Welder World Blog

Posts Tagged ‘safe’

Using a cutting torch is serious stuff. Its pretty Safe when used properly, but not safe at all when not used properly. This is not a comprehensive oxyfuel safety course by any means but I tried to include most of the main things

Welding is a hard core work. It is sort of like a men’s sport. It requires at most care and intense concentration while you are doing the process. Before you get into the technical details and physical work of it, you must take care of safety precautions. Once you have a fair idea about the precautionary steps, you must employ in a sequential and routine manner. “Ignore is a bliss”, negligence is the root cause of silly mistakes. Thus see to that you avoid these two root causes while you are taking the precautionary steps as well as get on with the welding process.

Welding is a highly flammable process. Yes, while multitasking you might make use of short cuts to finish off the work faster. But welding is not a multitasking work nor can you apply these short cuts upon welding. The consequences of improper neglected work can be quite disastrous.

If you have observed an expert welding any metal, you might notice him to be wearing a lot of components before he does the task. When you are about to do the task, check your welding components for wear and tear first. You must check for valves and hoses for any kind of openings or possible leaks. This is very crucial, as the consequences of neglecting this issue will be severely disastrous. A small leak can lead to a huge fire and thus in turn ruin the whole factory, the welding apparatus used and other machines inducing a huge loss on company’s property. In worst case scenarios it can even lead to death tolls of several employees. This incurs a heavy loss not only on company property but as well as on the dead person’s families. Spray the hoses and fittings with mild mixture of the dish soap and water as well. The soap creates water bubbles and thus in turn detects leaks. This allows you to identify damaged components. Replace them with good quality ones.  

Secondly, once you are done with the mini-components, carefully inspect the area where you are going to do the welding procedure. Prepare the area with proper preparations. Remove trash, cardboards, flammable liquids, shop rags, and other combustible materials that might ignite from the welding sparks. Then open doors and windows for proper ventilation of air. See to that you also have exhaust fans facilities and switch them on. The following point is very crucial and significant. See to that there are Fire Extinguishers around ALWAYS.

See to that you have dressed properly for the work. Use grease-free flame retardant clothing. Also see to that the clothing fits you closely. Not too tight but not lose too to expose body parts. It should be comfortable for you and at the same time protect you from even mild injuries. Typically you must wear gloves, long pants, shirts with long sleeves etc to protect your skin. Use rubber bands around loose fitting ankles and wrist cuffs.

Always wear ARC-MASK before you begin with your welding work. This filters ultraviolet and infrared rays all times and its efficiency is 100% percent when it comes to protecting you from harmful rays.

Of all the manufacturing activities, it is welding that is fraught with lot of dangers and certain precautionary measures are essential for safe welding. Some of the   grave risks that a welder encounters are the obnoxious fumes and gases, the blinding arc rays, the inflammable sparks and electrical shocks.

•    A welder must wear the prescribed protective clothing before commencing the welding work. Equally important is to wear protective eye and ear gears when welding/cutting.

•    Make sure you are fully equipped with all the safe welding protection accessories such as – welding-helmet preferably with auto darkening feature, welding mask, welding apron, welding jacket, welding gloves, welding shoes, welding goggles, welding booths etc.

•    Avoid breathing the poisonous fumes and provide for ample ventilation before commencing welding.

•    Welders should deposit the butane lighters while welding as welding sparks can lead to a conflagration.  Butane lighters are terribly powerful and when it explodes, it is as good as 3 sticks of dynamite.

•    It is essential to handle all compressed gas cylinders extremely cautiously and ensure they are tightly closed with caps on when stored. When compressed gas cylinders become empty, tightly the valve and also mark them ‘empty’

•    When lighting or shutting off a torch, follow the right technique and observe all the steps sequentially.

•    Make it a point to wear rubber boots and work from a dry insulated platform

– particularly if you are required to do arc welding in a wet area.

•    If it becomes necessary to weld in a confined space, you will have to take suitable extra precautionary measures as the potential risks are high.

•    As a welder, it is your responsibility to protect your fellow workers from the pernicious light rays of welding arc.
•    You must exercise utmost caution if you are required to splice different lengths of welding cable. Please ensure all the electrical connections are tight, secure and well insulated. Stay away from cables that are frayed, cracked or split.

•    Check to make sure that your arc welding equipment is installed properly and grounded firmly and is in perfect working condition.

•    Make sure flame cut sparks do not to strike the hoses, regulators or cylinders as flame cutting sparks have a tendency to travel up to even 40 feet.

•    Never use oil, grease or any inflammable material – if they come in contact with oxygen, it can cause instant combustion. Likewise, never use acetylene at pressure in excess of 15 psi as higher pressures can mean a terrific explosion.

Please know that almost all gas welding and arc welding fluxes are toxic in nature and can easily cause allergies to welders and others around. All welders must know the elementary lesson that the heat energy used for welding can cause untold damage to the welders, persons around and property in the vicinity – if allowed to extend outside the welding area.

The welding shop owner and the welding supervisor must set safety standards and lead by example so that the welders observe all the necessary precautionary measures and the welders are also educated about the grave consequences that any negligence can result in.