Welding Safety Tips

These are only Ten of the many many welding mistakes that can be fatal. I use a bit of coarse language here in an attempt to keep it fun and hopefully you will actually pay attention. Unfortunately welding safety to most of us men is kind of like the instruction manual that comes with a VCR. It just gets ignored until there is a problem.

1. Hauling oxygen and acetylene cylinders in your trunk. A little leak here,,, a little leak there… a static spark…boom!! Your Ass is Killed! This goes for truck tool boxes also. Throwing a set of pony bottles in your truck tool box can turn into a bomb and…you guessed it …………can Kill your Ass!

2. Moving high pressure cylinders with no protective cap. The cylinder falls…the valve gets knocked off…2500 psi escapes out of a hole the size of a nickel and you have a missile….Oops! Your Ass or someone else’s Ass just got Killed!!

3. Making oxygen and acetylene balloon bombs. A little fuel gas like acetylene…a little oxygen…mixed together in a balloon so that you can impress the neighbors on July 4th…a static spark between the 5 balloons you so hid so cleverly in a plastic garbage bag…boom!! Your ASS is Killed!

4. Weldinginside a tank or any enclosed area with Mig or Tig. Both use Argon. Argon is an inert, colorless, odorless gas that is about twice as heavy as air. It is almost like an invisible liquid the way it can fill up an unventilated room. No air, no life. Breathing Air with no oxygen in it will kill Your Ass. In fact it will often kill 2 Asses. You and your working partner who comes to try to rescue Your ASS.

5. Welding in Water Can Kill Your Ass. Don’t get a mental picture of standing in a bucket of water. I am more thinking of lying underneath a pipe making a weld with a puddle of water on the concrete that you didn’t quite get dried up. Granted welding current is low voltage and high amperage but it can still kill your Ass.

6. Welding without a fire watch when there is stuff around you that can catch on fire. Welding requires skill. Skill requires focus and attention. Put that together with the fact that you’re wearing a welding helmet and can’t see what might be catching on fire and you have a situation that could definitely Kill your Ass.

7. Welding a gas tank or any container that held something flammable. Special precautions can be taken that can actually make it pretty safe (like washing the tank with soap and water and then purging with argon) but if you are not thorough enough or forget something or don’t purge well enough……You guessed it…It can totally Kill your ASS.

8. Blowing off your clothes with oxygen from a cutting torch can turn you into a roman candle and you guessed it…Can Kill Your Ass.!

9. Inflating a tire with Oxygen is a really bad idea and can be a lot worse than having a under inflated or flat tire. Why? I am glad you asked. Because it can explode and Kill your Ass!

10. Keeping a Bic Lighter in your shirt pocket while welding is like playing Russian roulette. One little spark and you get to experience what its like to have an eighth of a stick of dynamite explode a few inches from your heart. Uh...I mean...I am no Doctor... but I am pretty sure this could Kill your ASS too?