The welder is a difficult profession, but very necessary and in demand. However, we all know that this type of activity is not the safest. Today we will consider the safety precautions that professionals must follow in order to avoid accidents during work.
Do you know the safety precautions of the welder? This work is a very dangerous activity. In addition to welding itself, other sources are also dangerous, such as preparing the metal itself for welding, cutting metal and fixing all materials for welding.
Work threats
The hazards of the welder are the following factors.
- May cause an electric shock. At the same time, it is important that a colleague or rescuer is nearby. This will greatly increase the chances of salvation. Leave the person rubber gloves and everything you need for first aid.
- The effects of electricity on eyeballs. This affects a person’s vision very badly.
- Dirt in the eyes, which greatly affects the quality of vision.
- Substances harmful and poisonous to your body, in any case, get inside. Therefore, lungs and other organs may be damaged.
- Burns from welding on skin not hidden under clothing.
- Injuries. Most often, injuries and accidents occur in tall buildings and indoors.
In general, to avoid this, it is necessary to observe the safety precautions of the welder.
Occupational diseases
It is worth noting immediately that there is a risk of diseases that are observed in people who have been involved in the activities of the welder for a very long time. They appear due to the characteristic features of welding, which not every organism can tolerate. Here is a list of them.
- Bronchitis.
- Eczema.
- Neurotoxicosis.
- Pneumoconiosis.
- Bronchial asthma.
- And also many other diseases associated with the lungs and the system of air intake into the body.
In order to prevent these diseases, you must begin to observe the safety precautions of the welder.
Training
What needs to be done to increase your own level of safety during operation?
- Evaluate the health of your equipment that is designed to work.
- Check the insulation of the wires in the room. If it is not working properly, be sure to fix this problem to avoid electric shock. This is very, very important, do not leave this seemingly small problem for later.
- Check the load on the mains.
Wear clothes and protective equipment to help you get the job done faster and more efficiently. So you can observe the safety precautions of the welder.
How to protect your eyes?
Yes, often people with great experience in welding work have problems with their eyes and eyesight. Damage to such an organ can be received even by assistants and ordinary people on the street. The retina most often suffers, which in some cases cannot be completely restored. Therefore, when working, it is necessary to observe the safety precautions of the welder and provide protection to the eyes.
So how to do this? Of course, the most reliable way is a popular welder mask, without which you simply will not be allowed to work. She comes with a set of protective shield and glasses. It is worth noting that the assistant, too, in the performance of his duties, must wear special glasses.
Requirements for these products, according to GOST:
- the size of the window on the shield should not reduce the viewing angle;
- the light filter on the mirror should not transmit any radiation that would be harmful to the human eye;
- the mask and goggles should be easily worn with straps, hold on and not fall off.
There is also a convenience parameter, however, it is not so paid attention to. But still, this is important when choosing your personal mask. In general, the safety precautions of the welder during operation must be followed in any case.
How to protect the lungs?
This need arises most often only in enclosed spaces where you need to perform work. If you use the most standard and cheap mask of the welder, then you will not receive good air, and you will breathe harmful gases to the body. And this is the risk of poisoning. It is worth noting that there are expensive shields for working in places that supply almost one hundred percent filtered air. You will breathe quality oxygen. Also, if you find a really expensive model, it will also prevent fogging of your glass on the mask. Such models are usually bought by professionals who have been in their field for a very long time and literally “live” it. In general, this mask is one of the important safety rules for a welder in production.
Spatter protection welding
During work, you need not only not to damage your eyeballs and lungs, but also not to get burns. This most often happens with people who do not pay attention to it. To prevent this, simply wear special clothing. For example, to prevent your hands from getting burned, wear so-called “leggings”.
And the rest of the body can be protected with refractory things. Shoes can be shod standard, most importantly, not quite light and thin. And the most important rule is that your clothes should be perfectly matched to the size, otherwise you will suffer from the fact that your work efficiency will fall, and therefore the salary will be less. It is worth noting that this also applies to safety regulations for a manual welder.
Modern welding tools use a variety of natural gases, electric current, and compressed air. They differ from others in their characteristics, and of course, in the degree of danger. Deaths are often due to improper or neglected handling of these tools. And all this is because people do not know the safety precautions of the welder in the workplace.
Gas Welding Safety
The risks when you do work with welding consumables and use gas equipment, increase at times. Therefore, in no case do not carry out actions with them when you do not have the slightest experience. Always call a colleague who understands this area and can explain the nuances of using this equipment. Then get to work. But in any case, people should know the following recommendations for working with labor safety and welder safety procedures.
- There should not be any objects near your equipment that could easily ignite from a single spark.
- Do not place cylinders closer than five meters from the place of work.
- It is forbidden to use gas burners, play with fire and matches. Ignition is done only with special tools.
- It is sometimes necessary to check equipment. After all, if it is faulty, it can ignite and even explode.
- To a place where there is an accumulation of such gas cylinders, no one should enter.
- Necessarily regular lighting indoors.
How to transport cylinders?
Recommendations and safety measures are devoted to their transfer. To do this, you just need to wrap the cylinders in special caps for protection. And the transfer itself is carried out on carts and stretchers. If for short distances - the usual canting.
They can be stored for a long time only in an upright position, only closed. It is worth noting that gas cylinders are often painted red. It is better to store them better in a cold room, as they are strictly forbidden to heat. If they are hot, it can cause a huge explosion. It will be very difficult to put out the fire later.
If you follow the recommendations, then the risk of injury (or multiple injuries) during the work of the welder will be almost zero.
Arc Welding Safety
When you start work with arc welding, usually use current sources in which the voltage is much higher. This is hazardous to health and requires special care from the employee. Here is a list of rules that must be followed.
- Be sure to insulate all wires that give current so that they in no way hit you.
- Make sure that the body of the welding arc and its power sources are grounded.
- Installing a passive safety system is very important. It will interrupt the high voltage idle.
- Rubber mats and galoshes should be used if you are working indoors or indoors.
- Materials in such rooms should also be processed so that they do not catch fire from sparks.
- Contact of the working welder with the terminals of the electrically conductive circuit should not be allowed.
The welding arc provides a source of rays, and they are very bright and can damage our eyes and the retina. Therefore, during operation, the protective equipment referred to in the article is used.
How should the premises be equipped?
These rooms in which your welding work is carried out should always be located on the first floors of the house. This is done so that the fire hazard group is G, and the fire resistance of the materials is not less than the second degree. The floor in the apartment should not conduct heat. In addition, it is necessary that the floor is easily cleaned of dirt and made of materials that do not burn. If there are structures made of wood, then they are sheathed with special sheets.
And if, due to circumstances, it is located above the first floor, then the gas wiring is done using a pipeline. Its length should not be more than forty meters. Rubber-fabric hoses are used for devices in the field of welding. And most importantly, a fire station should be immediately built in the house, in which all work will be organized.
Fire prevention measures
A welder safety briefing is required to address the topic of fires. It is worth recalling that this area of activity differs from others in its increased danger to fire, therefore, you should always take measures to improve safety and reduce the risk of fire.
What is forbidden?
In enclosed spaces where welding is carried out, the storage of flammable objects and materials is strictly prohibited. After all, if a spark gets into them and a fire starts, then such a fire will be very, very difficult to extinguish.
It should be noted that electrical wiring can not be laid together with other wires from excess equipment.
This article provides instructions for the safety of the welder. We hope the article has been helpful and informative to readers.