Bakelite dust and cutting

[mattRumble]

Hi there,

I'm new here. I have a small question about the safety of working with Bakelite. I've been cutting small amounts of it using a drimel, out side but im worried about getting it in my lungs as i wasn't wearing a mask.
How dangerous is it?

[Lucien Nunes]

Unfortunately it can be hard to know exactly what is in the particular bakelite you're working with. The cured resin itself might be low hazard but there may be residual phenol or formaldehyde, and the filler could be purely wood-flour or it could contain asbestos. I treat any filler-loaded thermoset as potentially hazardous, although in practice the risk will often be negligible. The same is true of various other man-made resin bonded materials such as paxolin and Tufnol. You can get current Material Safety Data Sheets for modern 'bakelite' and 'urea formaldehyde' materials, but they won't reflect the composition of the old stuff.

Lucien

[newlite4]

Bakelite is a phenol/ formaldehide compound which contains fillers to bulk it out. Most bakelite types used wood dust as a filler although some types used asbestos. The action of "Dremmelling" bakelite would create relatively large dust particles which are easier for the lungs to expell. We are constantly exposed to dusts and chemicals in normal life anyway on top of what general restoration exposes us to. As long as you are not doing it every day for twenty years then I would not worry, the body is designed to cope quite well with occasional exposure.
Neil

[Retired]

Hi,

I once made a small pair of cheeks for a former out of Formica and used my double ended grinder for the shaping. I was nauseous with a blinding headache the following three days and never want to repeat the experience again. Boy I felt extremely ill.

I now wear my respirator whilst grinding Formica or Paxolin. I have one pair of lungs which are easily damaged so I now err on the safe side.

Kind regards, Col.

[Peter.N.]

I have been breathing in now banned substances (legal ones) including asbestos for some 70 years and as far as I know they have done me no harm, but I know other people that have suffered as a result, I think its largely down to the make up of the individual, I know of three people that have contracted asbestosis but also others that have worked in the same conditions and have not. Wise to take precautions though.

Peter

[Paul Stenning]

I would just do it outside when the weather is good (as it is now) and position yourself so that the wind blows the dust and any fumes away from you. That way you don't breath it and you don't have to clear up the mess indoors afterwards. You won't be producing much dust with a dremil anyway.

[kalee20]

Originally Posted by Peter.N.

I have been breathing in now banned substances (legal ones) including asbestos for some 70 years and as far as I know they have done me no harm, but I know other people that have suffered as a result, I think its largely down to the make up of the individual.

I take the view, if I'm one of the unlucky ones and my body is sensitive, by the time I find out it'll be too late.

So, without curtailing my activities, I do minimise exposure to dust, solvents, resins etc with sensible precautions and good housekeeping. And that would definitely include bakelite dust!