[DanW]

Hey guys,

just wondering if it's possible/likely to get UV burns from arc light coming through the bottom of the helmet?

every now and then after a long session i tend to feel a little raw/burnt around the face, particularly under the eyebrows, under the eyes themselves and under the bottom lip. always wear the helmet and theres nobody else welding around me, wear a collared shirt etc.

Does anyone think it's likely to be arc burn or more likely to just be irritated/sensitive skin from sweating buckets and wiping my face often (been a very hot summer lately with temps up to 35 deg and high humidity here in Australia)

I do notice the inside of the helmet lights up slightly while i'm welding and not sure what i could do to block out any gaps, maybe attach some scrap leather to the bottom so it hangs down further?

all comments appreciated

thanks
Dan

[sschefer]

I think Tillman makes a leather piece that fits on the bottom of the helmet. As a side note, I have a Home Depot version of a Lincoln Helmet that does to me exactly what yours is doing. I changed to a Miller Elite and the problem has disappeared completely. I suspected that the Lincoln wasn't fast enough at first but I've done some short look-away tack welds without a helmet and I didn't burn so I think it's just a bad design.

[kermdawg]

Ive worked fitting/firewatching for a welder for 8 hours a day for about 3 months, I never had any kinda protection cept my shirt and a hardhat, and I never got any kinda arc burn at all. And I was about 3 feet away from him the whole time (up on a scissor lift)

[DanW]

thanks for the replies,

i've got a scrap bit of leather and fixed it to the bottom of the helmet, so it hangs down and makes kinda a bib. will road test tonight and see if the inside of the helmet is still getting lit up

kerm i burn pretty easily in the sun and the last thing i wanna do is continually expose my face to UV, could do without skin cancer lol

[kermdawg]

Are you tiggin or weldin some other process? I just read an article about this somewhere recently and It reitereted what they taught me in tig class-Tig emits a hell of alot more UV light than any other process. So that comment I made about bein next to a stick welder for 8 hours a day for months on end prolly wouldnt have worked if he was tiggin. Just sayin

[Otto Nobedder]

Any time I expect a lot of UV on my skin (MIG tacking, no shield, for example), I apply the SPF 50. Actually, I can weld MIG, Stick, and TIG in short sleeves for a ten-hour day like this. (Gotta re-apply every few hours.)

If you suspect arc burn, try a good quality high-SPF sunblock for a while. If the problem stops, your hood is leaking or you have a slow auto-lens. If not, it's the buckets of sweat.

BTW, I use the "No-Ad" brand Wal-Mart carries, because it's relatively inexpensive for SPF 45 or 50. However, it tends to stain your clothing orange.

Steve

[DanW]

thanks for the responses,

i have since fitted some scrap leather around the bottom of my helmet and have found it has stopped the problem. i'm no longer seeing the light flashing inside the helmet from up under the helmet and no more raw feeling, also find i have a clearer view of whats going on without the background light bouncing around inside the helmet anymore

good tip with the sunscreen otto, probably a good idea to apply some anyway esp around the back of the neck with any stray UV light reflecting around the room

cheers
Dan

[kermdawg]

One more thing I was told when I started welding-Always button that top button of your welding jacket/shirt. Same thing your talkin about usually happens to guys that dont like to button that top button

[Otto Nobedder]

To further emphasize the value of sunblock, I should have mentioned that in the mid '90s I built and repaired boat docks on Lake of the Ozarks, MO. I would sometime weld 6013 and 7018 all day while wearing only cut-off jeans, tennis shoes, gloves, and hood. I was never burned by the sun, or arc rays.

That was a fun job. It didn't pay much, but I was much younger then. My work partner and I were in our early twenties, "buff", tanned, with long black hair. The ladies would sometimes anchor just off our job and watch us!

The older I get, the better I was.

Steve

[anthonyfawley]

Also the old tacking up with your eyes closed with no hood trick can be hell on the eyelids and forehead (mig). cant wear my hat for a couple days and blinking sucks.

[sschefer]

Also the old tacking up with your eyes closed with no hood trick can be hell on the eyelids and forehead (mig). cant wear my hat for a couple days and blinking sucks.

I agree, it's not the best thing to do but some of the stuff I'm welding on is so tight on space that I cant get in there with my helmet on so I do what I have to do to get it tacked up.

[anthonyfawley]

hows the boat coming steve??

[Otto Nobedder]

I once performed a TIG weld in a space so confined I had to use 2-sided tape to stick a #10 2X4 lens directly to my safety glasses, and slather on the sunblock (all over my exposed skin, as I was surrounded by stainless. My head would barely fit. There was no way to get even a hand-held shield in there with my head and arms. I don't recommend this, but you do what you have to to get the job done, and it shows again the value of a good sunblock.

I still got a little flashburn on my eyes--the only thing I couldn't put sunblock on.

Steve