SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

[achris]

I've been looking into getting a TIG welder and I've been reading up on getting the best results when I came across this article. After reading it I will be doing things quite differently from now on.... The possible outcome doesn't bear thinking about....

PLEASE, PLEASE, everybody, read this, all of it.....

http://www.brewracingframes.com/id75.htm

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

WOW ! Thanks for the heads up on that achris. Many chemicals out there are very dangerous. My dad passed away from not using an air supplied resperator when painting Imron paint with hardner. To find out, the hardner when mixed with the Imron will produce a cyanide gas. Once he was exposed to enough of it, his body shut off.

This is a great read and I hope others do pay attention to it. I don't do a lot of welding, but it only will take one time if you use the wrong chemicals to do a job. Thanks again achris..............SS

 

[CheapboatKev]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

That is the old dont mix bleach and Ajax warning times a BILLION!
That dude is SOOO Lucky to have been able to write that article.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Perfect timing. I am working with harsh chemicals and solvents as I re-build the cylinders heads on my 454.

 

[dlindeblad]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

That is some scary stuff there!!!!

 

[ezmobee]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

That is terrifying. SS's dad's preventable death also horrible. And Kev, I have totally done the bleach thing myself! I mixed two kinds of cleaners trying to get a stain off my tub once and felt like death. It's scarey what these off-the-shelf products can do to you if even slightly "mis-used".

 

[Fishing Dude too]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Use to use a mold cleaner at work that would cause V fib, funny thing is I get this normally so after the 2nd time they hauled me out of work I refused to use it. Been careful since then on what I use, read the msds sheets on everything.

 

[bigdee]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Phosgene gas was used in WWII as a nerve gas.....Freon, when burnt by an open flame will convert to phosgene......that is why it is dangerous to smoke around refrigerants.

 

[achris]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Phosgene gas was used in WWII as a nerve gas.....Freon, when burnt by an open flame will convert to phosgene......that is why it is dangerous to smoke around refrigerants.

I had a read of Wiki on phosgene.... That is one very evil chemical! When I get home I will be checking all the cleaners and PROPERLY disposing of anything that looks remotely dangerous. I know I have brake cleaner in my shed .... That will be the first thing to go!

Here's the wiki on Phosgene.. Scary as hell!!!!... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phosgene

 

[PiratePast40]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Phosgene gas was used in WWII as a nerve gas.....Freon, when burnt by an open flame will convert to phosgene......that is why it is dangerous to smoke around refrigerants.

That was WWI but you're right about refrigerant and phosgene gas. But now I'm wondering about actual concentrations and effects. With R-11 & R-12, you'll get a sweet taste if there is refrigerant in the air and you're smoking a cigarette.

The above story begs the question of what would happen if you were smoking and working with brake cleaner with those chemicals. Do you get the same effects and same concentrations? Does a burning cigarette have the energy to start the chemical reaction?

 

[achris]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

... With R-11 & R-12, you'll get a sweet taste if there is refrigerant in the air and you're smoking a cigarette....

That is phosgene in very low concentrations. Unfortunately it's like H2S (hydrogen sulphide/rotten egg gas), if you can smell it, it's too strong... But this stuff make H2S look like a childs' toy....

Chris........

 

[PiratePast40]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

How many times have have you seen someone working with chemicals with a cigarette hanging out of their mouth, or actually done it yourself? Scary stuff!

 

[nwcove]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

that is scary s#*^! im a bit of a hypocrite, and take shortcuts at work....have been burnt by acids, caustics and hydrogen peroxide, all minor. but it goes to show how important reading and understanding labels can be. MSDS sheets are a must for every reactive chemical in your workplace, but only serve a purpose if they are read and understood! ( as mentioned above......myself and another kid in my grade 7 science class were given the task of cleaning some flasks ( this was too long ago to mention!) ..we did the ajax and bleach mix, it cancelled school for half a day....and we were sick for a few more!)

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

I heard of this a wile ago. We at work have a welding shop with about 20 welders and there on top of this stuff all the time. Even if brake clean is sprayed on the mecanical side of the shop some of them will stop welding ontill the vapers have been blown away.

Another one to watch when welding is if you wear contact lenses. Thay may stick to your eye when your welding and when you go to remove them can cause blindness.

 

[joewithaboat]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Chris
Thanks for the heads up. I have and use a tig welder every so often and have used carb cleaner before welding. Tig is very picky about being clean. If I ran out of carb cleaner, i would have reached for the break cleaner. Not now!
Thanks again,
Joe

 

[j_martin]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Non-chlorinated brake cleaner would be OK to use, but highly flammable.

I once moved a computer business into a space that had been used by a conversion van outfit. The furnace was leaking fumes into the office, so I had it checked out. The previous renters had stored their air conditioning service stuff in the furnace room. There wasn't much left of the heat exchanger in the furnace. Phosgene took it out.

 

[Failproof]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Ok, I feel that I have been very lucky! I t was common for me to spray "what ever" cleaner I have at hand before welding. Not anymore. I looked at multiple different cans just now; did not realize there was such a difference between one cleaner and another.

 

[bigdee]

Re: SAFETY ALERT!!! EVERYBODY should read this....

Non-chlorinated brake cleaner would be OK to use, but highly flammable.

I once moved a computer business into a space that had been used by a conversion van outfit. The furnace was leaking fumes into the office, so I had it checked out. The previous renters had stored their air conditioning service stuff in the furnace room. There wasn't much left of the heat exchanger in the furnace. Phosgene took it out.

Now that is scary. The plant I worked at had a compressed air dryer leak in the evaporator and all the plant's compressed air supply was contaminated with R-22. We had a number of unvented open flame gas burners that used the compressed air for the combustion mix. I smelled the phosgene and immediately knew what it was and evacuated all personnel from the plant and performed a plant shut down. Since we were a JITD company it cost us in penalties for missed shipments and I had to answer for my actions, so I done a documented research and put together a PP to redeem myself.....everyone was shocked on how close we came to what could have been a major industrial accident.