Safety

[MD2020]

Safety

I worked around heavy machinery all my life.
Mills, Lathes, punch press (20 to 100 tons), saws, sharp sheet metal, grinders, the list goes on and on.

One thing I regret is ear protection, a cutoff wheel cutting sheet metal will do a number on you. Also I had one kick back on me, busted my knuckle and twisted up my T shirt in it on my chest. I should have moved the ladder over before doing the last cut.

I'm sure everyone here has some kind of solvent (BOMB) in there work space, I keep mine across the room from welding, duh, until you forget to put it back.

With out being gruesome tell a story or tip about safety.?

[leegreen]

I grabbed a disk grinder that had a fiber sanding disk in it to just lightly touch up edges of a piece of 1/8 plate. edge of plate caught edge of disk and ripped it, grinder was torn from my hands and I got the see the tendons in the back of left hand. Luckily they were not damaged, some stiches and healing time and the hand is fully functional. But I have a nice scar to remind myself not be be stupid. Wear gloves, don't use sanding disks for grinding, grind off the edge not onto the edge.

Years ago my uncle was building a car/equipment trailer, at 80% done it fell on him and he died alone in his shop. Investigation concluded that the weight of the trailer exceeded the jack stands as it neared completion.
I like to stack the tires under the car or use some blocks so if the car falls off the jack stands it lands on something other than me.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally Posted by leegreen

I like to stack the tires under the car or use some blocks so if the car falls off the jack stands it lands on something other than me.

I NEVER get under a car without it being on oversized jack stands AND the wheel/tire combo being under the side I'm under as back up.

As for accidents, I have now TWICE nearly cut off the tip of my left index finger using a thin cutoff disk on an angle grinder. Did it more than 10 years apart so apparently I'm dumber than a stump and don't learn. Well, at least I WAS!!

[geezer#99]

Walked into the welding shop at the gas plant I worked at to find a welders helper leaving a trail of blood on the floor. He was dressing a weld and swung the angle grinder down and cut into his knee just above the joint. He didn’t even notice! A clean cut. Said he had no pain. Wasn’t wearing his protective leggings. He was off for a year healing up.
Had another welders helper think he could stop a rotating drill bit with his leather gloves. Mangled his hand pretty bad.
I worked in an underground coal mine when I was fresh out of school. The safety boss had a favourite saying.
The best way to be safe is knowing an accident can happen at anytime!

[mr48chev]

The one thing that I hope stuck with all of my auto mechanics students that I had in 13 years of teaching was Work safe. Put the vehicle on proper stands that are on a solid surface or use something solid like decent size firewood round.

jackstands don't work on dirt, gravel or asphalt in the hot summer time. I've seen them dig into an asphalt driveway and tip over.

My hearing is not that good because of a year of flying in helcopters and firing a machne gun and then working in shops and using my air chisel and other tools without hearing protection. That and being around race cars with no hearing protecton.

If you are using an angle grinder for anythign you need full face protection and not just a pair of cool tv guy safety glasses.

I bought a Selstrom DP4 face shield before I took Gene Winfield's metal working class a few years ago and it was one of my better purchases as far as shop or safety equipment goes. The shape keeps debris from coming up under the mask and while the green flip up lens gets in the way a lot it sure is nice for cutting or even gas welding with the torch. If I had do overs I'd buy it without the green lens though.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000150J3C...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I got mine at Oxarc.

I've seen a number of shop fires that were caused by sparks landing in a trash can in the shop. A friend of mine lost his house and race car because of a fuel leak on the car in the garage where they had a gas fired water heater. He lost his wife in a divorce after he spent insurance money on a new race car rather than a house. Personally I am not a fan of attached garages except for a place for the wife to park her car. I want a shop that is totally separate from the house.

I didn't know the guy but a guy in this area made his family pretty sick because he was painting his car in the attached garage and the fumes were getting into the house. Word was that the house smelled like paint for weeks after that and had to be pro cleaned.

My buddy had an old fridge that was long dead that he kept all of his paint including spray cans in. It sat outside his shop door and he had the light rigged so he could plug it in and have a light bulb on in the winter to keep the paint from freezing. He was big on no paint or flamables in the shop though. He wasn't so good about clutter and trip hazards though.

As far as welding, cutting or grinding be aware of you surroundings and what might catch a spark including a car or truck with nice paint. I've seen a couple of paint jobs ruined because guys were grinding several feet from the car and sparks burned into the paint.

