sandblasting?

[badmarx]

ok, so iv bought a 10gallon hobby sandblaster that has a second nozzel for soda. did a little soda blasting and it works! figured it might not since its a cheap cheap thing. the thing is iv nowhere to get sand for the fecking thing so i got some play sand from smiths.

im wondering if after a bit of a cook in the oven and some grading with the lil womans kitchen 'tools' if this would do the job? the soda is working fine on the fairly clean stuff just need to cut into some rust as well so sand is the only available thing around here.

 

[rtbcomp]

No, don't use sand it's illegal in the UK because of the risk of silicosis and not all that effective, even so some people still use kiln dried sand.

By the time you've messed around drying and sieving you would have been better off getting some proper blasting media such as J-Blast Supafine.

 

[Wedg1e]

Found these people in Bray, Co. Wicklow... they stock various abrasive media. Sorry, dunno where you are in relation to them!

http://www.campbellmachinery.ie/

Edit: ah feck, I see where you are now... not exactly just down the road from Dublin!

 

[badmarx]

no its a bit of a drive but thanks for the link. at least its in the same country. i know the use of sand is not the best and there is that issue of been illegal. but i really dont see the local law calling to my door. ha they wouldnt even know what i was doing. my options are limited as cant gett any locally and its not looking like getting some posted is affordable unless i order enough to go into business

 

[fully floating]

Most builders merchants stock a few bags of it I get mine in my local heiton buckley think its called c45

 

[brightspark]

Most builders merchants stock a few bags of it I get mine in my local heiton buckley think its called c45

its kiln dried block paving sand

 

[the artfull-codger]

sand is ONLY illegal in industry, you can use it at home & they can't do anything about it,of course observe usual precautions against silicosis by using a decent cabinet etc, as brightspark says use kiln dried sand,it's not as aggresive as some grits but I've been using it for years,I used to use silver sand but it's not available now to my knowlege,I used it for designs on glass as well as preparing metals for painting.

slan go fol

 

[rtbcomp]

sand is ONLY illegal in industry,.......

Be that as maybe, but if a neighbour complained and the enironmental health guys came round they could prosecute you, it's still dangerous!

Actually it is legal in some instances such as bridges, but not for use inside premises or on houses in a residential setting. That's what the HSE bloke said when he came to have a look at my gritblasting business.

 

[malcolm]

They are funny old rules at first glance aren't they. Now the risks are known industry would likely provide some appropriate protection (air fed masks plus extraction and the like).

But at home if we are going to economise on blasting materials then we'll likely economise on PPE too.

The rules actually makes sense - when working for someone else you do need to rely on them for safety and not be made to do something that's going to cause you health trouble. At home it's down to personal responsibility rather than laws and I encourage that completely. Do what ever you like at your own risk so long as it doesn't harm others. We're all capaple of googling the HSE website.

 

[rtbcomp]

That's it in a nutshell Malc, with emphasis on so long as it doesn't harm others.

 

[brightspark]

its everyone to there own . as long as people know the precautions to take i use it all the time in the cabinet and free blasting its ideal on aluminium and cleaning light rust of tools using a suction gun in cabinet before beadblasting or even more coroded and painted items using the presure pot in cabinet and exhausting using a woodchip blower which pulls more cfm of air out than the blast hose can supply causing a vaccum. no dust no health risk . i sadblasted my whole house using it . the councill even asked me to clean an old building up in a conservation aeria after they saw the results i passed on it

 

[malcolm]

That's it in a nutshell Malc, with emphasis on so long as it doesn't harm others.

Good point there - we should make it very clear that the forum doesn't recommend the use of anything that might stuff up your breathing in the future which might cause you to take legal action against us.

 

[badmarx]

thanks lads went fr drying the play sand and mixed it with some glass media did the job on what i wanted in no lenght of time. happy days

 

[brightspark]

That's it in a nutshell Malc, with emphasis on so long as it doesn't harm others.

a good answer safety 1st

 

[malcolm]

I'm keen that the forum discourages the use of sand as a DIY blasting media.

People considering sand will tend to be considering it because it is cheap, so they will be unlikely to fund the air extraction and air fed mask necessary to reduce the risk.

A better response for a blasting cabinet would be to suggest chilled iron or other specialised media - much less dust, no silicosis risk, and much less PPE required.

I also think the forum might well be legally responsible if we recommend sand without any mention of risk.

For the health of other members or to keep the forum out of trouble could members please be careful not to recommend sand as a blasting media. We'll aim to put together a sticky post, and moderators will try to be helpful and remove posts recommending sand for blasting.