Paul39
26th September 2015, 12:35 PM
I had my annual health check up Sept. 1. Among my list of things to discuss was a vague dull ache in my right chest. Doc ordered two X-rays and later wrote and said I had a mild case of emphysema and ordered a CT scan for next month.
I'm 75 and retired from 40 years as a commercial photographer, so was in a darkroom daily with chemicals. All the darkrooms I built had forced air ventilation but some of the color chemicals were pretty vile and poisonous.
Along the way I built darkroom sinks from fiberglass and polyester resin, sawed wood, put up and finished sheet rock, changed brake shoes, built decks with pressure treated lumber, spray painted, etc. I did not always use a dust mask.
I may have smoked 20 cigars in my life, but was around people who smoked.
I have been turning since 2007 and always had a box fan sucking out of the basement pulling air away from the lathe and mostly used a dust mask.
I would occasionally wake up with "Turners Cough". In the last year I am increasingly affected by dust, tree pollen, flowers, and scents that men and women use.
A couple days ago I cut a hole through the brick wall and installed a surplus high end kitchen vent fan. Yesterday I ran a 6 foot piece of 8 inch duct to the lathe. I cut a doughnut from a piece of scrap 2 X 10 to fit the 8 inch duct to a piece of 6 inch flexible aluminum duct. A test shows lots of suction.
I used a mask and had the box fan on, but over night and today I am coughing, sneezing, and have a runny nose. I think the cumulative neglect over the years is catching up with me.
Doing some research I find this:
http://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-allergies-and-toxicity/
http://billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/index.cfm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0063000/
Those of you not yet affected give dust removal and face masks consideration. BobL and others have several posts on the subject.
I would like to see others that have been affected by wood dust post their experiences. I recall one or two that have had to give up turning.
I'm 75 and retired from 40 years as a commercial photographer, so was in a darkroom daily with chemicals. All the darkrooms I built had forced air ventilation but some of the color chemicals were pretty vile and poisonous.
Along the way I built darkroom sinks from fiberglass and polyester resin, sawed wood, put up and finished sheet rock, changed brake shoes, built decks with pressure treated lumber, spray painted, etc. I did not always use a dust mask.
I may have smoked 20 cigars in my life, but was around people who smoked.
I have been turning since 2007 and always had a box fan sucking out of the basement pulling air away from the lathe and mostly used a dust mask.
I would occasionally wake up with "Turners Cough". In the last year I am increasingly affected by dust, tree pollen, flowers, and scents that men and women use.
A couple days ago I cut a hole through the brick wall and installed a surplus high end kitchen vent fan. Yesterday I ran a 6 foot piece of 8 inch duct to the lathe. I cut a doughnut from a piece of scrap 2 X 10 to fit the 8 inch duct to a piece of 6 inch flexible aluminum duct. A test shows lots of suction.
I used a mask and had the box fan on, but over night and today I am coughing, sneezing, and have a runny nose. I think the cumulative neglect over the years is catching up with me.
Doing some research I find this:
http://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-allergies-and-toxicity/
http://billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/index.cfm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0063000/
Those of you not yet affected give dust removal and face masks consideration. BobL and others have several posts on the subject.
I would like to see others that have been affected by wood dust post their experiences. I recall one or two that have had to give up turning.