replace my welding shield at lunch each day because of the white film build up, I did eventually have to transfer out to another dept. because my sinuses had began to bleed. And I still do quite a bit of welding at my home shop. I have thus far experienced no detectable long term health effects. But am absolutely certain that one day I'm going to die from something I would consider a respirator to be overkill in most home fab situations, just use a big fan, open doors and windows (or work outside) allowing for plenty of ventilation, keep your head and nose as far out of the smoke plume as practicable, and try to minimize welding on anything having a heavy galvanized coating. Just my two cents.
Theres obviously something bad in those fumes. Otherwise your sinuses wouldn't have started bleeding. If anyone has used a respirator designed for welding, and liked it enough to recommend it, thats what this post is for. Not for trying to talk me out of safety equipment because it might be 'too safe'
The hard, cold reality, is most life long welders die from lung related ilinesses. That said, do I wear a resperater, um, no. But I have had the damned cold for 2 weeks now, maybe I should be..... Gene
Damn you guys are crazy. I ALWAYS use my respirator while welding. Maybe Im just beeing a pansy but I feel alot better lung wise when useing one. After a long day of welding cough up a real deap luugee. (sp?) I bet its going to be black.....Then ask yourself if you want that shit staying in your lungs. Mine is a simple 40 dollor respirator I bought at OSH. All I did was change the cartidges to a welding and brazeing type. You have to read what the cartidges will filter. Otherwise its pointless.
Dude Im telling you, THEY WORK great. Even with galvanized steel. Anyone who has ever gotten sick from galvanized fumes knows it sucks.
"toxic fumes" Duh, of course there is "something bad in those fumes", more power to you if you think its going to make any significant difference in your health or longevity. just chimed in here to evidence that the normally limited amount of welding that is performed by a home craftsman without a respirator does not entail some kind of automatic death penalty. Perhaps you already have respiratory problems, or are working in an enclosed environment, or welding significantly more than the average home hot-rod fabricator, and therefore NEED a respirator. I'm certainly not trying to talk you out of it, only telling others that most here do not need to be paranoid about it.
While building trailers for Big Tex years back, I was told by one of our supervisors that we prolly should be wearing one for the galvanized pieces that we welded. After I had already welded a ton of 'em, ha. Now I try not to breathe any galvalume or 'nize smoke when I HAVE to weld it. Just hold my breath and move away from the imediate smoke.
I weld all day and take it from someone who has had his lung collapse 3 times (not related to welding). As long as you have a good fan or even better, place a vaccum right near where you are welding and you will be golden. You breath just as bad shit living in LA or working at a gas station. Like I said...big fan or vaccum!!
If I still stick welded,I think it'd be a damn good idea to wear a respirator..Since I mostly mig now,I dunno..Not sure what is burning off of clean steel,but I blow black shit after I weld ...think I'll look into wearing one,too,I'm not getting any younger,and I've abused the hell outa my lungs for years
What about tig welding, do you need a respirator? Tig does not produce much smoke or fumes but that doesn't mean it's not bad.
I work at a chemical plant and have for the last twenty years. We do use respirators when welding because of all the contamination. 3M 6200 is the half face that we use and they will fit under a welding helmet. They have a multigas cartridge and one for welding that can be installed over the multigas one. My people use both at the same time under a hood and have no problems. As far as the tig welding, be carefull in a closed room. Argon is heavier than air and WILL displace oxygen in your lungs if you breathe it in. No respirator will handle that, you just have to be carefull.
Took a job recently as a welder/bodyman at a Bugatti restoration shop. It's a good idea. http://weilerwelding.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/respirator.html
Galvanized steel is where your risk is. You can still weld that without worry if your not doing a ton of it and your smart about what your doing. Dont have your head directly in the smoke plume. There is not much galvanized welding in hotrod fabrication. Mild steel & chromoly & aluminum & stainless are the main ones. All the materials I work with that are delivered to the weldshop are coated with a thin grease solution (probly from the cutting machine too) which keeps it from rusting during the trucking / delivery process. Alot of our material comes all the way from Canada. Then we cut it down in a lubricating band saw which adds to the greasyness of the tubing. This stuff burning off during the welding process is the majority of the smoke. Not good for you, but like others said; your not likely to be breathing a ton of this in your home garage. When the danger becomes serious, then you go to a respirator. We have suction welder setups too which draw the smoke through the MIG liner & out away from the welder. We use that when resurfacing big auger bits for drilling telephone holes & whatnot. We'd use that on galvanized if it was going to be any continuous welding. But to gear up with all that stuff just for a 1 or 2 inch fillet weld on a piece of galvanized steel is overkill. Carl Hagan
One last thing, if the original poster has a picture beaming himself in the finger with a TIG arc, then really......why such paranoia over breathing a little too much smoke plume. Around two years ago, I slipped when I pulled the MIG trigger & the wire puntured through my leather glove, hit my wedding ring, created an ARC & burned my ring into my finger. Been divorced for over a year & a half & the permanent ring burn is still there on my finger. Carl Hagan
Last time I looked at those 3M type filter masks the recommended change out time on the pads was crazy especially for auto paint use. I used to do alot of hard facing on grading equipment and used a continues air system like blaster use. As for shop use a fan would be the minimum, If I die of organ failure let it be my liver. Bob Evans
I wasn't grounded to the welder, so the arc was harmless. Just a little buzz and light show. I have been looking at the 3M 6200 series... just like this. except the quick drop-down model. They come to about $18 with filters from airgas. If you get the P100/2097 filter its supposed to last a pretty good amount of time. There are N, R, and P class filters as well as 95, 99 and 100. The first letter stands for there durability. N is Not oil resistant. R is oil Resistant. and P is oil Proof. The P they say will last pretty much until it gets hard to breath through. The number stands for the particulate efficiency. 95%, 99%, and 99.97%(100). The 2097 Filter also protects against ozone, another byproduct of welding. One thing I'm a little confused about, is that aparently these P100/2097 filters are only particulate filters + ozone protection + nuisence level of organic vapor... and thats aparently all you need for welding. It would make sense to me that you would need a chemical cartrdige as well, but 3M says this is all you need. Any input??
We use the chemical cartridges on the 6200 with the particulate on top of them. Like I said, I work in a chemical plant and there is a lot of residue on things when we are welding, this is why we use the chemical cartridges. Both of them will fit under a welding hood. I think the cartridges are recommended to be changed every 30 days after they are opened. The particulate filter, when you have trouble breathing through it.
Titty masks help a little, but like REJ says, use the more spendy cartridge type. Unless of course you like shop boogers...
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