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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
March 2004
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Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 11:49
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I am sick of this crap, having to work in roofs with fibre glass batt insulation is well annoying. Does anyone have a good way to get the fibres out of your skin? I have tried jumping in the pool and doing laps etc. after work, all to no avail. I have had both hot and cold showers suggested...IS THERE A WAY THAT ACTUALLY WORKS?!?
Very itchily
Andrew
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 12:13
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your employer should provide you with proper protective clothing ... oh, i forgot, it's the employers right to fuck over workers in the current federalised employment environment....
if you've developed a permanent skin condition as a result of your workplace then it's only fair that your employer (and their worker's comp insurer) develop a permanent financial disfigurement (that favours you).
there's no easy way of getting the glass fibres out of you skin apart from removing the skin.
the rapid movement of swimming or vigorous showering may makes things worse as you are breaking the fibres down to even smaller segments. A warm shower or sauna may help as it encourages the body to profusely sweat but a that also makes your skin more sensitive.
you should consult with a doctor (or get referred to a dermatalogist) to see if you can get something to reduce the irritation and discomfort.
as a last resort, get some skin creams that relieve sunburn pain and apply liberally - some have a mild local anesthetic that'l help you forget the pain and itching for a while. Also, gently and liberally apply aleo vera (spell?) squeezed straight out from one of the leaves - when it dries, gently wash off and it will remove some fibres with the goo.
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I supported Toymods
Banned User
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 12:27
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I remember those days  I use to work making and repairing yachts.
You want to have as hot a shower as you can stand. Get under the hot water and as your body gets used to it, keep increasing the hot water.
The hot water works with the glass fibres the same as it does with your hair follicles(spelling?) when you have a shave. It forces them out of the skin(hopefully) and then the running water washes them away.
This worked the best for me back when I was working with the stuff.
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Location:
Sydney
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 12:42
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i feel your pain
the only thing that works for me is time. 
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Location:
Liverpool, Sydney
Registered:
September 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 13:04
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Lol, i used to hate the itchiness and stuff that come with glass dust being in your skin...i barely even feel it now unless i have been sanding or grinding fibreglass in short sleeved clothes.... the worst thing you can do is try and brush it off your skin.. you end up rubbing it in..
A little tip is put powder on your skin before you work with fibreglass, then use an air blower or something similar after and just blow it off your skin.. it stops it from getting inbto your skin or if you are too lazy like me then just shower after you have finished... stand under a really hot shower for ages ( it softens up the skin and opens up your pores ) and then use somehting to scrub it off you....
The proper term for the rash you get from all the glass dust in your skin is 'dermatitis'... DO NOT SCRATCH coz, you will really hurt yourself 
The worst thing is when you have glass dust in your skin and people touch you or brush against you and rub the glass in your skin the wrong way.... very ouch..
Time is good... eventually you learn not to feel it anymore..... lol.
Neko ^-^
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
March 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 20:27
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I would wear long sleeves but seeing as i am in roofs for hours at a time, usually up at 45 degrees...that gets hard. 
I'll try a warm shower next time, trying to get to sleep with the fibres in you has to be one of THE hardest things...then i wake up and they are mostly gone, go figure.
Thanks all
Andrew
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Location:
1st street on the right
Registered:
November 2002
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Re: Fibre glass
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Tue, 11 January 2005 21:35
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Tea tree soap and shampoo in a hot as shower then tea tree lotion afterwards stops itching.
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Location:
Liverpool, Sydney
Registered:
September 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 01:25
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| Toy Yoda wrote on Wed, 12 January 2005 07:27 |
I'll try a warm shower next time, trying to get to sleep with the fibres in you has to be one of THE hardest things...then i wake up and they are mostly gone, go figure.
Thanks all
Andrew
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Yeah, but then the next night when you are all freshly showered and clean and you climb into bed, you get recovered in the shit... one bad thing i used to do was when i got home id sit on my bed still all in my work gear and that would end up putting glass all through my bed.... theres also some kind of foam cream ( i cant remeber the name but ill get back to you) that you rub in to your skin before you go to work and it kind of acts as a sealant to your skin so nothing can get into you...
what kind of fibreglass is used in the roof's? scuse my stupidity, i knew they used it in roof's somehow, but where does the dust/fibres come from? Like, what form of glass, i mean to say.. if that makes sense?
is it the matting raw? or from cutting grinding it?
