Metal Fume Fever
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I was building a dune buggy with a buddy once we were welding galvanized in his dad's small garage, mind you we knew galvanized was bad to weld but didn't think it would hurt us. I went outside for a little bit to grab some stuff, came back in and he was passed out on the floor. I drug him out of the shop and opened the doors. The next day he didn't come to school and said he was suffering from flu like symptoms and a terrible headache. In other words be careful with galvanized
Tyler
Tyler
rickbb
Well-known member
I had an uncle that was a welder in a truck plant. Welded a lot of galvanized in his life, which was cut short by exposure to it.
Fumes from it are nasty.
Fumes from it are nasty.
kadriver
Well-known member
I remember the first time I melted some cement silver with an oxy/accet torch.
I used gloves and welder's goggles but no respirator.
I remember inhaling fumes from the silver melt and thinking it smelled like hot metal being welded - no problem.
The next day I was in bed all day with flu like symptoms. It was welders fever.
From that day on I always where a respirator when doing any melting or hot work.
kadriver
I used gloves and welder's goggles but no respirator.
I remember inhaling fumes from the silver melt and thinking it smelled like hot metal being welded - no problem.
The next day I was in bed all day with flu like symptoms. It was welders fever.
From that day on I always where a respirator when doing any melting or hot work.
kadriver
Tub Buster
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Last weekend (this is Wednesday), I picked up an interesting rock that I found at a park. It appeared to have a gossan-like iron oxide stain and metal inclusions. I crushed it up and applied hydrochloric acid. To my surprise, this produced a bright yellow liquid with a pungent odor. I filtered and put the liquid in a covered container with some iron, and the next day it was clear, and the substance had coated the iron. Additionally there was .6 gram of material of the base of the container.
Here's a photo of part of the rock, let's see who recognizes it.
Here's a photo of part of the rock, let's see who recognizes it.
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Anonymous
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Dude this is a funny place to post that :lol:
Tub Buster
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It is orpiment, arsenic ore. And I'm experiencing the classic "flu-like symptoms", especially a sore throat and cough.
I want to thank Irons and others for their warnings -- I did recognize it pretty fast, but not before inhaling enough of the gas to cause some problems. I'm waiting for results from some tests at this point.
I want to thank Irons and others for their warnings -- I did recognize it pretty fast, but not before inhaling enough of the gas to cause some problems. I'm waiting for results from some tests at this point.
A
Anonymous
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Apologies Tub - I missed the context.
Jon
Jon
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Well that was an impressive amount of damage for a few seconds' exposure. The doctors tell me the outer layer of the mucus membrane in my throat, and part of the bronchia and nasal passages were destroyed, which is what caused the flu symptoms. Apparently it takes about 3 weeks to grow a new layer, so for now the least bit of dust or allergen makes me cough. A HEPA air cleaner helps; air conditioners are troublesome.
A week after exposure, some of the epithelial cells on my eyes shedded off, and I got conjunctivitis. The infection spread to the other exposed tissue. It is responding well to antibiotics.
When I was in Florida, we had coral snakes--quite deadly, but highly visible due to red and yellow bands on their tails. There was another snake, entirely harmless and in fact beneficial as it eats rodents, and it also has read and yellow rings, but the colors do not touch. So we were given a rhyme to distinguish them:
Red touches yellow, kill a fellow.
Not very good poetry, but works nicely as a mnemonic. Perhaps we should be teaching this for mineral exploration as well.
A week after exposure, some of the epithelial cells on my eyes shedded off, and I got conjunctivitis. The infection spread to the other exposed tissue. It is responding well to antibiotics.
When I was in Florida, we had coral snakes--quite deadly, but highly visible due to red and yellow bands on their tails. There was another snake, entirely harmless and in fact beneficial as it eats rodents, and it also has read and yellow rings, but the colors do not touch. So we were given a rhyme to distinguish them:
Red touches yellow, kill a fellow.
Not very good poetry, but works nicely as a mnemonic. Perhaps we should be teaching this for mineral exploration as well.
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The moderators would like to thank all of the members who contributed to the original thread that this post was based on, as well as those who asked questions showing what was missing. Because of the extra length and interest in this thread we have created the above, consolidated version making for an easier read. We encourage all members to read, comment, and ask questions in the original thread, Metal Fume Fever.
The Library threads should not be considered to constitute a complete education. Instead, they're more like reading a single book on the subject of recovery and refining. There is so much more information on the forum, and it is impossible to include it all in these condensed threads. Members are strongly encouraged to read the rest of the forum to round out their education.
For those who prefer a printed copy, a pdf file of this thread is provided below.
The Library threads should not be considered to constitute a complete education. Instead, they're more like reading a single book on the subject of recovery and refining. There is so much more information on the forum, and it is impossible to include it all in these condensed threads. Members are strongly encouraged to read the rest of the forum to round out their education.
For those who prefer a printed copy, a pdf file of this thread is provided below.
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