Recently have become aware of some rather hazardous chemicals (PVC glue).

My ponderings of today are... what kind of problems (such as skin irritations, etc.) have you as electricians experienced when handling these chemicals?

And what are some things the DIY'ers need to know about these things.

well my fingers get stuck together...
seriously,
having smelled the plumbers from outside the building while they are working inside has had me wonder, they don't seem to mind, and suffer no apparent ill effects.

Now that you've got me worried i'll have to read the can.....

You know, when you have to turn your head so you don't smell the solvent as strong, that usually should tell you something. 'Course, we did some work by a feeder hog confinement building, and the glue didn't seem near so bad that day.

We all wear cheap leather gloves to try to keep the solvent off our hands, and open a window if we can, if we're inside.

We (& maybe all you guys, too) are required to keep Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) on all the chemicals that we use. We have them in every truck, in each gangbox, and in the office.
If you need to get them, they're available at http://msds.pdc.cornell.edu/msdssrch.asp
PVC cement is one of the nastier ones. I once had a reaction to a couple of weeks' exposure to sulfur based thread cutting oil.



[This message has been edited by electure (edited 10-25-2001).]

I'm going to make a long story short...

Three times in the last two weeks I have broken out in hives over my legs, back, buttocks and groin areas, as well as my arms, belly and crown of my head. The first time was pretty severe, and last night was even worse. It "attacks" me in my sleep, feels like a million mosquito bites... makes me want to peel my skin off...

ER doesn't want me unless my toungue swells up...

The poison control center says it's unlikely to have been caused by PVC glue, even though its the only correalation I can think of...

My hands don't get irritated at all... just tender places.

I guess it's just stress...

Cold showers and Benedryl seem to be the best "cure"...

Anybody ever have this problem?

I know... unbelievable...

Sparky,have you been working with wood poles lately?I had similar problems and it was the
creosote or whatever they use to treat the new poles

Virgil,

You can check this site too for MSDS and they have a Safety Links section also that's worth checking out.
http://www.hazard.com/

Good Luck,

Bill

Virgil,
I think you need a vacation there....you seem to have had the radish lately.
hmmmm.....
If your toungue swells up how will you be able to tell the ER about the glue?

The doc says it's very likely to be stress related...

Spent $50 on mineral and vitamin supplements...

Who me? Not eating right?

No more chili dogs...

More flax and 0live oils, veggies and fruits...

fedup: I did install straps on the risers (sweep 90's) on the poles where the primary had to cross the road... No wait, that was the day after (yesterday)... Doesn't correalate with the other times...

Bill & Scott,
I checked the MSDS's along with the doc at the poison control centers # on the carlon PVC solvent can. Really nice guy, wants to do a follow-up in a few days after I talk to my local doc.

Local doc (tree-hugger, hippie type with roots and herbs) suggested the mineral and vitamin supplements with some chinese herbs.. "jade" something... Tastes terrible...

Figured, what the heck, nothing else is working...

And I need to "control" my reaction to stress... (How do I do that? become "indifferent"?)

[This message has been edited by sparky66wv (edited 10-26-2001).]

hmmm,
contracting vs. stress....
they DO go hand in hand.

Stress is taught ,along with other more obvious maladies like lack of exercise and diets of fried pork rinds, in public level CPR as a killer. ( or at least it was in the old cric..)

I don't think there's a contractor out there, at least with a consience, that has'nt dealt with job related stress.

Lately i have been focused (contractually)on how to aviod stressful situations, or at least turn them into a $$$$ ( pays for the rolaids..)

But there are to many variables to ever manage this effectively.

That's why many of my meat birds had names before they got freezer detail ( ok, so i had a few brews....)

I suppose everyone has a means to 'vent' ?

Virgil,
I had a rash break out a few times on my forehead. The doctor diagnosed it as stress related. Your "Birkenstock Doc" is probably doing you a better turn with his hippie remedies. Mine prescribed tranquilizers. I took one, and then threw the rest in the trash after I found out how they made me feel. Yup, Virgil, you're really a candidate for stress. Try to take it easier, please.

Thanks, Scott. Believe me, this has been a big wake-up call for me... I'm not *invincible* anymore...

sparky66;
You are so right, but in keeping with this thread, another bad one is tearing down old walls and ceilings, the junk that comes down with that ceiling. I got into one that I didnt have a mask on when I tore it down, I didnt get a rash but a nosebleed that wouldnt stop. this didnt start that day but two days later in the middle of the night, finally wound up in the hospitol to get packed and that put me out of action for about two weeks.
I love this job but caution is the watch word, especially with some of the substances we are exposed to or run into on a daily basis.