[exnailpounder]

I have a Miller auto shade that I really like but I bought a Jackson Viking about 4 months ago and I use it most of the time and I have played with both of them so I know how to use them but I keep getting red cheeks like a light sunburn when I weld, mig or tig. My eyes are fine and I don't feel like I am getting flashed at all but my face feels sunburned. Could it be light leaking in from the bottom of my hood? My neck never gets burned so I am stumped. I take no meds that might make me light sensitive so its not that. This just started about a month ago. Its not painful or annoying at all but I am curious if anyone else gets it. I know from my diving days that some people are allergic to argon...I don't know..

[timothymass]

I have a Miller auto shade that I really like but I bought a Jackson Viking about 4 months ago and I use it most of the time and I have played with both of them so I know how to use them but I keep getting red cheeks like a light sunburn when I weld, mig or tig. My eyes are fine and I don't feel like I am getting flashed at all but my face feels sunburned. Could it be light leaking in from the bottom of my hood? My neck never gets burned so I am stumped. I take no meds that might make me light sensitive so its not that. This just started about a month ago. Its not painful or annoying at all but I am curious if anyone else gets it. I know from my diving days that some people are allergic to argon...I don't know..

I weld 8 hours straight a day we put pieces of leather on the bottom of our hoods with rivets so we dont burn our faces just an option

[motox]

jeff
it just might be the Grog.
craig

[Boomer63]

I have a Miller auto shade that I really like but I bought a Jackson Viking about 4 months ago and I use it most of the time and I have played with both of them so I know how to use them but I keep getting red cheeks like a light sunburn when I weld, mig or tig. My eyes are fine and I don't feel like I am getting flashed at all but my face feels sunburned. Could it be light leaking in from the bottom of my hood? My neck never gets burned so I am stumped. I take no meds that might make me light sensitive so its not that. This just started about a month ago. Its not painful or annoying at all but I am curious if anyone else gets it. I know from my diving days that some people are allergic to argon...I don't know..

Strange. I think "timothymass" might be onto something. I would start there. I look out for situations like this, the sort of odd ball ones, because they might crop up in a class room and I need to know the answer.

I have been arc flashed welding with a large, bright duct behind me. I have been arc flashed holding materials during fit up because I didn't know eye lids aren't good enough to stop the arc light. Yes, I generally only learn from experience; I ain't smart enough to do it any other way.

I have had several auto darks. Most recently, Lincoln gave me what is a pretty expensive one. You know what? I still prefer my twenty five year old Jackson with a standard lens. To me, the autos start out nice, and end up getting more and more difficult to see out of. And YES! I am cleaning the lens ... mostly.

[exnailpounder]

Thanks for the replies. I have noticed I get it bad when I weld aluminum on AC and not too bad on DC. And I don't have a leather apron on my hood but I see others, like Kevin Caron, who do. Could the AC be a brighter arc? I dont get burned if I tig with bare arms and hands but my face gets cherry red. Like Craig said, maybe its the alcohol cooking out of me

[Boomer63]

Thanks for the replies. I have noticed I get it bad when I weld aluminum on AC and not too bad on DC. And I don't have a leather apron on my hood but I see others, like Kevin Caron, who do. Could the AC be a brighter arc? I dont get burned if I tig with bare arms and hands but my face gets cherry red. Like Craig said, maybe its the alcohol cooking out of me

I was at a company giving some 3G tests yesterday. I didn't think I was that close to the welders, and I (think) know what is safe ... but today I am sun burned and one eye definitely feels like arc burn.

[exnailpounder]

Thats the weird part is my eyes never feel burned. I haven't done any aluminum in about 2 weeks so I went out and lit up on some for about 45 minutes late this morning and my face is beet red...Damned if I know

[noddybrian]

Well it makes sense - you get maybe 2 > 3 times the UV off aluminum compared with steel so even some reflected light can give you a tan - some people are more sensitive to UV than others - I suffer with it - maybe find a closer / better fitting hood or add some homemade extensions to it - just to prove the theory how about try some very high factor sun cream next time you weld or if it's too hot & the dust sticks to it there are neck / face protection things sold for motorcycle guys that ride with no or open face helmets - if your looking for a permanent solution consider something like the air fed " Speedglas " masks as they have very close fitting skirts to keep the filtered air where it should be.

