dangers of lead

Don't do it in your kitchen: heating lead releases lead fumes, particles from which will settle on your food prep surfaces. Wash your hands after working, don't eat while working, and keep hands out of your mouth while working, and you should be fine. The biggest danger of lead is through ingesting it.

Yes, you're getting paranoid - any without need. I'd suggest it's without cause, but your paranoia is probably being fueled by the extensive propaganda being distributed by the many companies lobbying to have lead banned so they can sell you their much more expensive alternatives. To compound the confusion, these lobbyists have managed to enlist (or somehow "convince" to support them) the EPA. A coupla of years back the EPA was telling us handling lead could poison us by being absorbed thru skin pores. This has been since debunked. Last year they advised lead heated to 900 deg F could produce a lead vapour that could be inhaled. The studies that reached that conclusion were tested lead heated to 900 CELSIUS not fahrenheit. At that temperature lead evaporates.

So far the only verifiable scientific evidence is that the only way to get lead poisoning is by ingesting it. Don't eat it and you'll be fine.

Lead Poisoning is caused by INGESTION of Lead, or the breathing of Lead fumes.

Ingestion is very possible by not washing your hands before you eat something, but lead fumes is HIGHLY unlikely in this hobby/trade. Lead boils at 3164.0 °F. (Your soldering iron won't put out that kind of heat).

This same topic has been discussed in the Shooting community for years. It all boils (no pun intended) to the above 2 methods of getting the lead into your system.

_kevin archibald

I couldn't agree more!!! Ad to this the hype over disposing CRT's where the EPA claims (with no scientific basis) that the lead will "leech out of the glass". But why is it they "conveniently" overlook other types of glass that have higher proportions of lead (AKA "crystal") and that people are ENCOURAGED TO DRINK FROM???

Methinks the EPA is subject to effects of lead poisoning themselves (or at least it surely appears so)! Drinking too much Champagne from crystal (see - jamjars ARE better)? (sorry - another thread.)

Will

According to my admittedly brief search, the boiling point of lead is 1740 C. I guess that there's probably some slight loss of mass even at room temperature, but is there anything significant at 900 C?

What are these things that "they" want to replace lead with? Are you just talking about in the realm of stained glass, or do you mean in general?

Just curious.

Mike Beede

Long-term storage especially of alcoholic beverages in lead crystal is

*not* encouraged. Too bad, because I used to have a couple decanters that were really nice for congnac.

Mike Beede

4 or 5 years ago I had a blood check done for lead, after talking with the doctor. After 15 years of stained glass work the test came back and showed I had *less* lead in my system than averages for males my age . . .

I personally think it's a non issue if you use common sense and wash after working with it.

Pure common sense preventative measures should be more than adequate I would think . . . .

So does everyone agree that kaleidoscopes would not be an issue or would you use an alternative on the off chance that a child might put it in their mouth. Even small sun catchers might end up in a kids mouth. Or am I being paranoid now?

Yes.

You can make things fool proof. You can't make them damn-fool proof.

The real danger isn't that we'll be poisoned by working with lead, but that we'll be poisoned by all the lies being peddled by the lobbyists trying to ban it.

My personal opinion? Take all the lead-free crap and shove it....oops sorry, got carried away...I meant shovel it. Into the garbage can.

Dennis Brady DeBrady Glass

I don't know if my question about your earlier post got lost, or what. You claimed that significant evaporation of lead occurs at 900 C. Lead has a boiling point over 1700 C. Do you have a citation for your factoid? And what are the conspirators trying to ban--lead came or lead in general?

Thanks,

Mike Beede

A while back I had my blood lead levels tested. They were elevated, but not worrysome. My wife works for CDC, and she got me in touch with the CDC's lead abatement specialist, who is a MD. His concern was not from handling the lead came, but from the dirty oxides that I handle in the repair business. He was also concerned about inhaling the soldering vapors. I dunno if this is fact or urban legend, but "they" think that there are microscopic metalic particles of lead "splatter" being wafted around in the smoke from the flux. I installed a blower/fume catcher in my workshop at SWMBO's insistance.

This doc said it was not uncommon to see a 18 Pb blood level in men my age. I grew up before there was unleaded gasoline, and GOK what my dad may have painted the house with back then. The doc did absolutely verify what others have posted. Lead toxcity is only a problem if you ingest the lead or inhale the dust/vapors. They only begin to worry if the number goes over 40 or 50, and they then give you a chelating IV which is supposed to "cleanse" you and let you go right back at it.

Metallic, elemental lead is a minimal hazard.

Lead salts are more of a hazard, especially those salts that are easily soluble.

I'm very careful when burning lead, which includes casting it or welding it - but not low-temperature soldering.

I handle lead quite happily with bare hands, then I wash them afterwards. I'm more careful with lead salts (including oxides, and old lead with a corroded surface). I'm most careful not to get lead particles or dust anywhere near a kitchen, where it may wind up in something I'm planning to eat. Worst of all, it may end up in vinegar or any sort of acidic foodstuff - that's a quick route to lead acetates, that are easily absorbed and quite a hazard.

I made this recently,

you follow the link to the (incomplete) page on oilcloth making,you'll see a process that most sensible people would regard asinvolving far too much lead exposure. Much the same considerations apply to copper too - metal OK, salts bad. Copper is safer mainly because the metal and its oxides are harder and less easily distributed mechanically.

-- Klein bottle for rent. Apply within.

I didn't claim it, the EPA did. The campaign to ban lead is to ban ALL lead for ALL applications.

The difficulty with trying to make things fool-proof is that fools are usually more inventive than anybody else.

Einstein said it best. "The difference between genius and stupidity, is there's a limit to genius".

No that is your interpretation.