When welding materials, there are a number of hazards that the welder is exposed to that make personal protective equipment (PPE) essential.
In fact, the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act require all employers to “maintain equipment in good condition and provide information, instruction and supervision to workers to protect their health and safety”.
Welding comes with hazards such as exposure to metal fumes and UV radiation, as well as the risk of injuries such as broken toes (from dropping items), burns, shock and cuts. That’s why safety supplies and safety equipment are so essential when welding.
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the best way for welders to stay safe on the job is to wear head-to-toe protection and use welding safety equipment.
The most important welding safety equipment includes:
Welding helmets and eye protection
Welding gloves
Welding respirator
Ear muffs or plugs
Heat resistant welder’s jacket and welding pants
Welding work boots
In this blog, we have created a quick and easy checklist to ensure you have all of the safety gear you need to prevent possible injury.
Welding helmets and eye protection
When welding it’s important to shield your face, eyes and neck from potential hazards. A welding helmet is crucial for protecting welders against radiation, flying particles, sparks, intense light and chemical burns.
There are a number of different welding helmets that can be used, depending on the type of welding that you are doing. Choosing a welding helmet with the right “lens shade number” is important, as this indicates the amount of light radiation that can pass through the helmet’s filter.
“The various types of eye protection are broken down into classes in the CSA standard Z94.3-15 "Eye and face protectors”. Each class is designed for a specific use. Eye and face protectors should have distinctive markings to identify the manufacturer and their class. Classifications of common protectors for welding operations are listed below:
Class 2C – direct / non-ventilated goggles with non-ionizing radiation protection
Classes 3 and 4 – welding helmets and hand shields
Class 6B – face shields for non-ionizing radiation protection
Class 7B – respirator facepiece for non-ionizing radiation protection
The following operations require full face protection by using either a welding helmet or a hand shield:
arc welding,
plasma arc cutting, gouging or welding, and
air carbon arc cutting.
For gas cutting, welding, or brazing, the intensity of the light is much less than from arc welding, cutting or gouging processes. Lighter shade filter lenses can be used with goggles in place of a helmet.”
Goggle or safety glasses are also typically worn under a helmet in most cases to offer the welder additional eye protection. We can help you identify the right eye protection filters for your work.
Welding gloves
Welding is a tactile job, and your hands are the most important tools you will use. It’s crucial that you protect your hands with the correct gloves specifically made for the type of welding that you are doing.
Welding gloves come in a range of materials, from leather, canvas or metal mesh, with a range of different dexterity levels that they offer. Speak with an expert welding safety supplier, such as Simcoe Gases, to find the best style of glove for the type of welding you are doing.
Welding respirator
The process of welding emits a range of fumes. It’s important for your long-term safety that you don’t breath those fumes into your lungs. The use of a respirator will help protect against fumes and oxides that are created, or released, as a result of the welding process.
Ear muffs or plugs
Ear protection is important for a number of reasons, not only to protect your hearing but also to keep you safe from debris or sparks that fly off during the welding process. Full-cover ear protection such as ear muffs, or alternatively, ear plugs, are a good way to protect your ears from injury.
Heat resistant welder’s jacket and welding pants
While welding, there will be heat and sparks that could result in injury to exposed skin. Fire and flame resistant clothing will protect the welder against heat, fire, burns and radiation. A welding jacket is an important component of and welding safety gear list, and could be either made from leather or a fire-resistant cotton with leather sleeves.
Welding pants are also important. Fire-resistant welding pants will protect your clothing from lighting on fire. The most important thing to look for when buying fire-resistant welding pants is to find a pair that have no cuff at the end of the leg hole - as this makes it more likely that burning debris will get caught on them.
The Canadian Centre of Occupational Health & Safety recommends..
Wear clothing made from heavyweight, tightly woven, 100% wool or cotton to protect from UV radiation, hot metal, sparks and open flames. Flame retardant treatments become less effective with repeated laundering.
Keep clothing clean and free of oils, greases and combustible contaminants.
Wear long-sleeved shirts with buttoned cuffs and a collar to protect the neck. Dark colours prevent light reflection.
Tape shirt pockets closed to avoid collecting sparks or hot metal or keep them covered with flaps.
Pant legs must not have cuffs and must cover the tops of the boots. Cuffs can collect sparks.
Repair all frayed edges, tears or holes in clothing.
Wear high top boots fully laced to prevent sparks from entering into the boots.
Welding work boots
Last but not least, it’s important to wear the right pair of welding work boots. Welding boots will protect against electric shock, heat, burns and the potential of fire. Any good welding work boots should have the following requirements:
Rubber soles
Steel plate above the sole
Cover past the ankle
Flame retardant
Sturdy, preferable made of a material such as leather
Slip-resistant
Need any of these items? Simcoe Gases is here to help!
If you’re looking for welding safety equipment, then you have come to the right place.
Simcoe Gases is a leading provider of industrial compressed gas products and welding safety equipment in Central Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), but were also independently owned.
That means we have the perfect mix of being able to source from only the best safety equipment companies for the most reliable equipment and gear, combined with our passion for our clients success and the time we take to ensure our customers have the exact equipment to achieve their goals.
No matter what welding safety gear you need, we can source it. From head, eye and face protection equipment to face shields, specialist laser eyewear, hard hats, welding helmets and accessories - we can source it for you!
We even have a range of safety equipment with a variety of designs, from plain black, camo, to skulls or flames. Whatever your welding requirements are, we are here to help you. Get in touch with us today to find out more.