Jennifer F Boyer on wed 20 nov 02
The housekeeping guidelines below are great.
Just a bit of anecdotal perspective for those of you feeling
guilty that your studio situations are less than pristine:
I spent my first 15 years in full time pottery with a very funky
studio. None of us knew much about clay hygiene and after the
first 5 years with NO respirators I felt very confident using my
throw away paper ones over and over until they broke. And I was
making my own clay in an old bath tub....For the last 15 years
I've been more knowledgeable and careful, using a HEPA vac that
vents outside, using a good respirator when I do anything dusty.
But I've been known to "forget" to clean the floor for
embarrassingly long periods, even now. I've never had an air
cleaner or AC.
So I went for a pulmonary test last year with trepidation,
feeling that all those years of ignorance HAD to leave a mark.
I passed with flying colors(I've never smoked) and the
technician marveled at my totally healthy lungs. He doesn't get
to see that very often.
I'm not saying not to be as careful as you can: just don't get
overly paranoid.
Take Care
Jennifer, back to packing for a show
bnsaijim wrote:
> I'd like to be able to tell you some "Rule of Thumb", like
> if you don't see dust clouds you're safe. The simplest and
> straightforward answer is that the only way to know YOUR
> true risk is to monitor YOU. This should be done several
> times to get a "statistically valid data set".
>
> Silicosis is a "chronic disease", damage accumulates slowly
> over time, typically a working lifetime. It is therefore
> most prudent to minimize exposures as much as possible.
>
> What I've been talking about costs $. Delving into state of
> the art dust control is $$. So what options do you have?
>
> Your housekeeping certainly helps. "Wet" methods of
> cleaning should be the only kind- i.e., no broom, no vac
> unless it's a true HEPA vac, i.e., designed for asbestos
> abatement. The AC system may help provide some minimal
> directional airflow and general cleaning. The key is really
> the housekeeping. I'd recommend good personal hygiene as
> well. Washing hands and special handling of dirty clothes
> might be prudent. Minimize your other risk factors-
> smoking, etc. Slapping on respirators is certainly cheaper
> than specialized exhaust ventilation, however there is a
> whole new set of considerations- wearer health, equipment
> fitting, equipment failure=85
>
> Jim Stone
> TX
>
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Jennifer Boyer mailto:jboyer@adelphia.net
Thistle Hill Pottery Montpelier VT USA
http://www.thistlehillpottery.com/
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