I need to cut MDF indoors. I'm reading about masks/dangers because i've had a cough on and off for about 12 months so becoming a bit precious about my lungs.
The more I read the more I wonder why we are still using this stuff. What do others think?
It has its place. You just need to use adequate dust collection and respiratory protection when machining it.
(this is try for many woods and wood products. Even ply might be glued together with urea formaldehyde resin. Many hard woods are toxic by inhalation - some quite nasty)
A decent 3M Half Mask "30 day" respirator will give very good protection against dust and vapours.
I get an allergic reaction and a puffy face if I use power tools to cut melamine-faced chipboard, so good well-fitting eye protection is equally important.
Wear a full face mask with HEPA filters. Not expensive. If we followed your dictum we wouldn't be using feathers for cushions, cement fore houses...there is so much that generates dust.
PS go and see a quack and get tested for COPD. I have it, mildly, plus asthma, mildly, and a daily dose of preventative inhaler and a pill that gives me weird dream at night has pretty much got rid of the cough altogether. Absolutely I have a full face mask as well. Got it online I think.
I think you may have posted the wrong link. That is a half-face mask.
Because it is a lot easier to clean than the alternatives.
Apologies right link, wrong description. I wear glasses and the full face ones are difficult. Anyway my point is that as against a piece of gauze type mask - or those idiotic ones that we all wore in public - this mask truly works to keep dust out and there's charcoal in there too.
I went to the docs, he said I had a chronic sinus infection and 'post nasal drip'.
It's on and off, I can go ages with no bother then some mornings i'm coughing like I may cause an aneurysm.
Cool, they have them in Screwfix locally, i'll go and get one.
Might wear it in the supermarket too, to put people on edge a little :)
Well, I think its worse these days now most use power tools to work it. Surely masks and vacuum cleaners are the answer, since its hardly a danger when you have done. Brian
Much better in the supermarket to wear a plague doctor's bird beak mask
Yes, I was cutting a section out with a palm router, i'm going to use a handsaw and leave it a little proud then finish with the router, and get a mask.
I try to do any cutting outside, if I have to do it indoors I wear a mask and usually duct tape a vacuum cleaner to the saw/router/whatever.
IME, few people appear to notice, even when worn under one of these:
IME routing in particular can lob loads of very fine stuff into the air. I run a ceiling mounted workshop air cleaner, and usually use vacuum collection at the tool, but it is noticeable with some routing operations that a significant amount of dust still gets into the room[1]. So a proper respirator (rather than a dust mask) is well worth having.
(I have a small air quality meter in there as well - so I can tell at a glance if any operation I am doing is pushing my luck!)
[1] To do a really good job of collection, you need something that can produce a significant volume of air at a speed much higher than the tip velocity of the tool. That normally implies 3hp+ blowers and big cyclones with large exhaust HEPA filters.HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.