The hobby with hidden health risks

[DGUtley]

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Stripping paint, sawing wood, drilling into walls – even the most basic DIY activities can lead to potentially fatal health conditions without proper protective equipment and training. It started – as unpleasant revelations often do – with a late-night thought and some frantic googling. It was 2018 and I had just moved into my first home, a one-bed flat which hadn't been renovated since it was built in the 1960s. The bathroom still contained relics of brown and yellow floral wallpaper, and the maroon carpet had long been trodden into a crusty mat. Even the estate agent had struggled to put a positive spin on its interior design.

Armed with a circular saw and an enthusiasm for DIY wildly out of step with my natural talent, I immediately set to work eradicating the "vintage" vibe. I cut worktops to size, adapted kitchen cabinets, sliced up wooden flooring, and fitted new doors. It wasn't uncommon for the whole flat to be coated in a fine sheen of wood dust.

Then one day, I came across a product online that I found, frankly, baffling: a protective suit for cutting wood. It consisted of a full helmet with a visor, sealed at the neck, and a filter unit that's attached to a belt at the waist. The headgear resembled something you'd wear to visit a patient with a highly contagious disease, or to visit another planet. Hold on, I wondered… why would anyone go to such lengths to protect themselves from wood?

At the same time, hands-on renovations have never been more popular. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, home improvement companies around the globe have reported record sales, leading to the observation that it's created "a generation of DIYers". The unprecedented demand has hit supply chains, contributing to well-documented shortages of basic construction materials such as cement and plaster and eye-watering price hikes. So what are the hidden risks of DIY? And what can we do to shield ourselves from them?

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https://www.bbc.com/future/article/2...tm_source=digg

[FindersKeepers]

Years ago, we hired the son of my best friend and the very first day, he cut through the cord of a circular saw--with the saw. A few weeks later, he shot a nail through one hand and had to go the ER. Being a tough kid (I think he was just 18), he was back on the job the next day but that day, he shot a nail through his other hand. We made him go home. Eventually, he learned.

[hanger4]

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Stripping paint, sawing wood, drilling into walls – even the most basic DIY activities can lead to potentially fatal health conditions without proper protective equipment and training. It started – as unpleasant revelations often do – with a late-night thought and some frantic googling. It was 2018 and I had just moved into my first home, a one-bed flat which hadn't been renovated since it was built in the 1960s. The bathroom still contained relics of brown and yellow floral wallpaper, and the maroon carpet had long been trodden into a crusty mat. Even the estate agent had struggled to put a positive spin on its interior design.

Armed with a circular saw and an enthusiasm for DIY wildly out of step with my natural talent, I immediately set to work eradicating the "vintage" vibe. I cut worktops to size, adapted kitchen cabinets, sliced up wooden flooring, and fitted new doors. It wasn't uncommon for the whole flat to be coated in a fine sheen of wood dust.

Then one day, I came across a product online that I found, frankly, baffling: a protective suit for cutting wood. It consisted of a full helmet with a visor, sealed at the neck, and a filter unit that's attached to a belt at the waist. The headgear resembled something you'd wear to visit a patient with a highly contagious disease, or to visit another planet. Hold on, I wondered… why would anyone go to such lengths to protect themselves from wood?

At the same time, hands-on renovations have never been more popular. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, home improvement companies around the globe have reported record sales, leading to the observation that it's created "a generation of DIYers". The unprecedented demand has hit supply chains, contributing to well-documented shortages of basic construction materials such as cement and plaster and eye-watering price hikes. So what are the hidden risks of DIY? And what can we do to shield ourselves from them?

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https://www.bbc.com/future/article/2...tm_source=digg

This is why I had a stash of N95 respirators on hand as the pandemic began.

[Common]

This is nothing new, decades ago they told you not to inhale sawdust that those wood particles stuck too and destroyed the lining of your lungs....Stripping paint your inhaling the lead back then when you stripped wood it was oil based and lead based paints...

If it doesnt smell good or it bothers you be breathing in it then DONT get a mask.