Solder fumes health precautions

[darron]

i refer you back to the search feature of the site... this has come up before.


here's the most relevant thread i can find: http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=51382.0


i used to use silver solder at work all day and not have problems. at home i use 60/40 and get a headache if i'm over it all night.

i think most people will be happy with the habit of gently blowing while your soldering, i see everyone do that (:    even with an extractor i think people would do it out of habbit.


one guy at work had an AC caged fan extracting near his work area with a cloth over it to filter the air and then a heap of 5 watt resistors behind it as a dummy speaker load so the fan would also cool them.

[Paul Marossy]

I only get a cough after I build ten or twenty pedals at a time. Other than that, an hour of soldering doesn't even faze me.

I guess you have a higher tolerance to it. When I work on projects, I work all day long, so it's not 1 hour of soldering though, more like 5 or 6

There's times when I might be soldering stuff for 6-7 hours straight. It doesn't usually bother me much. It does depend on the time of year because I have a dual HVAC system in my house, so when I am running the direct/indirect evaporative cooler I open the window in my work room and let it relieve through that window. It cools the room off nicely while ventilating it very well at the same time.

[azrael]

I like the smell of freshly melted solder. >_>

No problems here.

[dpresley58]

I pulled the fan from a computer power supply and equipped it with a 9v battery clip. This is hooked to a Radio Shack 9v supply that they sell as a "battery replacement", because the hook-up end is a complementary 9v clip. Sure, the fan is rated for a higher amperage than the supply provides, but doesn't stop it from really moving some air. Plenty to keep the stuff out of your face, and you don't have to hold your breath while soldering.

Unless, of course, you're on your 4th cup of coffee...

[burningman]

I'm a bit paranoid of the fumes too. Funny enough, after a day of soldering my nose would sometimes become inflamed - not pleasant. I purchased the Maplin extractor fan and it seems to do a good job of at least keeping the fumes away from the face. I'm not sure how good a job these fans do at filtering but it seems to do the trick.

[edvard]

I like the smell of freshly melted solder. >_>

No problems here.

Great Googly-Boogly, I thought I was the only one, I was starting to feel bad.
Frankly, I love the smell of solder smoke.
Also no problems with inflammation or headaches, fortunately.

[darron]

if you haven't seen my saying before:

[oldrocker]

My headaches show up while debugging not while soldering. LOL

[zeeman]

i Is hvAe ben soliring fer yaers an i didnet ahve ayn pRolms.

zeEmna

[manis404]

I don't know about you guys but, personally, I LOVE the smell of melting solder.

[newb]

ive had the same concerns myself and i now work at a health supliment store and there are ways to cleanse the toxins from your system there is a product called heavy metal cleanse by a company called renew life that helps the body dispose of the heavy metals in your system.

[CodeMonk]

I've been soldering for almost 30 years.
A lot of people I have worked with usually just use a small fan to draw the fumes away from them.
Me, I have trained myself to slowly exhale while I solder.