[MD2020]

Good info guy's

[joedoh]

fire watch: after welding or grinding or cutting, turn everything off except the lights (especially fans) and spend 30 min puttering around, sweeping, dusting, what have you. if there is a smolder, you will see the smoke or haze, and smell it.

[mongocanfly]

I try to be safe, but the evidence says otherwise..
I've had lots of accidents over the yrs..
Like Leno said after his burns, that's just part of manual work, sooner or later you'll have one..
My latest 2 bad ones both involved a grinder with cutoff disc,and were about 6 months apart, blade hung both times , and I have 2 parallel scars ,a 1/2" apart on the back of my left hand to prove it..
Coulda been much worse..

[leegreen]

6 posts and 6 descriptions of grinder accidents, might be a trend!

A lot of bad grinder practice showing up on youtube, I'm noticing it more since my own screw up. no guards, little or no PPE, using a cutoff disk to dress edges. using a cutoff disk in the wrong direction!
Seldom see visible hearing protection

[MD2020]

4-1/2" grinder
I took the guard off one time and got my finger, no blood but put the guard back on.
I would tape my fingers together if I was going to take it off again.

[mongocanfly]

Lee.. you are correct, theres a lot of bad habits that cause accidents
My grinder has no guard, for the way I use it, it would be near impossible for me to use it with it attached..still not a good excuse, I know
When I was going thru machine shop school way back in the day, they made us look at a picture of a man that got wound up in a lathe.. ..most gruesome thing I had ever seen at that young age..they were trying to drum into our heads how dangerous working around moving equipment is....even after all that, I could look around the shop and still see loose shirts flapping and people with their hands riding on the lathe chuck or work stock while the lathe was running...

[8man]

Read the posts with interest.

Mr48, what hearing protection do you use when using that mask?

I've been using a face mask air filter when grinding to keep the dust out of my lungs. Dual cartridge type, then a set of goggles and on top of that my earmuffs for hearing protection and I wear gloves.

Anything I'm missing?

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by 8man

Read the posts with interest.

Mr48, what hearing protection do you use when using that mask?

I've been using a face mask air filter when grinding to keep the dust out of my lungs. Dual cartridge type, then a set of goggles and on top of that my earmuffs for hearing protection and I wear gloves.

Anything I'm missing?

I've just got foam ear plugs like I had all the time when I was working in the fruit processing plant. I've still got a pair of the ear muffs that I wore instead though and they have replaceable ear pads .

I'd just ask the folks at the place where I got the rest of my safety equipment = mask/face shield. Hearing protection is seriously required in many manufaturing plants now and the folks who sell safety equipment tend to keep up with the needs of workers. It may not be cheap but they have fixes.

[dsraven]

