First, Hi :3 second, when I put a bolt in my forge, it changes color with a yellow coating on it. Should I be afraid? Thanks.

You are probably burning zink off the steel bolt. Galvanized (zink coated) items heated up in a forge is generaly very dangerous. Zink as a solid metal is fine, but when you burn zink it forms smoke cloud that is rich with zink gas. Breathing in powdered or gas form zink can kill people quickly. It is a heavy metal that will collect in the body. Drinking milk or water or any other silly recommendation will not help with zink poisoning. A few people that use to be part of this website have died from zink poisoning or complications from such.

 

I can not say for sure that this is what is happening with your metal as I would need more information about the item heated. But I can safely say that heating up any metal with some type of Coating on it is dangerous. Paint and metal coatings burned are almost always poisonous. 

 

Good luck and stay safe 

We say "if it *rusts* it's *right*!"

Admanfrd,  zinc will kill you.  Some bolts/plating these days also include Cadmium.   If exposed to that it will stay in your system for years.

If you feel under the weather, and have flu like symptoms, well, if they do not improve in short order, you might be best served seeking medical

attention if you can afford that.   Plating of any kind on metal's I believe is usually dangerous, not excluding lead paint from old objects.  Do NOT Burn/Weld That Stuff, clean out your forge with use of a proper respirator and research the Safety Hazards of what ever it is that  you are doing.

 

Safety is your responsibility.   Hands, Eyes, Ears, Lungs.

Zinc burns with a green flame and isn't nearly as toxic as most think. Zinc is a necessary nutrient you won't live long without. Calamine lotion and sun screen are both zinc oxide compounds as are most effective skin lotions. Read the ingredients on a multi vitamine bottle.

 

Breathing zinc oxide on the other hand is BAD and can cause serious damage, even death though a killing dose is a pretty heavy dose unless you're sensitive to it. Rub it on your hide, drink it in your water, eat it in your food or take it in a vitamine and it's GOOD for you.

 

Do NOT put galvy or otherwise zinc coated material in the forge, take a torch to it or weld it unless you have the correct breathing gear.

 

On another zinc, brazing rod if overheated burns with a green flame and makes bluish white lacy smoke. Brazing rod contains zinc and it's used every day by probably thousands of folk. It's only dangerous if you overheat it and breath the smoke. Zinc solders like a dream though.

 

Cadmium on the other hand is very toxic don't burn it don't grind it. AVOID bolts, nuts, washers, etc. that look like they're plated a gold looking color except to bolt stuff together. Cad is a cancer causing metal and is an accumulative toxin that has effects that just keep on giving.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

Well, I see that it isn't worth the risk. Thanks for the info everyone! Glad that I can find an active troll free community ^_^

If you have galvanized material you wish to forge, soak it in vinegar or lemon juice overnight.  The acids (acetic and citric, respectively) will eat through the zinc first, keeping it safely in solution.  However, this process does produce a little bit of hydrogen gas (read: flammable) and doesn't smell the greatest.  Use in a well-ventilated area.

then you have the Haz-Mat problem of disposal, which any responsible person needs to adddress.

Zinc, and cadmium plating can both be a gold color, so color alone isn't a way to tell. They can be unplated by basically reversing the process, but is it worth it?