87 - Safety Video: Dust, Fumes & Respirators 

This video has been out for 10 years and I just found it today. I wish I’d seen it a few months ago. Better late than never. 👍🏻

Excellent demonstration! Great attention to detail and very informative. Thanks Mark, great job. Dave

This video is exactly the information I was looking for - Subscribed!

Excellent, good info and well presented. I have worn chemical respirators for 30 years. Used them for vapors and dust. Thanks. You are the best. Sam

Video is still useful, stepping up my safety habits as my hobby grows and may move to a proper shop in the next year. Did the easy stuff with ear/eye protection but would like to develop good habits on air quality now before I'm doing things larger scale and possibly with shop assistants.

Just watched this video and found it to be very informative and explained in a clear-cut straightforward way. It was also entertaining. Thanks for the video. Kudos!

This has been a very helpful video clip for my patients. Thanks.

Thank you for this video! I don't have a mentor in my town so I'm learning things the hard way allot. I don't want cancer to be my final lesson.

Hey Marc! Hope all is well! Just wanted to say thank you sooooo much for this old vid. I been using the old 3m mask with the ventilation out the front which constantly fogged up my glasses. I would have never known that there was an alternative. Cant wait for the 7500 to arrive and be rid of the fogged glasses! Its an excitement only a woodworker can have like being excited when i got my ct mini….lol. you know what I mean. Thanks again! Shane

Thank you so much for this video. I always use respirators with P100 filters, but have never been able to get this perfectly clear explanation of what they do, and the difference between particulate filtration and vapor filtration - even on 3M's very confusing website! You explained it perfectly and put my mind at ease.

Excellent video. Great job explaining everything clearly

Thanks for the advice. Was trying to work out which one to get - or what I even needed. Pretty much just ordered the 7500 series from 3M as you suggested. Nice work.

This was so helpful. Seeing the pink filter clicks right in was so helpful.

Thank-you. This was very well explained.

@Karateisgoodforyou I change mine out about every 6 months. Monthly seems pretty excessive for a hobby shop. As for dust at the source, anything is always better than nothing. There are lots of nice portable units on the market. The ultimate, though, is a ducted cyclone, which is what I have.

Same here. My basement shop is not too big, and the cleaner does a great job. Between it, my dust collector, and some furnace filters over the cold air return, I have no dust issues in the rest of the house, and a very happy Wife.

I found several sources that stated wood dust particles being as small as 1 micron. And in sufficient quantities, wood dust has been linked to various forms of nasal and lung cancers. Probably translates to a very small chance for the average hobbyist woodworker, but I do believe the possibility exists.

Marc thanks. Been searching for a solution for dust in my shop. I was pleased? to see that I wasn't alone about thinking it was going to take more than a single solution for ensuring I had a safe environment. I have asthma --yup, no the greatest situation for woodworking-- so I've been upgrading my shop as I can with technology to help: cross ventilating with fans and open doors, shop vac., a small underpowered portable DC (in process of upgrading to 2hp HF w/SDD) as well as various masks that never seemed to work. I was considering the Trend AirPro, but I continue to hear so-so reports as not worth the price. I spotted the 3M respirator you use on the video. I've had fairly poor results with the various one's I've purchased (either too hard to breath thru or they fogged up my glasses. Got the 7500 today w/Pink filters and tried it out. Awesome fit and function. Thanks for the video-BrianS

Great video! Thank you for the safety tips

I know this is old Marc, but very helpful advice. I have been using the 3M mask just like yours and works very well along with my dust collector and air cleaner. Only negative is I wish the mask worked better with my prescription eye glasses. The nosepiece always pushes on my glasses upwards.

This should be an essential video to shop safety classes.

Excellent Video!

Great video. Very detailed. Thanks a lot

actually, I don't recommend that piece anymore. When you use the organic filters, the p95 particulate filters are just fine. Use the P100 filters directly on the mask for dusty work. I no longer use the adapter myself.

The next tool on my wish list is the respirator with pink wings. lol! Great job on the video. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

nice video , thank you! great presentation and some useful tips!

another great video with great tips.. thanks Marc for sharing..

That's cool, Mark. I sometimes forget mine, as well. And I wonder why I got a headache! Lol! Peace, brother.

Amazing video . Much appreciated

That was a very good video, thank you.

Thank you for the informative video.

wow!!! i wanted to find out a bit about respirators and i got this. excellent info. not tryinh to sell me anything and very well produced. im smashing the sub and like buttons lol

I agree on the air cleaner, but I still run it while in the shop as well as after leaving to take the fine dust out of the air before it can settle on surfaces. I have the same model of mask at home and work, and it does an excellent job at a fairly reasonable cost.

Great Job Thanks

Mark, Thank you for sharing your experiences. At about 7:38 in this video you reference a cover was a port that allows you to add a P-100 particle filter onto the vapor cartridge, instead of using the flat particle filter. Can you share a part number, name, and where to get them, etc.? I tap out. I can not find them. Perhaps this shows my lack of efficiency searching online. This cover with the port, caught my interest again when I saw you referencing it. Thank much for your time. Ron

This was an amazing advice

Great informative video!! 👍👍👍

Wonderful, thank you so much.

