I have always know that MIG welding (or any type of welding) ain't great
for your health, but our local expert in Industrial Hygiene here
at USU has always told me that I don't weld enough to worry about it.
However, after Jeff Young's warning about welding zinc coatings I asked
again and insisted on all the gory details. Here they are as best I
can remember.
All welding produces metal fumes (particulate matter, as I understand
it, not gases). The most abundant are chromium, manganese, nickel,
cadmium, iron and copper. None of these is good for your health.
If there is an appreciable amount of zinc (as with galvanized metal
or weld-thru coatings) then zinc fumes are also produced, usually in
somewhat higher amounts than the other metals, which are just
components of the steel or the welding wire. Zinc and manganese
fumes can produce something called `metal fume fever', which,
unlike `Saturday night fever', has symptoms much like the flu
and also has all the unpleasant long-term effects of heavy metal exposure.
The good news is that if you're like me, you weld only on the weekends,
and because most of the time is spent preparing the metal etc., you
actually weld for only brief periods of time, (Speaking of preparing the
metal, I would suppose that the zinc phosphate coating from commercial
rust removers would add to the zinc fumes as well.) The welding helmet also
apparently acts to channel the hot fumes away from your face, thereby
further reducing your exposure. BOTTOM LINE: if you're just a weekend
warrior like me, you probably don't need to worry about it too much,
particularly if you work in a well-ventilated area, as Ray Gibbons
suggested.
Oh yeah, lots of UV exposure, but I've learned not to weld with any
exposed skin for other reasons, so that's usually not a problem.
The above comments are accurate as far as I know but should in no
way be construed as official information from this institution, etc, etc.
Keith `don't sue me if you get sick from MIG welding' Mott
Keith A. Mott | '59 Sprite (bodywork almost done)
Biology Department | '65 Sprite (restored, daily driver)
Utah State University | '62 AH3000 (complete, waited to be restored)
Logan, UT 84322-5305
(801) 797-3563 (voice)
(801) 797-1575 (FAX)
keith@anolis.bnr.usu.edu
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