Thread: Personal Protective Equipment

I ve never really used any thing except at work where as now I am starting to think about it, yesterday morning brought my self some dust masks to do this 4 meter Iron bark slab I ve got to dress atm. For chainsaw work I use Uvex goggles with a face piece and putty ear plugs from the chemist ( expencive but they are 20 time better in my opinion). Some thing else thats good to are the Ansell Ninja glove s .

I've tried a cartridge type, but found it too heavy and hot. At present, I don't use anything at all, although I'd quite like on of those powered jobbies.

I rarely use the full face air mask because I find it's a bit too claustrophobic. I don't seem to suffer from the dust probably because I mainly mill green logs.

I know that chaps are not necessary while CS milling but as soon as I start a CS I just make it a habit of wearing them. This means if I'm part way through a milling cut and need to for whatever reason fire up another CS I don't have to go looking for and putting chaps on.

With ear protection I am already legally deaf so I researched this in a fair bit of detail to keep what little hearing I still have. I found several research articles that clearly demonstrated that while earplugs might sound effective, in nearly all cases they are simply not as effective as earmufs. The main reason for this is that even under ideal conditions even expert audiologists have difficulties correctly fitting ear plugs to themselves or operators. Under workplace conditions earplugs are even more poorly fitted by most operators. Ear muffs also suffer from the same problem but are generally easier to slip on correctly than to fit ear plugs correctly. Also Muffs can be taken on and off more easily while wearing gloves.

The solution to this is to wear both plugs and muffs - that way you get double protection. I wear Peltor H10 behind the head muffs that clip onto the back of my ($40 from Mitre 10) full face (not air powered) shield.

For gloves, the vibe from the 076 really got to me so I bought a pair of OBT gel padded gloves but I found the best solution to vibe is to fit soft rubber mountain bike handle bar ends to handles in the mill and I now just wear Ironclads to protect me from splinters.

Sorry, I didn't mention the rest. I wear a pair of the best passive muffs that UVEX make. I also wear a pair of wrap-around tinted safety glasses and a pair of steel-capped boots. I don't wear gloves because I have callouses and I find that gloves don't give me a confident grip. I'd rather get a splinter than drop a board or try to stop it dropping and put my back out. Apart from that, not much other than a pair of sock savers. I try to wear a long-sleeved shirt, but don't always manage it. Ditto jeans or long strides.

I wouldn't mind a pair of those gel gloves for slabbing, I must say.

Originally Posted by BobL

For gloves, the vibe from the 076 really got to me so I bought a pair of OBT gel padded gloves ....

The only gel gloves I found were the bike ones, with no fingers, but found the sawdust getting in drove me nuts. I need the anti-vibration even for my chainsaw as the arthritus kills if I use it for any length of time. I'm using padded gloves from bunnings of all places, padded with just cheap cotton fill I think, so believe the gel would be better.

If anyone knows where I can get full gloves with gel, please let me know.

As to other PPE, I use chaps, dust mask (cloth type), goggle type safety glasses (with anti-fog from my diver's kit ), Stihl mesh face mask and ear muffs. Others might say over the top, but I have had alergic reactions to many timber I cut, so use as much as I can.

Been thinking about the full filtered face mask for a while, but can't quite justify the costs yet.

Originally Posted by dai sensei

The only gel gloves I found were the bike ones, with no fingers, but found the sawdust getting in drove me nuts. I need the anti-vibration even for my chainsaw as the arthritus kills if I use it for any length of time. I'm using padded gloves from bunnings of all places, padded with just cheap cotton fill I think, so believe the gel would be better.

If anyone knows where I can get full gloves with gel, please let me know.

As to other PPE, I use chaps, dust mask (cloth type), goggle type safety glasses (with anti-fog from my diver's kit ), Stihl mesh face mask and ear muffs. Others might say over the top, but I have had alergic reactions to many timber I cut, so use as much as I can.

Been thinking about the full filtered face mask for a while, but can't quite justify the costs yet.

Ronstan used to make full length gloves that had the gel, they were light stretchy leather or fake leather which fit snugly to maximise how much you could feel and control while using them. They were designed for yachtsmen who need the protection but also need to know what their fingers are doing. Where you get them god knows some of the boat guys may know.

Personally I normally wear plugs and muffs, unless it is hot then just plugs and minimise the amount of cutting I do, I don't own chaps but if I had them I would wear them and am considering them as the next piece of equipment I will buy, never know when your luck will run out. I always wear strong leather boots with ankle protection, however I usually avoid steel caps as I find they are generally a bit ungamely and when scrambling around in amongst logs and stuff I like to be sure footed. As for respiration I rarely use anything as I find it too uncomfortable, usually when hanging off of a saw the head is leaking even on cool days (perspiring) but I generally try to keep my head as far as possible from the exhaust. With good sharp chains the fine dust is generally minimised considerably, not to say that there is none but less than with dull or incorrectly sharpened chains.

