How many of you.....

[Adirondack]

How many of you wear a breather mask?
The first time I was out last fall cutting wood I had a snout full of crap after cutting some old Oak. I figured we take all this care to have a good saw filter and complain if the filter is not top quality. I can always buy a new saw if stuff gets in the carb and distroys the saw but a new set of lungs is kinda expensive.
So why not wear a good quality breather mask? My mask has a harness and two big filters on either side. Keeps everything out. It is great but I look like some ailien from Star Wars. Chaps, Helmet/shield with ear protection, gloves and a heavy duty breather mask. Ya my friends have given me a hard time with all this safety stuff but it is worth it.

 

[husky455rancher]

i like the smell of wood i welcome it lol. i used to be a machinist in a plastic injection molding shop. theres very things that smell bad enough to bother me. i do wear a mask of face shield at work when i grind aluminum. which is most everyday.

 

[GASoline71]

I've been eatin' saw chips, and blowin' sawdust out of my nose for years... Why stop now?



Gary

 

[MS460WOODCHUCK]

I love the smell of wood too, but today I was cutting some seasoned hardwood and wished that I had a mask with me! I've thought of it before too.

 

[Cedarkerf]

Most wood I cut comes out chips. Occasional dry dust stuff but I dont worry about it.

 

[Adirondack]

I just like to not have to blow crap out of my nose. When I am finished I have the same clean feeling in my lungs. Besides the wood has molds and bacteria and other crap your lungs have to try to get rid of. Lungs are very delecate tissue. I love the smell of wood also. that is why I take my mask off as soon as I am done. I probably am overkill though. I even wear ear protection when running a shop vac and lawn tractors.

 

[TreePointer]

I put the mesh down on the forestry helmet to keep the chips out of my face and safety glasses keep the finer stuff out of my eyes. I haven't worn a mask when cutting, but I do wear one during dusty tasks: brush hogging in the fall, sweeping out the barn, various home repairs like painting and handling fiberglass insulation.

Like you, I also wear hearing protection with just about all power equipment, even when pushing the ol' LawnBoy.

 

[mikefunaro]

I cannot imagine wearing a particle respirator (the heavy duty type you describe) in the heat of the summer while cutting. A helmet is hot enough; however, the respirators just get to be too much. It's hard to bear and deal with them even while painting/sanding old paint.

I often wear a cheap disposable dust mask when leaf blowing in the fall, because otherwise I will wind up with soot in my nose. However, especially in green wood, since the chain is throwing mostly chips rather than a fine dust, it is not so tempting to wear a respirator. Also, the face shield on my peltor helmet sits quite close to my face--I feel as though it would interfere with a dust mask of any sort, unless I got a flat surgical style one...though I believe those offer limited particulate filtration.

 

[Adirondack]

I cannot imagine wearing a particle respirator (the heavy duty type you describe) in the heat of the summer while cutting. A helmet is hot enough; however, the respirators just get to be too much. It's hard to bear and deal with them even while painting/sanding old paint.

Yes I agree it would be a bit hot to wear one in the summer. I do not cut much if at all in the summer. Once the mosquito season around here gets going I back off. Most of the wood I have been cutting lately has been dead oak trees that have been down for a few years. The big chips usually fly but so does the moss and crap in the bark. It probably is overkill.

 

[Mike Van]

Most every dust mask I've ever worn has caused fogging up of saftey glasses. With a sharp chain, chips just don't bother the way dry lumber or sanding dust does.

 

[cat 793]

used to wear the disposable ones in the summer helped out with the hayfever. annoyed the crap out of me though:greenchainsaw:

 

[alderman]

I work in the wood yard at a paper mill. Lots of wood dust. When it gets bad we wear a paper filter mask. I'm not bothered by the dust but some of the guys with allergies really suffer.

I don't often get the chance to cut dry wood out here in the rain forest so dust isn't that much of an issue. I just put those big honking filters on the Shindaiwas because the look so cool!!

 

[tatra805]

oh please....


doesnt anyone agree anymore that it would be a waste to die healthy????





i'll take sawdust, funghi, hell even airborn manure above a big city walk anyday.

Yes hardwood sawdust causes nose-bone cancer and i am sure that horse manure is full of #### but take your milkbottle or juicecan and read the small print, guess it is any better???????

been there with the disposable ones in high-hay fever saison and it helped a bit when feeding our sheep.

no objection possible against darth-vader holding a chainsaw

 

[stihl sawing]

Man you ain't worked the saw hard enough untill you blow you're nose at the end of the day and it's black. Probably should wear one but i don't.

 

[Bounty Hunter]

Pretty much all the wood we get is Pine. Cutting Pine is easy and fast...with a sharp chain it makes lots of chips (unless you rip a round and make a big 'ol hog pile of noodles). Almost no dust, it's rained enough that the trees and logs are clean and not covered with dust and dirt...so we never think about masks.
There was this load of wood we got from a Mexican tree once though...I think it was called "Perota" wood. It was dark Mahogany color and soft like a softwood, but cutting it would gag a horse...everyone would start coughing and gagging every time a cut was made. The info on the internet classified the wood as an "Irritant", which is better than "Toxic", but we all had to wear masks cutting up that stuff...much worse than Pi$$ Fir...

 

[SURDO]

I think someone would smack me in the the mouth with their tin lid if showed up on the landing with a breather mask on

 

[Justsaws]

The mask gets in the way of the cigarettes.

If I am using fine particulate producing wood working tools or milling than I wear a mask. Allergies s!!!.

First it was Pine then the freaking Blonde Wood ply. That crap is evil, evil, evil.

 

[beeker]

When using my ms361 I always wear a dust mask. It keeps the sawdust out of my teeth, because I am always smiling.

 

[Blazin]

Mask...WTF?!?!?! Your username is Adirondack you should have plenty of fresh air... maybe the transplant to cheese head country foiled ya

Nothing more rewarding than diggin out the black boogs in the shower after a day of ringin the saw. LOL!