Mask to protect against glue fumes?

[Token]

Not sure if this is the right forum, but..

 

Is there some mask you can buy that would protect from plastic glue fumes?

[The Unseen]

I mean, a respirator would do it. But plastic glue isn't really all *that* toxic, just be in a well-ventilated room with some airflow, don't use to much, don't leave the bottle open, and don't breathe right over whatever your doing.

But also, if you're worried about the fumes, swap to super-glue. Same safety concerns as above, but notably fewer fumes, since it isn't melting the plastic just a compound hardening on exposure to air. Super-glue also works on resin and pewter, which obviously isn't always necessary but its nice to not have to swap. Imo, if superglue isn't strong enough to hold a piece together, you should be pinning it anyway. And additional benefit, if you ever need to take the model apart for whatever reason, an hour in the freezer and if you didn't use to much glue it'll snap right along the joint, as the superglue gets brittle in the cold faster than most plastics.

[Rain]

I use Gorilla Glue super glue, and it works great for plastic and resin. It also doesn’t give off the awful smell, or create that white residue that plastic glue does. For safety I wear a military surplus gas mask with heavy duty rubber gloves over a hadzmat suit. I’ve also had a decontamination shower specially installed in my living room. Can never be too careful.

[Bung]

If you dont like the smell of plastic glue, you may be interested in Tamiya Extra Thin Limone Clement

https://www.pk-pro.de/Limonene-Cement-Extra-Thin

 

Its scented plastic glue and even the Woman of the House like it.

[pawl]

7 hours ago, Bung said:

If you dont like the smell of plastic glue, you may be interested in Tamiya Extra Thin Limone Clement

https://www.pk-pro.de/Limonene-Cement-Extra-Thin

 

Its scented plastic glue and even the Woman of the House like it.

Would that not just mask the smell of the vapours, rather than making them safe? =X

 

For those interested, this article talks about respirators, and provides some relatively cheap options that are more than good enough for our hobby uses =]

[Bung]

4 hours ago, pawl said:

Would that not just mask the smell of the vapours, rather than making them safe? =X

 

For those interested, this article talks about respirators, and provides some relatively cheap options that are more than good enough for our hobby uses 

 

How much buckets of plastic glue are you gonna open at once?

 

If you use syringe type of plastic glue bottles the micro ammount of fumes isnt enough to affect you.

Even the Tamiya glasses cant get enough solvent fumes in the air to harm you.

 

To harm yourself you literally must sniff the fumes in high quantity.

 

You rather harm yourself with fumes through bad cooking or Standing next to a Wood fire.

[andes]

There's more to fumes than harm... it's allergy season in my neck of the woods, I wear my respirator so as to not irritate my already annoyed sinuses. Normally, I'm fairly laissez faire about it but this time of the year it's almost mandatory. FWIW, I use 3M P100 60923 filter carts and they do the job just fine.

Edited May 1, 2023 by andes
added filter model number

[tychobi]

More filtration the better but solvent fumes will get through. I have sensitivity to super glue which gives off lots of fumes as well even if you can't smell em but my N95 helps a lot

[pawl]

7 hours ago, Bung said:

 

How much buckets of plastic glue are you gonna open at once?

 

If you use syringe type of plastic glue bottles the micro ammount of fumes isnt enough to affect you.

Even the Tamiya glasses cant get enough solvent fumes in the air to harm you.

 

To harm yourself you literally must sniff the fumes in high quantity.

 

You rather harm yourself with fumes through bad cooking or Standing next to a Wood fire.

 

I find that over an extended building session that if I don't have decent ventilation (windows can be a difficulty when it's very windy, or when pollen counts are high, even with an air filter in the room) then the fumes from a bottle of extra thin can be enough to cause a slight headache, and I don't leave it open when not in use.

 

I try and treat vapours like the sun - if you can feel the sunburn then you've already left it a bit too late!

 

It's worth keeping in mind that there are plenty of people who suffer from conditions that leave their lungs somewhat compromised as it is, too.

 

 

Edit: it's worth adding they tamiya extra thin is 50% acetone, 50% butyl acetate. I've never smelled the latter, but I know that while the former is fairly safe (compared to some other solvents) it's not something I want building up in an unventilated room, because it's not going to do my lungs any good.

Edited May 2, 2023 by pawl

[Firedrake Cordova]

I'll be honest, I don't know how dangerous the fumes from plastic glue are (I assume if they were nasty, there'd be a warning on the bottle). Probably the first thing to do (if you can) is to make sure your work area is ventilated - this will limit any build-up of fumes (if you're worried about the effect of fumes, you don't want to be wearing a mask whilst gluing only to remove it when you're done and be sat in a room full of fumes).

 

As for a mask - I'm assuming that the fumes from plastic cement would be regarded as a vapour rather than particulate, so I'm guessing something which has a vapour rating would be desirable. I've got a 3M 6500QL half-face respirator that I use for airbrushing, which has particulate and vapour filters attached to it (it's got a modular design). Having said that, it's somewhat semi-informed conjecture, so the best thing you could do if you're concerned is speak to a company that provides PPE, explain what you're doing (and if you know the constituent chemicals, great!), and let them tell you the kind of mask/respirator you should be looking at.

Edited May 2, 2023 by Firedrake Cordova

[Token]

Thanks ppl. Iv looked on some respirator thingies. Also thinking of a fan or something.

[Xenith]

6 hours ago, Firedrake Cordova said:

I'll be honest, I don't know how dangerous the fumes from plastic glue are (I assume if they were nasty, there'd be a warning on the bottle)

 

My revell contacta poly cement has a cancer warning sticker on it  though a quick google says it's not the poly cement itself. 

 

 

Tha seems to be the worst of it, keep a window open perhaps? A solvent mask would catch the fumes, however they're not that comfortable to wear for prolonged periods of modelling. 

[Bung]

I orient myself in the MAK stuff from Work, which is the maximum of concentration over a Work Periode of 8 hours.

 

A small bottle of plastic glue in a normal sized room could not reach that until you stuff 2 Tamiya bottles straight into your nose.

 

If you feel dizzy, you are already working to long in an unventilated place.

 

The best way is always taje breaks and open the Windows for a few minutes.

 

 

[roryokane]

Gonna slightly necro this topic - what do people recommend specifically for super glue fumes, as that's what I seem to have a particular sensitivity to?

[Xenith]

If you're UK based, Wickes has a good range of affordable stuff. I've used similar to these at work:

 

https://www.dustmasksdirect.co.uk/product/3m-6000-series-half-face-mask/?attribute_size=Medium&gclid=Cj0KCQjwj_ajBhCqARIsAA37s0wQFn0iMlzzILulaM1AEQdZS0ooBQB03NpWd5_BadYMJY6fPxio_Q0aAsPjEALw_wcB

 

https://www.dustmasksdirect.co.uk/product/moldex-9100-a1-organic-gas-vapour-dust-mask-filters/

 

The bayonet fittings are great. If you;re just using it for modelling, one set of filters will probably last forever. You can also get particulate filters which will be useful if you're working with FW resin.  

 

[pawl]

On 5/29/2023 at 9:36 AM, roryokane said:

Gonna slightly necro this topic - what do people recommend specifically for super glue fumes, as that's what I seem to have a particular sensitivity to?

The article I linked above (this one) shows the mask I use - cost me about 30 quid for the mask and filters, and and it has a handy feature that helps you check the seal formed is airtight. The fumes are vapours, which all 3 mask examples in the article will cover, as well as any particulate matter that you may encounter =]

Edited June 17, 2023 by pawl