What is the best filter for sanding and grinding metal? I have a 6300 mask

Very helpful, was looking for a guide for painting model toys. Haha

I have an old airmate visor. Mine is 20 years old and out of production. It has a heap filter and a blower with a hard hat and face shield.

Hey I just bought a 7500 series respirator which came with a organic vapour cartridge and a 5p71 filter. How often should I be replacing these things?

do you mind letting me know what is the name of the tool that helps to attach 100 P round filters to the organic filter? and what kind of googles would you recommend?

Hey Mark. I think the frequency of cleaning really depends on your personal tolerance for things being "icky". The inside can get pretty nasty so at least once a week I take a paper towel and wiped the inside. I'd say every couple months I take it apart and clean with soap and water. As for storage, I just keep mine out on the benchtop.

Thank you!

Damn well done video.

Really? Can you cite examples? I know there are times when I have forgotten to wear them, but over the hundred or so videos I've done, I bet I can count on one hand the number of times I forgot to wear ear/eye protection when it was called for. The viewers are very good at reminding me when I mess up safety-wise, so I am pretty aware of every time I've screwed up.

I have an MSA safety respirator. They are probably second best to 3m, MSA makes combination cartridges, I just needed the dust ones. They carry replacement cartridges everywhere, but I have not yet had to buy any.

not only this video is informative but youre really funny :)

3m has some great videos on youtube about how to properly fit test and where you can go to have them fit tested. I saw a test with a clear vue cyclone like yours being able to suck up/hold a bowling ball on a flex hose. Have you tried that?

Marc, I wear a respirator but it really pains the bridge of my nose after extended use. Is this 3M mask really comfortable on the bridge of the nose?

Thanks. Great video. I am using an LVLP gun to spray Behr Latex from Home Depot. Do I need a mask like the one in your video or are the paper masks that have N95 printed on them sufficient? Same ones that everyone is wearing to avoid the Cornona Virus. Thanks

The problem that I have with all respirators, the 7500 that I also own, the standard N95s from Home Depot, and the RZ mask that I purchased, is that I can't seal the mask without moving it so high that glasses won't fit. When you were testing for seal after cleaning, you had the mask so high on your nose that no glasses could a have possibly been used. If I adjust my 7500 (or any of the others) low enough to fit glasses, then my nose, which I admit, is on the large size, then my respiration through my nose is at least partially plugged. I watched your video from 6 years ago, where you told that the pink particle filters will fit without the cartridges. Thank you for that tip! In that video and this one as well, you don't show using a respirator or any other kind of dust mask with glasses. I have emailed RZ and 3M, but two weeks later have received no response. I'm not optimistic that I will receive a reply, but am going to try again Monday with phone calls instead of email.

How often do you replace the pink filters. I thought I heard once a month? What do you suggest for dust filtration at the source from your tools.

I have been working with wood flour a lot lately ( extremely fine sawdust that looks like baking flour). Will the pink filtration disc be enough to filter this or is there another filter you'd recommend ?

will it work for hydrochloric acid fumes, gaseous chlorine/ bromine/ iodine, NO2? many thanks

you make good videos thanks

The 3M unit has two folds of rubber on the bridge and nothing more. It's pretty light weight and the only pain I have ever had was actually from my eye protection, not the respirator. So I think the 3m might be a good choice for you.

I found the respirator, p100 filters and the organic vapor cartridges you show there, but I cant find a link to the adaptor you use to connect the particulate filter to he vapor cartridge? can you provide a model number or amazon link please? Also good video!

What kind of respirator you could use if you want to avoid the fumes in a gas station?

I just bought the same one you have.

What's the best respirator solution for beardy wood workers if you're just not willing to part with the face fuzz?

The activated carbon filters have so many hours of use, I believe its 40 hours. When not using, put it in a zip lock bag. Great video and info. I just bought P100 filters. That should be fine for autobody sanding (body filler) & sanding fiberglass parts, rite? I am so use to using carbon filters. I didn't realize the 3m 7500 had that downward exit. That's great. I have glasses and my glasses always fog up.Thanks

Where do you find the covers which can accept the addon p100 filter?

Great video. How long after making a cut do I need to keep a mask on for?

What do you mean by finishes in wood working. I just got started as I am building a model train and have watched so many of your videos. I am looking at masks but the term finishes confuses me as to how different is it from me cutting something on table saw and band saw vs sanding a piece?

When people break out the chalk board or paper pad I get excited.

dear sir would you tell me someone if you know much about mask, my workshop is charcoal power factory where always flow charcoal powder for that environment what kind of mask would be suitable using. please suggest me.

