figured i would make sort of an informative or semi-informative post regarding Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). since industry Occupational Health and Safety here mandates very strict control of workers protective equipment I figured I would share what is required of me as a welder in industry.

Coveralls: need to be fire retardant (obviously)
I Prefer carhartts bib overall in black.


Shirt: Long sleeves are a must, I prefer long sleeve shirts with collars,"cowboy shirts" or old dress shirts that are 100% cotton.
I like to go to value village (thrift store that sells used clothing) and pick up 8 shirts for $5.00
something like this is what i aim for.


I prefer the "cape sleeve" leather jackets, they're not too hot and they provide adequate protection from burns.


Gloves: I'm very picky about the kind of gloves i wear, I usually get the "cold weather" tig gauntlets, but I can never find pictures of them online, they look like regular tig gauntlets only they're a bit thicker and have a wider cuff.

like that, only different. heh.

Safety Glasses: it's been beat into me over the last 6 years to always wear safety glasses, even under my helmet, so it's just habit now and i feel naked if i'm not wearing them heh.
the ones i currently prefer are at the bottom of this image, the clear lense ones.


Welding Helmet: I have 4 helmets, each has a different purpose. I have 2 pipeline helmets, one auto-darkening and one standard beater.
i have a standard narrow footprint flip front helmet for mig/stick work and non-precision work made by AirLiquide.
my precision work helmet is an AP tools solar auto-darkening helmet which i just got. very nice unit.


I also put sunscreen on my face and neck, spf40 or better, because i do a lot of tacking with my helmet off and my eyes closed.

I think that about sums it up.

questions & comments welcome

 

Only comment I have is about the shirts . I have been using work shirts like that, and when mig welding, the shirts don't really protect you. I would recommend a welding jacket.

 

yeah, thats why i said i buy a dozen at a time from the local thrift store. you will burn through them if you're using an argon-co2 mix, if you use straight argon you won't have as much spatter and won't get as many burns (heroin addict looking burns on your arms)

like i said i also recommend cotton sleeves or a leather jacket. you can get the cotton sleeves anywhere you can get the leather jackets usually.

 

But its hard to weld when spatter is burning your arms.

 

I don't look nearly as cool, but i do have a jacket similar to this dudes

 

im rockin the tillman lightgreen coat. 20 bucks at praxair



ignore the homo

 

the sleeves i was talking about, the cotton ones are just like the green coat that lamracing posted.
they're cheap as hell, disposable, but they work pretty good.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LamRacing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">im rockin the tillman lightgreen coat. 20 bucks at praxair



ignore the homo</TD></TR></TABLE>

I need to pick one up.

 

how about fumes?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 90blackcrx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I need to pick one up.</TD></TR></TABLE>
The shirt.... or the HOMO?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Electron_LS-Vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
The shirt.... or the HOMO?
</TD></TR></TABLE>

How did I know someone would say that.

The shirt

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by c jackson &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">how about fumes?</TD></TR></TABLE>

i only ever worry about the fumes in confined spaces like vessel work and then i have a respirator with a remote filter kit on it that hangs about 2/3's down my back so that i get air from as far away from the plume as possible, or if it's a really confined space and i'm going to be a long time i get supplied air.




or an SCBA similar to this, but with a welding helmet instead of a clear helmet.

 

ventilation...especially with aluminum. For some reason aluminum chokes me up the worst.

 

also that tillman light green coat has a pocket, on the inside leftside.

just letting ya'll know. its good for holding belongings.

 

I've got a long leather apron thats handy for saving your pants.

 

cause aluminum is pretty bad...alzheimers (sp) bad.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ~RTErnie~ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ventilation...especially with aluminum. For some reason aluminum chokes me up the worst.</TD></TR></TABLE>

you haven't done much/any galvanized welding then i take it? that **** is the absolute worst to weld as far as clean/new material goes.

 

Be careful with galvanized. You have to remove the zinc plating before you weld it otherwise bad things can happen:

Symptoms:flu-like illness with a metallic taste in the mouth, throat irritation, and dry cough;
Signs: leucocytosis (high white blood cell count) is common; normal chest x-ray;
Onset after exposure: 3-10 hours;
Heavy exposure to: zinc oxide fume or dust, e.g., after welding or flame cutting of galvanized steel, high temperature zinc coating processes, or metal pouring in brass foundries; (Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc.)
Resolution: spontaneously within 48 hours;
Comments: After an episode, there is a temporary period of tolerance for a day or two afterwards. Copper and magnesium fume can also cause metal fume fever. It is important to distinguish metal fume fever from cadmium pneumonitis.

 

yeah, i refuse to weld/cut/braze/grind galvanized, just not worth the health risks.

 

How about some online sites for people who want to mailorder

 

I use this guy...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tillman-62...wItem

Its dark so i can get it dirty and not worry about it like the seafoam colored jackets.

Its thin enough to breath and wear when im up in a car welding a cage.

And cheap.. i think i paid less then that at my local welding supply place.

inside pocket too!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LSiTurbo &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I use this guy...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tillman-62...wItem

Its dark so i can get it dirty and not worry about it like the seafoam colored jackets.

Its thin enough to breath and wear when im up in a car welding a cage.

And cheap.. i think i paid less then that at my local welding supply place.

inside pocket too! </TD></TR></TABLE>


This one looks more pimp !

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...sting