Respirator help

[Kevin Zinner]

Hi guys,

Found this forum not too long ago and was hoping to get a little advice on respirators. I typically use just a simple cartridge respirator, or the little cheap dust masks for most things I do around the shop and they seem to get me by.

We are now totally remodeling our house and the wife wants to help with the demo(I was just as shocked) but she has a hard time with the cheap masks or the respirator I have. To give her a little slack, she does have asthma. Not where she has attacks or takes anything for it regularly but just having to breathe a little harder in the masks I think worries her. Wondering if there are any other options short of something expensive like the trinton.

I would use whatever I got her for the remodel later in the shop, so not a total waste but I would still like to avoid spending a lot and I don't really want an entire face mask. I saw rockler has a small 4AA battery powered mask. Not sure if that is any better or not.

Any advice is greatly appreciated

Thanks
Kevin

[Kevin Scott]

Kevin,

I too have asthma. I wear a respirator in the shop when I have too (ex sanding, routing); however, don't like it at all. Like your wife, I find that I have to breathe harder with the respirator and it causes me some problems. On top of that I am claustorphobic and having that big mask on my face gives me the "willies". I have tried the paper dust makes but find they don't seal well around my mouth and don't provide me much protection.

I just stumbled upon the Dust Bee Gone mask. It looks a lot like a hospital surgical mask and appears to provide good coverage. I am going to pick one up this weekend at Woodcraft. It might be something to look into for your wife.

Regards,
Kevin

[Charles Wilson]

Hopefully if you are working with plaster, mastic, glues, adhesives, old textured ceilings, etc. you are having the materials tested at a lab for asbestos (if it applies). For the peace of mind that it gives me, the $25 sample fee is worth it.

That being said, the cristalline (sp?) silica, portland cement, gypsum, etc. still aren't to good for you. Whatever you decide on, make sure you use a good respirator and have plenty of ventilation.

Regards,
Chuck

[Mike Peace]

I have used it about a year. It does not get everything but it is comfortable to wear so I do wear it a lot.

Mike

[Hank Walczak]

Kevin - Lots of choices... However make sure you have protection that's rated "NIOSH rating N95". If you use one that isn't rated that way you may be lulling yourself into a false sense of protection. There are a lot of nasties that can and will get airborne. I use this: http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=5350
(http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=5350)It's confortable to wear and the replacement filters are reasonable. There is almost no resistance to normal breathing. cleaning is easy too. Remember that once you finish your task keep the mask on or leave the area until most of the particles have settled. The finest particles will stay airborne the longest and can have the biggest impact on your health. BTW, the Dust Bee Gone filters only down to 3 microns. They state that it isn't OSHA or NIOSH approved. Take that for what it's worth. Be safe.

Hank

[Bryan Berguson]

I have a similar product to the Triton. It was/is one of the best pieces of equipment that I own. It really excels in the destruction/constrution work that you're talking about. Keeps the dust out of your lungs and out of your face and eyes. I think your wife would really appreciate it and you would use it for years in your woodworking.

Bryan

[Benjimin Young]

Hi Kevin, I think everyone has covered the personal protection point so I'll just ad a few comments on technique.

Many of the older paints contained lead and it was common to add asbestos in taping compound many years back. So assume you will be working with contaminated materials. Keep the work area as clean as possible and damp mob the surfaces when you are finished.

A good rule is to minimize sanding of old surfaces. If you have to remove these materials, try to also minimize power sawing type demolition and be gentle when handling the debris to keep the dust in check.

If you have small kids, try to keep them from crawling on the floors in the rest of the house as contaminated dust will spread there.

If you can put a fan in the window of the room you are working in and keep it turned on to exhaust air it will help to create a negative pressure in the room and reduce dust tot he rest of the house. The down side of this is you will end up with a dirty window screen at the end of the project but its a small price to pay.

I am also asthmatic and have always worn a NIOS mask. If it was the disposable type I change them frequently, and when I used the cartridge type I kept the cartridges clean. Now I use Triton full head unit with the battery pack and integrated ear protection, as my asthma is not going to get any better.

Enjoy your renovation and work safely!




Ben