Material Safety Documentation Sheets ("MSDS")

by Albin Drzewianowski

There is a whole series of documents out there that tells you about any health and safety hazards associated with the materials we use. I recently bought some grinding wheels for my 4" angle grinder and there was an MSDS sheet in with the grinding wheels, telling me about the dangers possible from the dust created by using those particular grinding wheels.

An MSDS is designed to provide both workers and emergency personnel with the proper procedures for handling or working with a particular substance. MSDS's include information such as physical data (melting point, boiling point, flash point etc.), toxicity, health effects, first aid, reactivity, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill/leak procedures.

Of particular interest for us as blacksmiths are:

• The information on flash point - the lowest temperature at which a liquid can form an ignitable mixture in air near the surface of the liquid. The lower the flash point, the easier it is to ignite the material. For Example, Amoco 10W-40 motor oil has a flash point of 401 degrees F. Mazola Corn Oil has a flash point of 610 degrees F. Hence another reason to use vegetable oil for quenching instead of motor oil.
• What kind of protective equipment to wear.- for example, a particular dust mask does not protect against the fumes generated by spray paint.
• Proper disposal methods - can you just throw it out with the trash, or should you take special precautions in getting rid of it.

There is a MSDS sheet for the borax we use as flux. You can probably get a MSDS from the supplier for any commercial flux you buy. There are sheets for different solvents we may have occasion to use: paint thinner, turpentine, etc.

It can be a little scary reading these sheets, but you owe it to yourself to be aware of any toxic properties inhrent in the chemicals you use and safety precautions to follow when you use them.

This is a good website for MSDS: http://www.ilpi.com/msds/ It has a Frequently Asked Questions section, an explanation of how to read a MSDS and where to find them on the internet. You should also be able to get the appropriate MSDS from the manufacturer's customer service department.

For example, here is some of the info from the MSDS for BITUMOMOUS COAL:

Health Hazards Acute and Chronic
Eyes: irritation.
Inhalation: Inhalation of dust may cause nose, throat, & lung irritation, irreversible obstructive lung disease/coalworker's pneumoconiosis, coughing & shortness of breath.

Explanation Of Carcinogenicity
None

Medical Conditions Aggravated By Exposure
Respiratory disease

First Aid Information
Eyes: Flush w/ water.
Inhalation: remove to fresh air. If breathing has stopped, perform artificial respiration. Obtain medical attention in all cases.

As hobby blacksmiths we tend to use industrial type and industrial strength chemicals and materials in our home based blacksmith shops. We need to be aware of the health and safety issues associated with these materials. (If you really want to scare yourself, look up some of the common household chemicals and pesticides that we normally have around the house.)

-- RebStaup - 24 Jan 2008