Im still a bit confused. I am using contact cement, paint thinner / stripper, varsol, mineral spirits, and lacquer. I just got a 3m respirator but it says in the instructions dont use with fumes lol. I get that it comes with just a white p95 particulate filter, but how do i know what to use for these kind of chemicals when i buy the right filter? Will the pink ones work? Lol

Do you think I can just use the P100 Cartridge called Magenta/ Olive and receive the exact same protection.... I would mainly be Soldering here and there and Painting using Aerosol Spray Cans once and a blue..

The idea and physics of cyclone is actually a minor part of dust collection. People want to sell you expensive things. The main means,mechanism, physics of separation is drop of velocity. As the velocity drops due to expansion, the heavy chips just drops. In a drop box, the velocity drops and the biggest chips drop. There is always a large (with cross sectional area) enough drop box that will render the cyclone effect quite minor.

will it work in quartz grinding (Ramon mass ). ?

Would love if you tried a bunch of different brands and models, I'm in the market for a mask right now and your opinion is something I trust. Thanks for a godd video! /Joel

I don't buy that 5000ft^2 line. The issue I have with that is the same problem as the question "What is the circumference of Australia?" It all depends on just how detailed you get.

How long does the pink100 itself last ?

You know, in my smaller shop, the dust is much more concentrated and I think I really need an air cleaner now. In my old shop, there was just too much air. But it seems like there is always dust in the air in this smaller space.

I find a cheaper alternative to having a fine air filter on after i leave the workshop is to allow my dog to bed down for the night in the dust laden room, he really does a good job of removing those extremely fine, toxic, cancerous, nose clogging particulates. I know some may see this as cruel, but he never complains and is in fact always pleased to see me in the morning.

where can I get those covers that let the p100 over the organic filter

Great video. Will this mask protect a professional woodworker from respiratory disease and cancer if a ventilation system is also used?

This is a great video. Safety is always worth spending more on. A better respirator is better breathing. Just a tip, respirators work best on DIRECT SKIN contact. So shave before you put one on.

Great video. The cheapest price I can find for a 3M 502 filter adapter (the one you say is just a couple of bucks at 7:37) is about $25 for a pair and as high as $50. I guess prices have gone way up since 2009.

no one talks about masks and either prescription glasses. when I try to wear a mask and prescription glasses, they are too high to see properly. I haven't found a solution. anyone have any advise?

Where do you get those covers that have the port to connect the p100's to?

7:40 You should not remove that cover with another pore. Once it's in, if you remove it, then you have to place another one according to 3M or the seal is spoiled.

That is it. I want only against dust or against fume, not both at any time. I do not want any extra weight.

Hello Mark, I picked up the same mask that you use but can you yell me if yours smelled weird when you first put it on?

what kind of face sheild do you use

A REALLY GOOD subject for the Safety Week is: Eyes ad Ears! I've noticed that when Mark is doing his stuff at the Woodwhisperer, I don't see him wearing eye protection or earmuffs. ??????????????????????

I think bloggers should test bcmask masks. I think the masks of this brand are very cost-effective! I have used it before

Hi Marc, Question of the 3M #502 Adapter that you use to put the round P100 filters on the 6001 Organic Vapor cartridges. I bought a pair the other day and I was reading up on it. Do you re-use the adapters? I found in several pieces of 3M literature that says "The 3M 502 adapter should not be removed or reused once engaged as it is not designed for reuse and leakage may occur." and in another document it stated "The 3M Filter Adapter 502, once installed on a 3M Cartridge 6000 Series, is not to be removed or reused. Removal or reuse may result in leakage, overexposure, sickness or death." Now I realize that "Death" may be a bit extreme but do you find, if you reuse them, that the adapters will seal up well? Otherwise it would seem just as well to stick to the cheaper 501 retainer and use the 5N11/5P71 which are rated at 95% anyway? I where I am, at $3.50 per each 502 adapter, the cost adds up pretty quick.

This is serious stuff - friend has permanent damage and pneumonia from high dust exposure...

I don't think wood dust from sanding has micron sizes below 2.5 but you're right about the larger sizes, you cough it out. The larger size dust particles may aggravate allergies but you're just as likely to get cancer from eating a hamburger as from breathing wood dust. Treated wood is a different story because of the chemicals used.

And if SHE ain't happy, ain't nobody happy! :)

I trim cannabis. The powder, in the end, is terrible. They provide those cheap paper masks. I went and purchased my filter today. I picked this particular one because it's pink.

PrimusImperium Not sure if you found an answer yet, but here is information on where to buy the adapter. www.envirosafetyproducts.com/3m-502-filter-adapter.html Amazon also sells them for about $7/pair.

3M 6502QL is what I use for a respirator. I use the same filter set up as Marc. My lungs thank me.

Marc, since it is so important, can you update video with newer products? I see that there is a mask called Elipse from GVS. It has good reviews and is smaller, cheaper and lighter. It is available from Amazon and Woodcraft.

The volume of your introduction music is too loud compared to the content volume.

You didn't have tattoos at that time

Love this video. (Minus the pink comment. Colors are gender-less)