Question about Glass Particals Inside blowtubes

[Robert Koch Glass]

First off i have great ventilation... The thing that scares me i used to have some bad habits that im just now breaking...

I used to slide frit down my tubes and then work it blowing ass normal, i quit doing this but how dangerous do you think this was, i know i only blow in the tube but after i thought about it for a while it scared the shit out of me...

Also i used to cut open the ends of my tubes instead of blow them open this too will leave little bits of glass in the end, then i would Work as normal but i would always be scared of small bits getting in my mouth...

i have recently quit doing these things and i think safety all the time...

Do you think i have done some damage already? if so how much...

I love glassblowing just don't want to die from it?

if any more tips about safety drop them on me im all ears?

Robert Koch Glass
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[Robert Koch Glass]

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up there it say blowing ass normal/ lol

its blowing as normal...
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[Robert Koch Glass]

Also i worked for a year without a vent hood, I always had a good fan just know hood back then..

I have a good hood and fan now... Think i could do major damage in 1 year... also i only blew glass like twice to three times a week back then...


Just Scared Peeps i need to chill out....................
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Robert Koch Glass

[Robert Koch Glass]

also i just looked at one of my tubes and i seen glass particals in it...

How dangerous is this.... if you always blow and not suck?
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sorr about the repost i really just wanted people to see this and maybee help me chill the $#^@ out

glass inside those blowtubes is freaking me out!

[The Goat]

damn man you can edit your post yo. i think you'll be ok though.

[Greymatter Glass]

um... was this double posted in the safty section the same way? learn to edit posts.

also check my reply in the safty section...

-Doug

[Robert Koch Glass]

as yall see im a little foggy sometimes


whooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

[JANKYglass]

i had friend die from those little glass particles

[Greymatter Glass]

uh huh.

[Chris Juedemann]

Sounds good to me... glass is organic, and that can only be good.
Think about playing around on the beach- you ingest lots of sand type stuff.

We all love the beach. Don't mess with the beach.

Chris

[skip]

I cough up those little glass particles all the time. I wouldn't worry about it. They are safe except I smelled a piece once after I coughed it up and it smelled really bad... like shit.

[Islandglass Man]

Paranoia Big Distroa


38 Years On The Torch Every Day Eating, Breathing And Caring Glass Around In Various Parts Of Me.

Just Watch Out For Heavy Metal Fuming, To Much Uv And Asbestos

Bear

[JDeMoss]

Robby your in deep shit man.

[JDeMoss]

It's just the nature of the beast. Just do everything you can to be as safe as possible from this point on. There is no sense in worrying about what you may have already done. Just worry about what you will prevent from happening in the future. There are blowers that have been around for a long time with no problems and then again there are some that have had problems. Just be as safe as you can. Sounds like you are thinking about it all now which is the most important thing.

I just use really really powerful fans that suck all of those glass particles and horribly dangerous fumes away from me and into a playground full of little kids nearby. Sometimes when they ask me what I'm doing, I tell them to watch through the fans (it's cooler that way) and then I proceed to work a large powder coated, gold fumed piece. Okay, not really.

[homer]

Cadmium frit is full of vitamin C and D. its good for you. no worries brah.....

[Julian]

Yeah... I throw that stuff in my vaporizer

[homer]

Try using any boro powder in a volcano for super bursts of energy. Maybe a sprig of mint for taste....

[senz1]

hey ... I used to put cigarette filters in my point handles ... Over killed ventalation makes me feel more comfy.. when i clean my bench i spray water on it before i brush off ... and so on.... the little things

[hookedonsilicate]

I read that glass particles if inhaled are in your lungs for life. what little left that may be.

[DaveJ]

I read that glass particles if inhaled are in your lungs for life. what little left that may be.

and i read that the mucus and shit in your air ways traps any small particles so the glass never really even gets to your lungs....i dont remeber where i read this so i could be totally wrong..

[Greymatter Glass]

Ok, disclaimer: I am not a doctor - but I've talked to a few about this.

anything but the smallest microscopic particles get trapped in upper airways far from the alveoli where oxygen and CO2 are exchanged. Some particles may become lodged in your lungs permanently, others may be expelled in mucus, I'm not really sure what the variables are on that.

The real hazard of working around glass particulates is the free silica. Free silica is comprised of the smallest bits of glass, pure silica crystals. Inorganic and razor sharp, they're also small enough to get to the alveoli in the lungs where they can damage and scar the lung tissue responsible for the actual exchangeing of oxygen into the blood.

In it's benign (non-cancerous) form you can get Silicosis, scaring of the lung tisssue that leads to decreased lung function and suceptability to infections and air-borne toxins.

The nasty one is called mesothelioma, mostly caused by exsposure to asbestos, which functions similarlly to silica once in the lungs but is more damaging. This is the one you hear lawsuits about. I don't know of any cases of silicosis turning into mesothelioma, but it takes 20-50 years to develope, so who knows.

Another consideration is what colorants are used in the glass if you inhaled some colored powder. In frit form almost all the colorant is in matrix with the glass, but with powders it's not uncommon to see some active oxides present absent any silica / crystal matirx.

The last real danger would be if you're alergic to a component of the glass you inhale. The bodies natural acids and defenses will eventually start to break down ever borosilicate, releasing large amounts of Aluminum, boron, sodium, and other goodies into your blood over a prolonged period of time.... not sure how much a concern that would be unless you inhaled a LOT of glass.

anyways that's what's I've heard - feel free to correct or contribute :)

-Doug