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Protective masks?

N

navyman

Well-Known Member
Hello all,
I do a fair amount of restoration, re-furbishing etc and use a lot of two-part fillers, lacquer, epoxy resins and similar stuff that contains xylene. Unfortunately, despite making sure that all windows are wide open, and using a dust mask when filing, sanding, machining any of these, the fumes give me much problems with my breathing, my lung's are not in the best of condition anyway. Can anyone suggest a face mask with filters that can help with these fumes. I'm in the position that I can only work for a few minutes at a time before having to leave my work room and closing the door firmly behind me. This is very time consuming and it would be a great help if I could spend longer working with these useful materials?
Any advice welcome,
Many thanks,
Wheezing navyman!
 
Guy,
sorry, i cant help with any suggestions, ime sure other members with more info can, but you must stop using such stuff until you have an answer. In fact i would advise you to stop until then, i know how frustrating this will be, but your health is more important, particularly as one gets older. I think about these things all the same and stick to beer.

Andy.
 
Navyman if I were you I would get in touch with a company who specialises in such things like ARCO
http://www.arco.co.uk/textsearch?searchTerms=half+mask&searchbtn.x=0&searchbtn.y=0&eSearch=Products
The line of work I am in is health and safety specifically Asbestos. The masks we use range from good quality disposable masks that cost a few pounds each through to half masks with separate filters that cost about 15 each through to full face respirators that cost many hundreds of pounds.
Two important things are getting a mask that fits correctly. If you have stubble or a beard then you can forget it because respirators that fit on your face (as opposed to hoods) have to have a seal and a beard ruins that. The other thing is having the right filters. There is no point in having a filter that is of use for toxic dust but then fumes go through it so you need a filter that does what you need it to do.
Try contacting ARCO and see what they say.
Your method of doing work and then having to leave the room sounds like a bad idea, you may do yourself harm that way.
Dave.
 
Thank you Andy and Dave for your advice,
I understand the stubble trouble with face masks as I used gas masks and did some diving whilst in the navy, consequently I keep clean shaven. I've been a bit concerned recently about the fumes as being 60 years old my health is not as good as when I was in my twenties!
I've stopped work on my latest projects for the time being, and yes Andy it's very frustrating but better safe than sorry.
Dave, thanks for the link to ARCO, I will chase that up asap. I don't want to have to revert to polyfiller when these excellent chemical metal type products are available.
Many thanks again, and any further advice will also be gratefully appreciated.
Cheers,
Guy.
 
breathing problems

Hi Navyman,would you be able to do your work if it were inside a sealed cabinet with arm length rubber gloves as they use in bead blasting cabinets,clean air can be drawn into the cabinet and the outgoing air drawn out and filtered outside the workshop,hope this idea helps,
Regards,Don,
 
Hello Don,
It's a great idea but unfortunately my workbench is full with lathe, grinder, sander, and more, also my current project stands approx 5' 6'' tall and needs plenty of filler and much hand finishing. Yes, it's a missile but all will be revealed when I've finally managed to finish it!
Thank you for the idea though, given some more space it would certainly work well for grenades, mortars etc. I may even have a go at building a small one using an extractor fan and perhaps some vet's gloves. Certainly food for thought?
Cheers,
Guy.
 
Ever thought of buying a military respirator? I used to use an old S6 on a regular basis when I was working on building sites after they had gassed the pigeons in the roof areas of old buildings. I think you can pick up surplus S10s quite cheap now with the filters costing between 5 and 10 quid.
 
navyman said:
Thank you Andy and Dave for your advice,
I understand the stubble trouble with face masks as I used gas masks and did some diving whilst in the navy, consequently I keep clean shaven. I've been a bit concerned recently about the fumes as being 60 years old my health is not as good as when I was in my twenties!
I've stopped work on my latest projects for the time being, and yes Andy it's very frustrating but better safe than sorry.
Dave, thanks for the link to ARCO, I will chase that up asap. I don't want to have to revert to polyfiller when these excellent chemical metal type products are available.
Many thanks again, and any further advice will also be gratefully appreciated.
Cheers,
Guy.
Click to expand...


Navyman, respirators really are the last resort, the important thing is reducing the amount of fume/dust if at all possible and if you can't then move that activity to an area which is well ventilated - perhaps you could do the metal filler work outside on days when its not raining (that's what I do along with any paint spraying)? Another option is to put an air mover into your work area which sucks out the dust and fumes. Thermac do them (see link below), they are expensive for private individuals to buy but they do sometimes have reconditioned ones for sale, call them and ask to speak to their technical guys and they may be able to help.
Dave.
http://www.thermac.com/airmovers_spec.php
 
Hi Guy,

Thanks for pm,I can understand your problem a bit better now,if you look at screwfix they advertise a facemask item no,13038,they say it is good for resins dust and fumes, which I think would help but as others have said,you will need to keep a good airflow going in and out to keep your work area clear,several household cooling fans would be a help,hope this helps,
Regards,Don,
 
A fume hood, like those used in chemistry labs would work, if the item was small enough. Glove boxes don't have to be fancy or expensive- cut two holes in a cardboard box, trim the top down so you can look down at your work, put what you are working on into the box, and seal the top with some plastic kitchen wrap and tape, and wear gloves that will resist whatever you work with- tape them to the holes in the box for a better seal, if needed. Take it outside and let whatever it is dry/cure by opening up the top.
If you problem is more with particulates than fumes, then a HEPA filter on a fan would be of use- you can find them pretty cheaply for getting allergens (pet hair, etc) out of the house.
A Shop-vac with a long hose attached to a funnel, and the funnel placed near whatever your working with, will draw most of it away for you. Just make sure the Shop-vac vents to somewhere away from you.
To test this stuff out, light a match, blow it out, and if the smoke is quickly and thoroughly drawn away from the work area- you probably have a winner.
 
Thank you all for your advice,
I have a powerful fan and will try this with the work close to the window, the smoke test is a good idea, I hadn't thought of that. Unfortunately I can't work outside as I live in a block of flats and think my elderly neighbours would not be too pleased!
I'm thinking of making a space among the plants on my small balcony perhaps in conjunction with the fan and a filtered mask when I contact ARCO. I will also check the local ex government store for a military gas mask. I'll work on the assumption that if I can't smell it, things should be ok?
Thanks again for all these ideas, I will be glad to get back to work, but in a safer environment.
Cheers,
Guy.
 
sanding filler

for sanding filler I always use wet and dry abrasive paper, no dust and a good finish, often too good and messy as well butsafe. as to paint fumes try talking to a car body paint shop and tell them what paint you are using. 2pr
 
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