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Location:
Melbourne
Registered:
December 2003
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 03:02
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i think he means from pink bats or similar-they are a bitch. Hot hot shower and heaps and heaps of soap has worked well for me.Also tea trea oil/lotion as clubagreenie has said works wonders.it also kinda burns if not diluted and takes away the pain of needles all over. id be having a chat to your employer if i was you. i think they should provide some sorta comp for the constant irritation
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Location:
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 03:34
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By the sounds of it, I wouldn't be surprised if in a few years time or even sooner, you'll "develop" a never ending cough.
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Location:
Liverpool, Sydney
Registered:
September 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 03:41
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Yeah you will... and you will also get 'shadows in your lungs' which you cant get rid of... the fibres floating in the air... with dust and stuff you can cough it up/out, but with fibres they have little hooks on them, so when you breathe them in, they lodge themselves in your lungs and they dont come out...
A good tip for sore throats though, and people who work with glass, i have been told, is to drink alot of milk, it coats your throast etc, and doesnt let the glass stick to you as easily...
I have been told working with fibreglass is worse than working with asbestos, but i dont know how true that is, all i know is that they are both carcinogenic...
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
March 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 07:16
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Thanks for the ideas everyone, i would talk to my boss but i would like to keep my job so i'll sty quiet for now. I'm biding my time before i can send some 1st year straight from school up into the roof and i can sit around teling him what to do 
Until then i guess ill just hve to live with it.
Andrew
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Location:
Adelaide
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 08:58
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Yeah its a bugger!
Ive worked in ceilings with fibre bats for years now and before that with the "blue" fibreglass. (to me there is no difference between the two).
The way I got rid of the itchys is to have a hot shower with lots of soap (open the pores up) and then turn the water to cold to close the pores.
If you can get to compressed air a good "blow job" first, helps a lot as well.
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Location:
Land of Oz
Registered:
June 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 08:58
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Hi,
Polish up (ie rub vigoursly) an ebony rod on a soft cloth (silk is the best to use) and run it gently over the affected areas. The static electricity in the rod should attract the fibres.
seeyuzz
river
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Location:
Liverpool, Sydney
Registered:
September 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Wed, 12 January 2005 10:45
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| Gazza53 wrote on Wed, 12 January 2005 19:58 |
If you can get to compressed air a good "blow job" first, helps a lot as well.
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Not heaps powerful, i always got into shit for using heaps of air because it has too much force and forces it into your skin...
although.. i still like to use the air to get it off me.. its quick and easy 
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
August 2003
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Re: Fibre glass
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Thu, 13 January 2005 04:37
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| MFX_Neko_86 wrote on Wed, 12 January 2005 14:41 |
I have been told working with fibreglass is worse than working with asbestos, but i dont know how true that is, all i know is that they are both carcinogenic...
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Most asbestos deaths aren't cancer, rather asbestosis
Basically the fibres rip their way through the aeoli (spelling?) and rip your lungs to shred, an extremely painful thing by all accounts. sometimes a fiber will get lodged somewhere and lay dormant for years untill it is stirred up and proceed with the prior mentioned lung shredding activity.
Doesn't sound very fun, don't ever be blase about your handling of this shit!!
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Location:
Liverpool, Sydney
Registered:
September 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Thu, 13 January 2005 05:30
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Yeah, i have to admit im a bit more blase than i should be about working with glass... when i grind i wear a mask, when i have to do heavy sanding i use a mask, however when i tear fibres, or lay fibres, or have just a little bit of tidying or saning to do, i dont use a mask... i know thats gunna come kick me in the ass someday...
my question still hasnt been answered yet.. the stuff you use in the rooves.. what form are the fibres innit? Loose fibres?
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
March 2004
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Re: Fibre glass
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Thu, 13 January 2005 05:39
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No Neko it is foam insulation batts with glass fibres in them, basically you touch they get on you, and you cannot avoid touching it.
I don't know the exact make up of the batts, but i'd say half the houses i have worked in have them, and since it's hot up in the roof space, your pores open up and the fibres get stuck into you. Really a crappy idea on the part of whoever invented them.
For SHAME!
Andrew 
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Location:
brisbane
Registered:
October 2004
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