Alt-BEAM Archive
Message #00002
To: "BEAM" beam@corp.sgi.com, "Tom Mairs" tmairs@aasland.com
From: "Dan Larson" dlarson@citilink.com
Date: Thu, 28 Jan 99 15:26:41 +0600
Subject: [alt-beam] Re: Flux smoke
On Thu, 28 Jan 1999 08:43:00 -0800, Tom Mairs wrote:
>This is scary - I can't believe you are taking lead poisoning this callously.
I am taking the fear of *soldering* callously, not lead poisoning...
> As someone who used to live very near a lead smelter, I can tell you it is a
>very serious matter. I also have family working in and around the smelter who
>can testify to the toxic effects it can have. Of course, you may say that
>living beside a lead smelter is not the same, but it is.
Having a hot soldering iron on your desk is no where near the scale
of expsoure to lead as having a lead smelter in your back yard!
Even I wouldn't want to live next to one! Smelting lead and melting
small amounts of solder are on drastically different scales,
not to mention that smelting lead must use much higher temperatures
than soldering.
I do not debate that lead is toxic, only how much lead you get from
soldering, which I don't believe is very much at all. It does not seem
reasonable to think one is subject to lead poisoning by merely soldering.
>
>If you work in the electronics industry as many of us do, and you handle
>tin/lead solder everyday without taking some simple precautions, your
>blood-lead concentrations may
>be through the roof and you wouldn't even know it until it was too late.
I do work in the electronics industry, but I don't handle solder every day.
I *do* take precautions, like washing my hands and cleaning up my work area,
but I sure don't think any lead is vaporized by a 35 watt soldering iron
used on an occasional basis.
>
>The lead smelter in this town has been the economic mainstay there for nearly a
>century and the extremely high incidence of birth defects, early death, fish
>deformation, cancer, and other nasty things are a case study in lead poisoning.
>
I don't doubt this at all.
>A little solder smoke may not seem to be much, and comparing it to smoking
>cigarettes is very appropriate. Most studies show that cigarette smoking is
>dangerous on a cellular level due to the extra crap in the tobacco, like LEAD
>and ARSENIC . Unlike many components of the smoke (solder, or cigarette) that
>will dissipate, the lead stays in your body forever and accumulates over time
>to form toxic concentrations in your blood stream.
>
You probably get more lead in your drinking water over a life time than
an occasional soldering session.
>This is a cumulative thing and it is very serious for anyone who works with
>solder on a daily basis. I would hate to see anyone blow this off as paranoia,
>or FUD.
The toxic effects of lead I do not consider FUD, but the levels of lead
one is exposed to when soldering I *do*. I just don't want to see kids afraid
of using solder.
If I had my head over a hot soldering iron all day long I certainly
would take some extra steps to ventilate. It couldn't hurt and most likely
will help, but I sure don't think it is worth the worry for occasional use.
>
>
>Tom Mairs
>Aasland Technologies
>
>Tmairs@aasland.com
>http://www.aasland.com
>NETWORKS - COMPUTERS - ROBOTICS - CONTROLLERS - INTEGRATION
>HARDWARE - SOFTWARE - DESIGN - SERVICE - SALES - CONSULTING
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Justin [SMTP:jaf60@student.canterbury.ac.nz]
>Sent: Thursday, January 28, 1999 4:29 AM
>To: beam@corp.sgi.com
>Subject: Re: Flux smoke
>
>> I refuse to worry about it until someone shows me some good research
>> using good scientific method.
>
><< SNIP >>
>
>
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