Importance of air sampling and respiratory protection when faced with welding fumes

Post By: Shona Innes

It has been brought to attention recently that the fumes emitted from welding may be more harmful than suspected.

Those who carry out such activities could face a potential risk to their health due to the metal fumes and toxic gases that are inhaled. Fumes from welding are also internationally classified as being possibly carcinogenic to humans.

Airborne gases and very fine particles are both given off by the process of welding and hot cutting. Some of the gases included are nitrous oxide (NOx), carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), ozone (O3) and also shielding gas (e.g. Argon, helium).

The Health and Safety Executive have highlighted some of the illnesses which may occur if welding fumes are regularly inhaled. These include pneumonia, occupational asthma, cancer, and metal fume fever, irritation of throat and lungs and also temporary reduced lung function.

It was emphasised in another article that exposure to manganese is a major risk of welding as the fumes can cause damage to both the brain and nervous system. Nickel Oxide and Chromium Oxide (CrO3) are chemicals which can both cause asthma and are found in stainless steel fumes, whereas ozone or nitrous oxide are known to cause irritation of the throat and lungs.

There are also misconceptions that drinking milk helps to avoid the effects of welding fumes; however the HSE assure that this is not a true fact.

Protecting yourself from the effects of welding fumes can be done through a number of actions (shared on the HSE website) which include minimising the fumes and keeping exposure as low as possible, keeping your head out of the rising clouds of fumes, using fume extraction and also through the use of air sampling and respirators.

Equipment such as the Casella APEX Dust Sampling Kit can be used when encountering welding fumes. The APEX personal air sampling pump is an ideal instrument for personal air sampling in all monitoring systems and is used for applications including area dust and solvent monitoring, construction/demolition sites or in manufacturing industries.

The kit from Casella also includes the charger the APEX, inhalable head, inhalable cassette, plastic cyclone, five cyclone cassettes, a flow meter and flow meter stand, filter tweezers and a 10 pack of GFA 25mm pre-weighed filters. It also comes with the APEX kit case.

Although the Casella APEX Dust Sampling Kit would be useful in analysing the level of fumes from welding, it is important to note that there are other actions that would be taken, such as the use of RPE and extraction equipment and the avoidance of exposure.

There is a range of dust and air monitoring equipment available on the Frontline Safety website for various applications. This includes the Casella APEX Dust Sampling Kit which can be purchased by clicking the image above. If you require more information on kit or would like to enquire about alternative products contact us on [email protected].

Written by Dawn Mitchell