[exnailpounder]

Well it makes sense - you get maybe 2 > 3 times the UV off aluminum compared with steel so even some reflected light can give you a tan - some people are more sensitive to UV than others - I suffer with it - maybe find a closer / better fitting hood or add some homemade extensions to it - just to prove the theory how about try some very high factor sun cream next time you weld or if it's too hot & the dust sticks to it there are neck / face protection things sold for motorcycle guys that ride with no or open face helmets - if your looking for a permanent solution consider something like the air fed " Speedglas " masks as they have very close fitting skirts to keep the filtered air where it should be.

Noddybrian...its just the strangest thing. I don't think my hood leaks light cause I stick my face into what I am welding and I usually wear a T-shirt or light jacket zipped up to protect my lower neck, I have some serious wrinkles on my upper chest from MIG welding 10 hours a day for years with a short sleeve work shirt that I was too cool to button up so I am pretty thorough about covering that area up. I used to drysuit dive and I heard stories fo guys who were allergic to argon and it would inflame their skin. I never used argon in my drysuit so I don't know if I am allergic but I do know I can MIG all day with 75/25 and get a little red but nothing like pure argon. Hmmmmmm????

[noddybrian]

Well that is strange - I once heard of someone claiming allergy to argon - but they were after a payout from a former employer & I called bullshit on it - guess it maybe possible - thing is it's heavier than air so unless you weld exclusively overhead I would expect it to naturally move away from you - also the relative volume is so small the concentration % of air around your face will be very small - if it were that high you'd have breathing issues - I can't comment on drysuit inflation as I have only ever dived wet suit ( kinda redneck at that - think " Bering sea gold 1st series !! ) - I still think it's a combination of welding with face much closer for visibility of puddle compared with other processes / extra intensity of aluminum welding & no smoke produced by Tig like other processes which help filter the light / possibly light reflecting off surrounding objects / bench etc - try sunblock - if it's plain old UV you should not go red - if it proves to be gas related it won't help - hope you find a solution.

[ldbtx]

Yep, I was gonna suggest what noddybrian said. Slather some SPV 50 sunblock on your face and go light up some Al. If you still turn red, it ain't UV. Is it just red like sunburn, or is there a rash involved? Also, do you peel like a bad sunburn?

LDB

[exnailpounder]

Well that is strange - I once heard of someone claiming allergy to argon - but they were after a payout from a former employer & I called bullshit on it - guess it maybe possible - thing is it's heavier than air so unless you weld exclusively overhead I would expect it to naturally move away from you - also the relative volume is so small the concentration % of air around your face will be very small - if it were that high you'd have breathing issues - I can't comment on drysuit inflation as I have only ever dived wet suit ( kinda redneck at that - think " Bering sea gold 1st series !! ) - I still think it's a combination of welding with face much closer for visibility of puddle compared with other processes / extra intensity of aluminum welding & no smoke produced by Tig like other processes which help filter the light / possibly light reflecting off surrounding objects / bench etc - try sunblock - if it's plain old UV you should not go red - if it proves to be gas related it won't help - hope you find a solution.

Damn that was an answer But I swear I am cherried out right now from weldind Al and my eyes are fine. I didnt wear a glove on my filler hand and it got hot but ...i dunno...your right..argon should not be rising in my hood...Im gonna post a pic of before and after and you guys can figure it out but not til a few days as I am gonna ride my ass off this weekend and party so Ill get back to you on it...I HAVE MY PRIORITIES :Weling problems are one thing but going to the flat track races and watching maniacs do 140 mph on dirt is another.

[timothymass]

Thats the weird part is my eyes never feel burned. I haven't done any aluminum in about 2 weeks so I went out and lit up on some for about 45 minutes late this morning and my face is beet red...Damned if I know

i weld aluminum with a push pull gun on dc pretty much daily the more of it I do the worse any exposed skin is burned comparatively speaking to steel

[motox]

jeff
you going to the Henry half mile?
craig

[exnailpounder]

jeff
you going to the Henry half mile?
craig

YOU BET!!! We got about 12 bikes going in our group. My wife has never seen the flattrackers before. Are you going?

[exnailpounder]

Yep, I was gonna suggest what noddybrian said. Slather some SPV 50 sunblock on your face and go light up some Al. If you still turn red, it ain't UV. Is it just red like sunburn, or is there a rash involved? Also, do you peel like a bad sunburn?

