Well last night I did something that made me feel like a total jackass , a few years back I gutted a totaled 93 Volvo 940 salvaged what I could the leather seats ,engine ,various ac components etc. Well long story short I though id put those old seats to good use and make me and my dad some custom shop seats. Found some casters and bolted them on his ,couldn't find any other casters we had with a threaded stud but found some with a flat plate . No problem ill weld mine on. So I start cleaning the steel not really paying attention to what is was actually cleaning up I maxed out the ole Hobart 125 ez and got to work . As I started pouring heat into them getting good penetration and laying a nice bead I noticed my eyes stared burning and it started to burn my lungs. I knew something was wrong I instantly ran outside to catch my breath It hit me I just welded galvanized steel Whats wrong with you you idiot i thought ,what a rookie mistake. I had to finish the job so i cut my 48 inch barrel fan all the way up to pull the poison gas away as soon as it burned off the finish and and finished the job . Long story short pay attention to the type of steel and have proper ventilation at all times. Also here is one of the welds on the casters
While nobody will tell you that welding galvanized steel is fun, it's not poison gas in the true sense either, it's zinc. Good news is, if you weld enough of it you shouldn't need a flu shot, zinc wards off the common cold.
Still sucks welding it.
Len
P.S. I thought you were going to say they were Aluminum.
Supposedly drinking lots of milk will help thwart off any stomach issues after breathing too much of that $h!t.
Of course steps should be taken to avoid inhalation in the first place. A side grinder is your friend.
From my experience drinking milk helps but best to do also before welding. Milk is helpful because it binds the bad stuff on its fats - it is not an old wives` tales.
When I`m welding something zinc coated I remove what I can with a grinder and weld the piece on my plasma table (thank you Jody:) ). Having a respirator is a big advantage also.
I never weld anything with yellow coating because that from my knowledge is actually cadmium coating. I could be wrong but you can never be too careful - got only one health.
Owr wrote:From my experience drinking milk helps but best to do also before welding. Milk is helpful because it binds the bad stuff on its fats - it is not an old wives` tales.
When I`m welding something zinc coated I remove what I can with a grinder and weld the piece on my plasma table (thank you Jody:) ). Having a respirator is a big advantage also.
I never weld anything with yellow coating because that from my knowledge is actually cadmium coating. I could be wrong but you can never be too careful - got only one health.
Very true, cad is real nasty, especially with long term exposure. If you have small parts, fasteners, etc, to weld on,you can pickle them in muriatic acid . Much easier than trying to mechanically remove it.
Just don't do inside the shop, the fumes are highly corrosive and will leave a film on all bare ferrous materials, machine tools , etc.
Owr wrote:From my experience drinking milk helps but best to do also before welding. Milk is helpful because it binds the bad stuff on its fats - it is not an old wives` tales.
When I`m welding something zinc coated I remove what I can with a grinder and weld the piece on my plasma table (thank you Jody:) ). Having a respirator is a big advantage also.
I never weld anything with yellow coating because that from my knowledge is actually cadmium coating. I could be wrong but you can never be too careful - got only one health.
Very true, cad is real nasty, especially with long term exposure. If you have small parts, fasteners, etc, to weld on, you can pickle them in muriatic acid . Much easier than trying to mechanically remove it and it eliminates the cad exploding when you weld near it.
Just don't do inside the shop, the fumes are highly corrosive and will leave a film on all bare ferrous materials, machine tools , etc.
Owr wrote:From my experience drinking milk helps but best to do also before welding. Milk is helpful because it binds the bad stuff on its fats - it is not an old wives` tales.
When I`m welding something zinc coated I remove what I can with a grinder and weld the piece on my plasma table (thank you Jody:) ). Having a respirator is a big advantage also.
I never weld anything with yellow coating because that from my knowledge is actually cadmium coating. I could be wrong but you can never be too careful - got only one health.
Very true, cad is real nasty, especially with long term exposure. If you have small parts, fasteners, etc, to weld on, you can pickle them in muriatic acid . Much easier than trying to mechanically remove it and it eliminates the cad exploding when you weld near it.
Just don't do inside the shop, the fumes are highly corrosive and will leave a film on all bare ferrous materials, machine tools , etc.
Guys, guys, guys - Zinc fumes are toxic. Everyone can have a different reaction to breathing fumes from welding on galvanized material but those fumes can and will kill you if you breathe enough of them! Any of the heavy metals are toxic in quantitys. I have welded a lot of galvanized through the years but it was done with good ventilation and fume inhalation was at a bare minimum.
If you are going to weld galvanized have good ventilation and wear a respirator with the proper cartridge in.
Tired old welder
CNC plasma cutter
Colorful shop w/
Red, blue, yellow, purple, and Hypertherm silver equip.
if it smokes/fumes it is usually a sign that it is harmful to the body
Everlast 250EX
Miller 250 syncrowave
Sharp LMV Vertical Mill
Takisawa TSL-800-D Lathe
Coupla Bandsaws,Grinders,surface grinder,tool/cutter grinder
and more stuff than I deserve(Thanks Significant Other)
if it smokes/fumes it is usually a sign that it is harmful to the body
(unless it is the cigarettes I've been smoking for 57 years)
Everlast 250EX
Miller 250 syncrowave
Sharp LMV Vertical Mill
Takisawa TSL-800-D Lathe
Coupla Bandsaws,Grinders,surface grinder,tool/cutter grinder
and more stuff than I deserve(Thanks Significant Other)
Whats wrong with you you idiot i thought ,what a rookie mistake. I had to finish the job so i cut my 48 inch barrel fan all the way up to pull the poison gas away as soon as it burned off the finish and and finished the job . Long story short pay attention to the type of steel and have proper ventilation at all times. Also here is one of the welds on the casters
