rash from working with steel

[panzertank27]

well just wanna know if anybody else is alergic to steel dust. i broke out in a huge rash and my doc said its probably from sanding my leafspring knife. as this is a brand new hobby im quite xxxxxx, anyhow im not giving up my doc (who also has made his own knives)said to just where gloves all the time and plastic on my sleeves and a mask. wish me luck goona try as soon as this rash goes away (my knife is calling to me, finish me finish me wooooo)

[Dave Leppo]

I get a rash on my arms when using the bench grinder. It is from the hot sparks hitting my arms. It does not hurt at the time, but later, in the shower, it gets to me. Goes away in a day.

[ptree]

Gentlemen, Metal fines, such as from fine grinding and sanding will get into the pores of your skin and cause dermatitis. This can happen from both dry and coolant. Tiny fines are Reactive and cause skin irriation as well. The smaller than 10 micrometer fines are the worst.
Wear protective equipment to prevent skin contact and the dermatitis that results.After washing carefully, use a good lotion and you should not have a reoccurance.

Ptree the industrial safety guy

[johnptc]

i have lots of problems with bronze dust :(

[dablacksmith]

also remember that the dust from handle material can be bad... ive seen people have a bad reaction to some of the more exotic wood dust so be careful!

[panzertank27]

thanks for all the info guys, my rash is almost gone (lots of antihistamine) i did some research on the net and it could have been from something in the steel like chromium or nickel both very toxic. also im a carpenter and i know im allergic to walnut and cherry wood which sucks because they are such beautiful wood. ill take full precautions when i get back to work on my knife (gloves, longsleeves taped to gloves , mask,etc...)

[Messerist]

Beware of some of the African hardwoods. Pink Ivory and Ebony are two that come to mind. The dust from sanding can be very irritating to some. Several years ago there was an article in Blade Magazine that listed the hardwoods that were irritants or worse. I'll see if I can find the article and post a more detailed list. :o

Edited March 12, 2009 by Messerist

[johnptc]

panzertank27 said:

thanks for all the info guys, my rash is almost gone (lots of antihistamine)

i try to plan my schedule to take a cool shower when working with irritating materials.... for me its bronze dust and some woods

 

[ctraugh2005]

I am not sure if this will work but it seams like the same concept. I work with fiberglass insulation and when I take a shower I make it a cool one. If you take a normal hot shower your pores open up and let the fiberglass get in. If you take a cool shower then your pores stay closed more and you can wash the impurities away. It sounds like the same idea with the metal dust. Also long sleves should help.

[ThomasPowers]

When I had to work with rockwool I used to stop by a local waterfall and get an impressive cold shower on the way home...it really helped.

[wyvern]

corn starch applied before doing any work gives the barber affect with hair or dust and in shops where I've worked people have used spray starch for spark protection on the outside of their clothes and I've read an article on coal smoke residue turning to sulfuric acid when sweat or water comes in contact with it causing a rash on the skin

[meinhoutexas]

worked for a few years as a welder yes the spray starch works some. and if you think of the smoke out of a coal fired boiler hits the clouds makes weak acid. Prob. best to stay out of the heavy smoke. Just my 2 cents worth

[Ed Tipton]

I have had an acute allergic reaction to nickel. It first started with a watchband and then propagated to other areas. It started as an INTENSE ITCHING, and no amount of scratching would get to the bottom of that itch! The Doc told me that he knew of no cure and that his suggestion was to avoid prolonged contact with anything having a high nickel content. Oddly enough, this is not that uncommon of an allergy, and is quite common with people who do a lot of work with metals. There are some anti-itching compounds available that eventually did help, but my reaction was pretty severe, and it took quite a long time before the creams and ointments took effect. It only gets worse if left untreated.

[TimB]

I made me a leather watch band with brass rivets. The itching and irritation right where the rivets touched my wrist made me stop wearing it. Good to know ahead of time that I best watch out when I start working brass, I hadn't put that together yet, thanks for the heads up.

My brother used to dust his arms and such with Johnsons baby powder when he worked at San Diego marinas installing electronic do-dads in the fiberglass boat hulls. This kept the itching down from the fiberglass dust from drilling into it. I wonder if it would help with metal dust?

Edited April 3, 2009 by TimB

[j.w.s.]

I'm afraid it could be serious. You're body has a severe dermatitis. I would suggest never working metal again. To help during the long withdrawal process, please send all shop equipment, along with stock both new and partially worked, so it can be properly disposed and never leach its evil upon the arms of another man. Address to follow.

Actually, nickel has been a bane to mankind for many centuries. When discovered in Germany in medieval times, it's ore resembled copper ore, however no copper was able to be extracted. It's name comes from German etymology for satan's or "old nick's", and from kupfernickel, or "old nick's copper", because of it not yielding copper and possibly due to the fact that it can cause contact dermatitis in sensitive individuals.

Chromium can cause the same, however its probably unlikely possible from the steel. It has been used for tanning leather, paint and anti-corrosive products though.

Unfortunately there's so many things in all of our shops that we could have a reaction to but as long as we keep a level head, wear gloves when possible, eye protection, ventilators, dust masks, long sleeves, etc. we can minimize the problems. A thin application of plain 1% hydrocortisone cream available OTC can be used prior to handling something that normally gives you a reaction and will provide a barrier between it and your skin. Also, keep dry, water actually allows some ions to be absorbed into the first few layers of skin actually causing the reaction because your body thinks it's a foreign germ. Too bad we often don't think about it until it has already happened. Chalk it up to another lesson learned. :)

[PCL]

I stumbled on this site after trying to figure out the cause of a rash, with raised red spots, that seemed to be developing wherever the cuffs and collars of my clothes met my skin. Obviously, there was reason to suspect my laundry, but I've always washed everything in hot water with not detergent (I only use soap on spots), so normally clothes don't bother me. Anyway, it turns out that I had to cut a fairly large box wrench in half with a hacksaw last week and the clothes that I was wearing all went into the wash at once. I can only guess that the dust that got into my jeans migrated into everything else; it was an awkward job, so I was constantly changing positions to avoid muscle cramps. I can only hope that the dust will work its way out of everything and the rash goes away. Meanwhile, aloe hand sanitizer seem to reduce it, as does Ben Gay; even rubbing alcohol seems to help. Thanks for all the information.

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

21 minutes ago, PCL said:

Thanks for all the information.

Welcome to IFI... here is a thread that will help you get the best out of the forum. READ THIS FIRST

When working with anything that may cause dermatitis, I use a barrier cream before handling . The brand recommended by my dermatologist is Cavilon 3355 1.3% Dimethicone skin protectant, available over the counter.