LDB

IDB...no rash just red skin like a sunburn, no peeling and it goes away after 3 or 4 hours. Only on my face...never my bare arms..and it happens everytime I TIG aluminum

[exnailpounder]

I was doing some research and it sounds like Ozone might be the culprit. I can't find anything about Argon being a skin irritant even though I heard it was when I was diving...some guys had to use C02 instead but I read that Ozone is an irritant but mostly to eyes and lungs. I dunno

[Otto Nobedder]

Maybe you're just embarrassed by the welds?

Just kidding...

Are you in the "plume"? Getting fumes and heat under your hood? It could be the heat alone, or some combination of the heat and the vapors given off. This a new one on me.

Steve S

[TRACKRANGER]

If you're welding aluminum, then you can definitely expect a significantly higher level of radiation, the U/V is reflecting off every shiny surface. When I TIG aluminum, I always take additional care, top shirt buttons always done up, etc. HTH.
Trev

[motox]

jeff
no to far away to just watch.
maybe Hagerstown
craig

[AndersK]

I can't find anything about Argon being a skin irritant even though I heard it was when I was diving...some guys had to use C02 instead but I read that Ozone is an irritant but mostly to eyes and lungs. I dunno

Got curious about the use of argon in the suits. Where they deep sea divers and used argon because of its low thermal conductivity? I assume they didnt breath Argox because of its limited depth usage. Or maybe they had an separate bottle with Argox for decompression connected to their suit?

I do know I can MIG all day with 75/25 and get a little red but nothing like pure argon. Hmmmmmm????

I dont know about your gases but here they add NO (nitrogen monoxide) to that mix (and possibly others) to reduce the Ozone content

[exnailpounder]

Maybe you're just embarrassed by the welds?

Just kidding...

Are you in the "plume"? Getting fumes and heat under your hood? It could be the heat alone, or some combination of the heat and the vapors given off. This a new one on me.

Steve S

Welllllll. I am OK on aluminum but not bad enough to be embarrassed

[exnailpounder]

Anders...Diving the Great Lakes is considered cold water diving even when it is 90 degrees and all the good wrecks are in deep water so there is decompression time involved thats why insulating gases are used. Nothing worse than hanging on a deco stop and shivering so bad you are biting the mouthpiece off your regulator. I always used air to bouy my suit but I dove with the only SCUBA diver to EVER dive the Edmund Fitzgerald and he is the one that told me about Argon and sometimes CO2 causing skin irritation. Look up Terrence Tysell and Mike Zee. Anyway...I do stick my face in the heat plume and I do smell ozone when I weld and I am lost to the reason why I turn red. I paid $250 bucks for a good hood to not get flashed and I turn red as a beet when I weld on AC

[dirtmidget33]

I think you are right about the ozone. After reading this was looking up ozone and that is a compound that causes major oxidation and easily makes acid when certain element compounds around. It is also an irritant. I read a lot of stuff on what it does chemically and just giving a bad generalized condensed statement on what I read. I personally think there is something about your skin make up or soaps you use that when all these combined with ozone is creating your skin to be irritated. Just thought of another thing as typing this and not sure if this is correct. Maybe the AC arc creates higher levels of ozone then DC arc causes. Hence causing you more issues when welding aluminum.

[exnailpounder]

I think you are right about the ozone. After reading this was looking up ozone and that is a compound that causes major oxidation and easily makes acid when certain element compounds around. It is also an irritant. I read a lot of stuff on what it does chemically and just giving a bad generalized condensed statement on what I read. I personally think there is something about your skin make up or soaps you use that when all these combined with ozone is creating your skin to be irritated. Just thought of another thing as typing this and not sure if this is correct. Maybe the AC arc creates higher levels of ozone then DC arc causes. Hence causing you more issues when welding aluminum.

Dirtmidget...I think I have it narrowed down to Ozone. I can smell it alot more when I weld aluminum than I do anything else. I have a 1.50 cheater in my hood but I also wear readers when I weld and the combo of magnification throws off my depth perception so I need to have my nose in the arc. I guess I need to adjust my glasses/cheater lens combo to stay further from the gases.
I thought my hood was the culprit but my eyes never feel flashed. Its just weird because I am not allergic to anything ever in my life and its not a big deal and doesn't actually even bother me but I think it might be important to makes sure others realize that snorting Ozone probably isn't good for you