Serious Health Risks - Important
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Forum Name: Training
Forum Discription: This forum is for discussion about training for the Scottish Heavy Events.
URL: http://www.nasgaweb.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=454
Printed Date: 3/26/26 at 9:51pm
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Topic: Serious Health Risks - Important
Posted By: AncientOne
Subject: Serious Health Risks - Important
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 3:18am
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Hey- I'm being very serious here. I work in the field of environmental exposure to carcinogens. In years past I conducted investigations for the EPA for a variety of contamination issues and sites around the midwest, including lead and zinc. Currently, I conduct surveilance monitoring for pesticide contamination related to production agriculture in Illinois. The process of melting lead causes a lead vapor, which is extremely poisonous and can be easily inhaled. Melting lead should always occur in a well-ventilated area in the absence of children or pregnant women, as they are most vulnerable to the harmful effects of lead poisoning. Prevent skin contact and prevent eye contact from the vapor! The target organs for lead exposure are the eyes, GI tract, Central Nervous System (including brain), kidneys and blood. Since it lead bioaccumulates in the brain and kidney it can cause a long list of health problems with symptoms ranging from encephalopathy to kidney disease. Please be very, very careful with melting lead and its vapors. -HazMat ------------- Winners are remarkably adept at figuring out what's required to win. |
Replies:
Posted By: brandell
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 4:51am
Shoot why the warning? None of us throwing have brains and most kill their kidneys the 'Fun' way anyhow 
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Posted By: AncientOne
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 6:06am
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Hey Brian- I know that its too late for some of us, but don't let all the new guys think they can just go melt lead in the garage or basement without some warning. Lead poisoning is a real concern. Somebody could cause real harm to their self, wife or kids while making these weights at home if they don't take it serious and provide for ventilation of the lead vapor. Its only as serious as, ... brain damage. -HammerHead ------------- Winners are remarkably adept at figuring out what's required to win. |
Posted By: G-man
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 7:25am
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I try to counter balance the effect of the lead by snorting an ounce or two of mercury! |
Posted By: Wayne Hill
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 9:06am
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Kevin's got a real point here, and I have been remiss in failing to
mention this in my past posts about making lead weights. As an
engineer, I just ASSume that people understand the hazards involved in
this sort of thing, but that's just a horrible assumption when you talk
about the ordinary person on the street. -Wayne ------------- "We may be small, but we're slow." - MIT Rugby |
Posted By: McBain1975
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 9:14am
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Where does one even get lead to make weights and how do you melt it using normal gear? ------------- N�l m� ag duine le daoine. |
Posted By: brandell
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 9:30am
| I know I know....Just making a funny is all |
Posted By: Brent Abbott
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 9:55am
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Ive got over 80# of lead from previous weights that anyone that wants it can come pick it up. Brent Abbott (North Phoenix Area) |
Posted By: Wayne Hill
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 10:46am
I have quite a bit of lead I've picked up for free from various sources that just wanted to get rid of it (e.g., diving weights, etc.). You can also buy it from places that make automotive batteries, which used to be quite common but are now less so. There's also used tire weights, as mentioned by Dave Carl. You can use a propane, MAPP gas, or acetylene torch to melt it. You wouldn't want to use a garden-variety propane torch to melt a lot, but could use one to melt a small amount for tweaking the weight of an iron blob. If you've got a big torch, you can heat a whole can of lead from the outside, which greatly reduces the amount of lead vapor that is produced. If you have to play the flame directly on the lead, be extra special careful with ventilation (but you're doing that anyway, right?). -Wayne ------------- "We may be small, but we're slow." - MIT Rugby |
McBain1975 wrote:Posted By: Richard Doria
Date Posted: 1/19/05 at 1:09pm
| By the time you get done screwing around trying to save ten dollars with lead weights, you'd be better off buying them from Bobby Dodd, or old Celt, or Merle from Illinois. |
Posted By: Roy Bogue
Date Posted: 1/20/05 at 12:56am
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my thoughts exactly ------------- Donate lately? |
Posted By: damon
Date Posted: 1/20/05 at 1:14am
I thought mercury was for sipping after dinner. ------------- |
Posted By: JWC III
Date Posted: 1/20/05 at 11:40am
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Kevin, I agree. One time I was refurbishing a claw foot bath tub and I didn't realize the 20 layers of paint I was taking off with a grinder was lead, no face mask, eclosed are....I was sick for a week. I know alot of guys who a smelting their own lead and it is very dangerous unless you take precautions and even then "caveat emptor" (sp) ------------- Thom Van Vleck |
Posted By: Coach Mac
Date Posted: 1/20/05 at 5:07pm
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Well this article EXPLAINS a lot...!!!
