respirator

so far i have done my "dymondwood" work outside with a saw
and have used a mask. i am now approaching the point where i will be doing sanding/grinding of the material and i have some safety concerns about the dust. i will also continue to use this material and mycarta etc. in the future. it is time for a respirator. the question is--- will a gas mask out of one of the military surplus kind of catalogs do? or will it have to be some sort of painters respirator? cost is a factor, but the safety of my lungs has no price tag. thanks y'all

You can get either a respirator style or a mask style and be safe.

The most important thing is to buy NIOSH-rated masks or respirators. Stuff sold for 'nuisance dust and pollen' won't hack it.

Most of the respirators are designed to protect the wearer from fumes as well as dust, and are, hence, more expensive.

A good set of NIOSH-rated dust masks will be less expensive than a military-grade gas mask, and a heck of a lot easier to work with. As I recall, disposables at about $6.50/packet of 5.

Good luck!

Leon Jester
LJ WoodWorks
Roanoke, Virginia

I respectfully disagree.

You need something that protects you from the fumes as well as the dust. If you can smell what your grinding, you are breathing dirty air. I personally would not trust my lungs, my health, my future and the future of my family on a package of 5 for $6.50 dust masks. I don't use "MASKS" at all. Get a respirator, it costs a lot more but isn't your future worth it?

I agree with spending the money for a respirator, but I have one further question along these same lines. I frequently use Dymondwood, too. Cocobolo is listed as a toxic wood. Is the dust from cocobolo Dymondwood as dangerous as the dust from the real stuff?

Joe, I think Dymondwood is stacted and styblized birch. Which is worse, dymondwood or cocobolo?, I don't know.

As for a gas mask, they are hot, you can't see a thing, and they are uncomftorble. They will also protect you from vertualy anything you would grind on. If they are real militay issue, don't beleive that because they say they are issue means they are! A lot of what I've seen in surpluss stores are quite inferior to actual issue. I thought of buying a gas mask, but all of the ones I found were prety cheep and flimsy, so I bought a 3M resperator and haven't had anoughter sinus fit yet.

I'll qualify this by saying that it is simply my personal opinion, as supported by my experience.

Dymondwood dust is of no more concern than the dust generated from sanding an ordinary 2" X 4". A dust mask is adequate for dealing with it, although a particulate respirator will do a better job. Point is, the dust is basically inert stuff.

Not so with cocobolo and some other materials, where there can be serious allergic reactions to the chemical components of the dust, and greater care is required in handling.

I wear a chemical respirator when I am etching steel with hydrochloric acid. I seldom wear even a mask when working micarta, stabilized wood, bone, ivory, and the like -BUT I do have a large funnel right under the grinder contact wheel that carries the bulk of the dust away with vacuum.

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp I'm going to agree with the statements above that dusts masks are practically useless. I did an independant study in Health and Safety in Metalsmithing while in college. Dust masks trap a small percentage of large particles ( which your nose and throat would likely stop anyway... ) and almost completely fail to stop the smaller particles, which are the ones you need to worry about. The main issue is the fit around the face.

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Industrial supply companies like MSC sell respirators that can take various cartidges for dust, fumes and chemical filtration. They run about $25 and the good dust filters are around $10-15 for packages of several.

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp If you can find a local industrial supply house that specializes in safety go there so you can insure a good fit... in the workplace they have to be personally fitted by someone by law.

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp I have known woodworkers who have developed sensitivities to just about every wood, and I question any material that has been through an industrial process... you never know what is in the stabilizing, the glue or the dye.

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Many of these dangers are slow and cumulative. Read "Artist Beware,' or 'Health Hazards Manual for Artists,' by Michael McCann for an eye-opener.

For a respirator to be truly effective when working with phenolic materials,get two stage canisters,rated for organic vapors/formaldehyde,using cotton prefilters is also a great idea.Put your respirator in a zip lock bag when not being used,the cartridges will last a lot longer.Good luck.

www.3m.com/market/safety/...ators.html
something to look at. I use the 5000 series when painting cars.

I agree with Messrs. Loose and Warner. A common dust mask is indeed useless. The mask I was referring to is NIOSH rated, fits quite tighly around the nose and mouth, will stop all small particles, and is safe for use with woods like cocobolo, rosewood, and others that produce toxic dusts.

A further comment on cocobolo, rosewood, osage orange and similar (usually tropical) woods that produce toxic dusts: these woods can also produce an allergic reaction from contact through the hands. If you experience allergic symptoms when handling them, you should discontinue use of them IMMEDIATELY. Eye protection in the form of a good set of goggles is also essential. A minute quantity of dust in the eye can also produce allergic reactions, the eyes are a mucousal area.

As far as fumes go, they will NOT stop fumes. If you are using anything at all that generates formaldehyde or other chemical fumes, you need a respirator rated for that. I'd offer the comment that if you can smell what you're sanding, then you're generating a considerable amount of heat, and might want to slow down a bit to avoid glazing the surface.

BTW, I was wrong on the price of NIOSH masks, I checked recently and they are up to about $10/pack of five.