I use:
-a welding beany every time I work on something. usually just the plain beanie with no brim unless I am welding under something where sparks may fall down the back of my neck. it is important to have one that fits but isn't loose so it stays on the head when you take your face shield or helmet off. also, the bottom edge fits over the top of the ear so sparks don't lodge between your ear and scalp. I grew right through my hair so there is no feelers up there to let me know when I am close to something. the beanie helps a bit but mostly keeps the blood from running down my face so I can get to the bathroom and wash up before the wife catches me in the act. haha did I mention how the skin gets thinner when the hair goes away?
-I have a good set of stand alone muffs that work well if just using safety glasses but they don't fit well with a face shield usually. the set I use has a strap so the muffs can have the connecting band slung low behind the head with the thin fabric band slung over the top of the head and this keeps the muffs in place but allows the face shield headband to room to fit.
I have a hard hat with the attached muffs that pull down and a swing up/down face shield. I still wear safety glasses under any face shield as I have learned the hard way that grindings shoot everywhere and sometimes bounce off something, like my chest, and fly up behind the shield.
I have a set of those foam ear plugs with the plastic connector band to apply some pressure to help them seal against the ear canal, I use these a lot for general use in the shop and they just hang around the neck when not needed but are right there when you need them. for the loud stuff I use the foam earplugs that roll up and get inserted into the canal and then muffs over that.
-a good quality face shield is a must. something with a teardrop shape is good as it has a little more coverage below the chin where a lot of debris can enter after it has bounced off your chest and it also has a little eyebrow area above the face to stop a little more stuff from falling through. I use the honeywell uvex bionic shield and have found it the best so far. the old fibre metal ones are ok but allow a lot of stuff to get past, I find, even with the clear shield that has a slight teardrop shape. safety glasses under the shield are a must and should probably be worn all the time in the shop. investing in a decent pair that can be wiped without scratching easy, or a box of cheaper style ones, would be cheaper in the long run than an eye injury (or worse) would be. I also have a set of over the glasses style goggles that I wear when grinding or working in a tight spot. below are few links for some ideas.
https://sps.honeywell.com/us/en/prod...safety-goggles
https://sps.honeywell.com/ca/en/prod...ds/uvex-bionic
https://sps.honeywell.com/us/en/prod...n/face-shields
https://www.globalindustrial.ca/p/qu...-nrr-25-436711
https://ecat.eleknet.com/PIM_Docs/Do...F/13542636.pdf
-good welding gloves that fit well are a must. I use the tig welding gloves a lot because they allow a little more dexterity. they are thinner though, and have allowed shards from a shattered zip disc to penetrate and become part of my hand now. consequently I use the lennox metalmax zip discs now and find they last a long time if you use them correctly and they also don't change diameter as they wear like the older style zip discs.
-a good respirator that fits under the face shield or welding mask is a must as well. just clean a welding helmet once and you will see what you have been breathing if you weld without a respirator. welding supply places sell low profile respirators that fit under the helmet and usually that means they also fit under a face shield. they usually come in a couple of different sizes so a test fit is good before using one to ensure you get a seal. some are silicone rubber so they flex better that some other compounds, especially if using in the cold areas. currently I am using the miller half mask.
https://weldingdepot.ca/miller-lpr-1...ller-electric/
-I use a 3m full face shield with respirator filters when needed
https://www.nhsmediastore.com/3m6800-2097.aspx
-I have a breathing air compressor for painting. it sits outside and upwind when I am painting or priming something. sometimes you can find a used one in the classified ads for a decent price. they can be spendy to but new but think of what the costs would be for lung problems and a shortened life due to complications. painting isn't just laquer fumes anymore, it is isocyanates and other bad things. you gotta be carefull. you could be weathering the side effects long after the vehicle has been finished, driven and sold.
https://pksafety.com/blog/isocyanates
https://keylinesafety.com/blogs/heal...ed-air-blowers
-a pair of coveralls that are flame resistant
https://www.grainger.com/product/CAR...overall-19RH96
-a welders apron, boot covers, arm sleeves or a welders coat. some come as a set some aprons also have legs attached. some coats are only the top half. you only get hot welding slag drop into the tongue of your boot once, then you get your boots tied up and/or a set of boot covers.
https://www.grainger.ca/en/product/p...B&gclsrc=aw.ds
https://www.amazon.com/Leather-Weldi.../dp/B08BLNMCMJ
https://www.watsongloves.com/products/4-welders-jacket/
it goes without saying that you should weld in a somewhat ventilated area as the smoke isn't just smoke and has other bad stuff in it. stop welding and look up sometimes to see how smokey it is. also, when grinding, there is a lot of metal and dust from the grinding wheel that stays airborne for while. you will notice it on a sunny day when you are simply sweeping up the shop.

[8man]

Thank you for that well written response! I've already started upgrading my shop protocol.

[Dead Parrot]

Those frizzy bottomed jeans that many of us use as project pants can catch fire easy. If you smell something burning, check your clothes first.

Invest in good shop lights. Being able to see what you are doing helps a lot.

Swap out the old incandescent bulbs for LED in those 'work' lights. The plastic ones will stop melting and the metal ones won't burn your hand when you grab the metal cover.

Repair or replace those battered extension cords.

[MD2020]

Iv'e been doing this stuff 40 years and 1 slip up.
Cutoff disk got me all the way threw the skin.

[LS short box]

Eye protection is something that is over looked. First time I was a line tech at a Chev dealer ship. I was replacing an exhaust system. Hit it with an air hammer and all manner of rusty dust in my eyes. The eye doc said I was lucky as all the rusty metal can be pulled out with a magnet. Second time was when I was cleaning up my shop and hanging up the broom and a bunch of metal stuff came out of the broom and into my eyes. Same doc said you haven't learned yet?
Welding wise my welding table is 20 feet from any flammable stuff. I keep all gas cans/propane tanks in another building.
I always wear leather gloves as I grind anything or weld anything. Safety glasses underneath the welding helmet.
Sand blasting wise always a 3M twin intake mask along with a safety glasses and a full length face shield.