Child's Safety Glasses

[Neil Blythin]

I have a 3 1/2 year old son, who loves watching me any time I'm working (blacksmithing, wood working, etc.). I love that he's interested, and am amazed by how much he learns by watching ; but I'm paranoid about safety.

I've been looking for good child-sized safety glasses for some time now, and hadn't been having much luck ... until now.

I just received a half-dozen pairs of "Dyno-Mites" child safety glasses that I'd ordered from an on line supplier. They are fantastic! They are the first I've ever found that securely fit little faces. I'm going to make sure I always have a few pairs kicking around for young spectators.

I'm not selling these, and have no vested interest in them. I'm just a parent of two small (and inquisitive) children. For other parents & grandparents out there, I highly recommend looking into these.

In my research, I also read very positive reviews of the Remington child-sized shooting glasses. They were the other one I was going to try, but I'd ordered the dyno-mites first. However the shooting glasses may be more widely available (especially if you have a gun club or range nearby).

On the topic of children's PPE, can anyone recommend good kids ear defenders?

[pkrankow]

My daughter who is 4 wears any of the 3 pair of adult ear muffs I have, when they are sized all the way down the seem to fit well, and provide adequate protection. I have a pair of cheap folding, a pair that has a radio in it, and a pair of Smith and Wesson. She will happily wear any of them. The bar seems to set close to the top of her head, and her ears are completely covered with a good seal all around.

I have been using adult goggles cinched up tight, but will look for child size glasses since you mention them. The first ones Google returns look good.

Phil

[Glenn]

Young ears may benefit from ear plugs AND muffs. The ear plugs I would suggest are the plastic ones that have stems, with or without the cords. This way they can be inserted and removed easily. By doubling up on the ear protection the hearing should be protected.

Remember that vibrations can also come through the body so be careful of long term exposure to machinery and other sources. You may want to read the post on how loud is loud, Sone good information in there also.

[tzonoqua]

Personally I don't feel that safety glasses are enough, I put my daughter (6) in a full face shield, and glasses. I would be wracked with guilt if she got hurt at the workshop!! In fact any child who visits my forge under the age of 12 gets a full face shield. She uses my ear defenders as the band is adjustable so will shorten to fit her head, or just ear plugs, but she doesn't tend to hang around and watch... she'll have a quick hammer then she'd rather be out in the field or up in the apple tree!

[Sask Mark]

Thanks for the lead Neil. I will have to track down some of those safety glasses.

As for ear muffs, there are kids sizes available. My in-laws bought some for my kids for when we go to watch the drag races. I think they were made by Peltor but I could be wrong with that...

[Frosty]

Thanks Neil, good lead. Mark's right, Peltor makes all sizes of ear muffs and the foam plugs are good for kids too, both won't hurt at all. Keeping kids in one piece and good shape is important enough to have PPE available in any shop. That or no visitors which would be a drag, kids are too cool in the shop, they ask the best questions, their opinions and ideas are unpolluted by knowledge.

Frosty The Lucky.

[ptree]

The Cholds size safety glasses, especially paired wih the behind the head strap to keep them snug work well. I like the Peltor behind the nape of the neck hearing protection muffs. It is very hard to ensure a good fit with earplugs on a little one. All 4 of mine wore safety glasses and muffs and I often had all 4 in the shop doing assembly line small tasks for projects they sold for their spending money.

Face shields are required when doing something that threatens the face, but they are a poor substitute for safety glasses. Glasses under the face shield as Coleen practices is the right way.

I wrote the PPE plan for the factory where I am the EH&S Specialist, and I require safety glasses period, at all times. When doing double ction sanding or metal conditioning wioth discs I require safety glasses with a gasket around the edge or goggles over safety glasses, and for grinding with a hard disc bigger than 2" (50mm) I require a face shield over that.
we used to have a lot of metal bits in the eys but no longer do.
Usually when I have someone who does not want to wear the PPE the infamous safety glasses test works
You ask them to close their eyes, and ask,"tell me what you see?" They usually say nothing and I reply, "Any questions?"

For the harder cases I ask them if they know how rusted metal is removed from the lens of the eye. When I describe the contraption used to hold the head still and the eye open while a medical grade Dremel tool grinds the bit out the usually shudder, and I don't seem to have problems from them again.

[Ironman50]

That is good information! Thank you for sharing this. I like this part of the site where safety is of utmost concern. Keep sharing the good news! And, I’m betting that if there is a club or range nearby, they will know where to get that ear protection for the little ones!