#1-"if" you think that smelling the fumes is bad for your health....try getting caught with melted lead in the kitchen using the "new" Christmas pots and pans stirred with the family heirloom silverware....OUCH ! ! ! (F.Y.I.-the better -half is a Parole agent who works in a gang unit in South Central Los Angelas and yes...she does carry a weapon... #2- I thought the "white-hair" (a.k.a. blond) ) was the natural aging process...? ------------- Have a GREAT Day ! Rob " Coach Mac " Mac Kay |
Posted By: Larry Satchwell
Date Posted: 1/21/05 at 2:18am
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I just melted some lead in my turkey cooker. The turkey tasted the same afterwards. No one seemed to notice the slight metallic taste. JUST KIDDING ANCIENT ONE. |
Posted By: Wayne Hill
Date Posted: 1/21/05 at 2:38am
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Perhaps Kevin can comment on the possibility that grass could absorb
lead from groundwater: it's not obvious to me that it can.
I doubt there's any risk to the horse anyway, because you don't leave
the implement there for extended periods of time. Lead can leach
into water, but at a very low rate that depends on the surface area
presented to the environment: the accumulation of lead bird shot
is a problem in wetlands, for example. If you wash your hands after throwing, there shouldn't be any risk of your being poisoned. -Wayne ------------- "We may be small, but we're slow." - MIT Rugby |
Posted By: grasshopper
Date Posted: 1/21/05 at 6:37am
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We just had a chemical hygene officer come to our school and take all of
or lead shot used for measuring density away. He said it created to much lead dust that kids could get on thier skin. I told him he was an a-hole, and hid mine under the sink before he could find them. TROB |
Posted By: AncientOne
Date Posted: 1/24/05 at 3:27am
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Hey Larry- All of the weights that I throw are "steel-encased" lead while my hammers are not "steel-encased". Therefore, my lead hammer heads are really much more likely to cause lead exposure to the thrower than the weights. So, it depends on what you're throwing. If I had little kids at home, I would really be careful about my hammers rolling around in my car/truck and the kids being anywhere near em. The Old Celt and AncientTechnologies use a welded steel case to pour lead into the weights and then seals the case, while Mjolnir Hammers uses cast iron for weights and hammer heads. The cast iron weights and hammers are safer, but have larger diameters and may not fly as far. So, like all things in life ... its a trade-off. There is certainly a human health risk to lead residue on your hands from lead weights. You should take it seriously and use common sense after handling lead weights. If its a steel encased weight then the risk is probably nill. If its a home-made lead weight then the risk of lead exposure is probably significant to the thrower and even greater for the builder. If you're interested, Google search "lead exposure". Your horses are probably at greater risk of being hit by lightning than developing health problems from your divots. Good luck in your training, -MajorDivot ------------- Winners are remarkably adept at figuring out what's required to win. |
Posted By: Wayne Hill
Date Posted: 1/24/05 at 4:08am
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So, you're saying that the divots of lead weights attract lightning. Huh, who knew? -Wayne ------------- "We may be small, but we're slow." - MIT Rugby |
Posted By: AncientOne
Date Posted: 1/24/05 at 5:01am
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Hey Wayne-
No, you're just being silly now.
The difference between what I said and what you concluded,...
is the same as the difference between, ...
... "lightning" ... and ... "lightning bug".
-SillyWizard ------------- Winners are remarkably adept at figuring out what's required to win. |