I have seen full gloves with the gel padding at the likes of supercheap auto and repco and the like. These are generally made of elastic material although I have seen some where the wearing bits are leather. Sold as mechanics gloves.

Another piece of kit I find invaluable is the humble sock savers, they keep the crud out of your boots and socks exceptionally well. And I always wear at least medium impact close fitting safety glasses either clear or tinted, I find that some of the glasses on the market are basically useless unless the offending object is coming straight at the lens, good fitting ones have far less places for chips etc. to get past and possibly in your eyes. Personally I find MSA nullarbors are quite a good fit for me but others may find bolle or eyres or one of the many others better.

I always wear full length shirts and good sturdy pants when outdoors anywhere. (sunburn and sunstroke really suck) Generally I will also wear a full brim hat (Akubra) and sunscreen on any remaining exposed areas (insert back of neck and plumbers crack... lets face it we all get it from time to time.)

Think that about covers me.

Working from the head down this is what I wear when slabbing ....

Stihl hard hat, safety glasses (to the relevant Australian Standard) behind a mesh visor (on the hat). Earplugs with ear muffs (attached to the hard hat). I have a neck flap attached to the back of the hard hat to keep the sun off my neck. I don't really need the hard hat for head protection, but it keeps everything else in place !!

Dust mask with dual cartridge filters. Yes, this does get hot, but I take it off between slabs and keep the filters clean or replaced. There is a large difference in use when the filters are blocked.

A sort sleeved shirt and shorts (summer) or trousers (winter). These are usually King Gee or Bisley. I use the shirts without the buttons all the way down the front (just one less place for saw dust to enter.) Sun block on the arms.

Leather work gloves - The mill is a Perterson Log Locust running a Stihl 088 Magnum, so a lot of the vibration is moderated in the frame. Given the position of the mill, I often use hips / legs / knees to put weight on the mill.

Chainsaw chaps - although not essential for milling, it means I don't have to do anything different to dock the log or use another chainsaw.

Sock savers are essential.

Steel capped boots - I wear these pretty much every day so I don't know any different.

This setup won't suit everyone, but I am used to it now so don't find it a problem.

Jaksam

Good to see that all of us are aware of the hearing and vibration issues. The respiration still worries me though.
I lost an uncle to a rare form of cancer a couple of years ago and to cut a long story short, his neuro surgeon asked him what his occupation had been and if he had worked with timber. My uncle told him that he had been a sawmiller all of his life. The surgeon replied - ah, I thought so, I have seen a lot of these tumours in woodworkers lately.
Makes you think doesn't it.

I was at the bundy wood show Karl last november and I left in tears there was an Old fella there who had worked with Cedar building Timber model Sailing Ships, And he was flogging of the entire collection for . He was just sitting there with his oxygen tank. All he had to say was his hobby was killing him and he didnt want the rats wreacking the rigging.

Originally Posted by itsposs

I was at the bundy wood show Karl last november and I left in tears there was an Old fella there who had worked with Cedar building Timber model Sailing Ships, And he was flogging of the entire collection for . He was just sitting there with his oxygen tank. All he had to say was his hobby was killing him and he didnt want the rats wreacking the rigging.

Exactly my point. I think that we all need to be aware of the long term effects of our hobbies and occupations if we are to enjoy them long term. Obviously certain timbers will be worse than others but all will eventually bring you undone I am sure.
I remember an old Boilermaker saying to me that if you blow your nose at the end of the day and would not be happy to eat the product then you have a problem with contaminants. On the gross side perhaps, but fairly accurate I must say.
I am currently exploring my options in this area and will keep all posted on my findings.

Originally Posted by dai sensei

The only gel gloves I found were the bike ones, with no fingers, but found the sawdust getting in drove me nuts. I need the anti-vibration even for my chainsaw as the arthritus kills if I use it for any length of time. I'm using padded gloves from bunnings of all places, padded with just cheap cotton fill I think, so believe the gel would be better.

If anyone knows where I can get full gloves with gel, please let me know.

These are the gel padded gloves I have.
Premium Full Finger Work Glove w Sport Cuff

They are not cheap ($90 a pair) but they are the most comfortable and most effective padded gloves I have used. They have padding around the fingers which helps with CS trigger vibe.
Buying gloves online is problematic because I like to try them on.
In the end it cost me $20 more because I had to send a pair back and go the next size.

Cheaper and better by far is to put some mountain bike handle bar grip handles on ya mill.
Like this;


And a remote throttle eliminates trigger finger vibe.

This is my usual milling PPE, plus ear plugs under the muffs, I wrapped both the long push bar and the short hand grip with pipe/tube insulating foam, big help in reducing the vib transferred to hands, I am a bit slack in the dust mask area tho
Attachment 162012


Pete

Originally Posted by pjt

Attachment 162012

Looks like you might need knee pads too

Originally Posted by BobL

Looks like you might need knee pads too

I thought you were talking about Sawchain.