safety alert - brake cleaner/welding

[Creepy]

This article details the poisonous gas created by welding around brake cleaner.

www.brewracingframes.com/id75.htm

kidneys shutdown, scarred breathing/sinus tissue, posible death.

Please read it, and don't even consider cleaning parts to be welded with brake or carb cleaner.

Very friggin' serious stuff.

[tothewall]

Holy shit. Dude was lucky to survive that.

['Roach]

Good lord, that's the scariest thing I've ever read!

Sounds like a good reason to keep that charcoal filter mask on when you're welding, no exceptions...

[bill richards]

Damn... craziness... Most versions of brake clean are crazy flammable, which generally makes me keep it very far away from the welder... but didn't realize the affect that heat/argon had on it.

Bill

[Creepy]

Thanks to Mad Matt for sending that my way to post.

Very common for any of us to have these items in our home shops.

Mike - a mask won't cut it unless its a resperator with an air supply. please don't miss the point here, the cure is to not combine the chemicals.

[theonlybull]

phosgene gas is released from many things in our life. almost all modern furniture contains foams, and materials, that when burnt, or exposed to heat, release phosgene gas. this reaction can continue for days after a fire is extingused.

anyone who's takin' FF training, should know this gas, and how fatal it can be...

but i didn't know it could be produced this way.. yikes

[dan]

wow... leaves me feeling extremely lucky.
please, nobody tell me I'm an idiot, I already realize this now, but when I was building my gas tank skid plate, Steph was doing some welding, then we had to wait for it to cool off to test fit the tank. while waiting, being an arse, I sprayed some Brake Cleaner on the weld, which gave off a large poof of smoke, which we both realized smelled horrible.
after test-fitting, Stephanie went back to welding, and stopped shortly after, saying she couldn't stand the smell, so she went inside, and I continued. at one point while I was welding, I took a breathe that felt like I had breathed in fire... I coughed and spat for a minute or so, then I went back to work, because I was almost done. the fumes were very strong, and burned up my nose until I was done.
I never noticed any effects other than a bad taste in my mouth though. until the next morning. I woke up, and I had a sore throat. It also felt like I had a cold. my nasal passage was blocked, and I could feel all sorts of fluid in the back of my nasal cavity.
I never even thought about it, as I suspected it was a cold.
the next day, it was the same thing, except my throat hurt even more, to the point where I had trouble swallowing food or water, and I could still feel the fluid in the back of my throat.
after about 4 days, it finally went away, and I was back to normal.
only now do I realize how serious it could have been, and I could kick myself if my leg went that way, for putting myself, and most importantly Stephanie in harm's way.

[Creepy]

holy crap!

[bill richards]

FTA, it appears you need the argon... so, to have the full nasty effects, you'd have to be actively welding...not just spraying it on a hot weld. Still... I can't imagine it being used in a health club.

Bill

[itsakeeper]

Thanks for posting up this - sometimes you just don't know how dangerous day to day tasks can be .......

[The Garagemahal]

I am sure there are a few of us that use brake clean to clean up parts , and it could be so easy to weld after using this

I think this should be stickied to the top of the fab section , so others can read this , as well as other warnings could be added

[mrg]

WOW

[Trever]

I agree Scott! This article should be stuck in the Fab section as a good reminder! Very good post Jan!!!

I had a similar but less serious event happen to me at work yesterday. For those who dont know, Im a Refrigeration/AC tech. Yesterday I was brasing refrigerant lines in a refrigerated case. Once the torch hit the refrigerant vapors the case started filling up with white smoke. Now Ive done this many many times. Anytime im in a confined space I will use my respirtator. I had just a couple joints to repair so didnt think it was a big deal. All of a sudden it hit me! My eyes started to get blurry. My chest got very heavy and I started seeing flashing lights. To put it simple,,,I was about to pass out on the floor at Sobeys in Yarmouth. I shut the torch down. Stood up and tried to take a breath of air but my lungs were very tight. It hurt trying to breath. I was trying my hardest not to draw any attention to myself so I just stood there leant up side the case trying to catch my breath and regain my composure. About 5 minutes past and I finally gained the confidence to try walking. I went to my van and sat in there for about an hour. It took about 30mins or so for me to loose the feeling of passing out. It took a couple hours for my heart to finally beat normal. Lastnight I didnt feel too bad. Still felt a little shaky. My lungs didnt hurt anymore. I was extremely tired tho. Today I feel fine.

Certain refrigerants when exposed to a flame will create phosgene gases. The refrigerant I was working with yesterday when exposed to fire created Hydrogen Chloride.

Moral of the story. Now I will use my respirator EVERY time!! Its not worth the risk!

Be safe everyone!

[gonejeepn]

next time you feel like that DRAW THE ATTENTION TO YOUR SELF, you could have been worst off than you thought and when you went to the van you could have passed out and not woke up. you where lucky

[T-Dogg]

Wow thanks for posting.

Make sure Ken reads this.

Da
Dogg