It may be a gas , But are you putting yourself at risk ?

[87BlazeLS]

The reason I ask this is for you to think about how you deal with the long term effects of gasoline
coming in contact with your skin.
And Feed back from the pro's as well as the backyard wrenching novices is welcomed here.

Here's my story, I lost my dad back in 1999. cancer took him. Not pretty either. He was nearly
eaten in half by cancer of the prostate and colon, intestines. A painful death. We all miss him dearly.

I vividly remember back in the early 60's (I was just 7 or 8 at the time) Dad always had a big can of gas
in the shop with the mower. He always did his own oil changes on the cars himself. I can't tell
you how many times I saw him wash his hands in gasoline. It was like nobody worried about what
that was doing to your blood or your skin and how it might effect your long term health.
I used to work commercial construction with my dad during the 80's and we were water proofing
a block wall for a customers boat ramp. We used this stuff like black mastic. I asked him " How
are we supposed to put this stuff on" He said "You just use your hands and stick it in the bucket
pull out a handful and spread it on like butter." And I thought to myself why not paint rollers?
Well we did it his way. After we cleaned our hands off in guess what. good old gasoline....
Today I wonder if dad would have lived longer if he would have been a little bit more cautious
about handling chemicals , gasoline on the bare skin.

To this day I see people working on cars with the same ideas that dad had. Just use gas to
rinse off grease or oil , and when working on fuel systems under the car how many times have
you had gas running down your unprotected arm ? huh...

I've tried many times working with gloves on. Not for me. But working on bikes and cars as many
of us do we sometimes forget about how bad gas and other chemicals we come into contact
with will effect us on a long term level.

Please tell us how you deal with keeping safe in the shop and around the chemicals you use....
Your input will make us all healthier and better mechanics.....

 

[565bbchevy]

I myself have never used gas to clean my hands and I try to wear gloves when I can but many times it is not feasible to do so.
I use a lot of rags when I am doing something and am constantly cleaning my hands,
Oil changes I were vinyl gloves and sometimes oil runs down my arm so I try to go as fast as I can so I can get cleaned up.
I think every car should be designed with a remote oil filter that has full access and doesn't drip on your exhaust.

 

[V8 Rumble]

I use gloves but then end up not having gloves on by the time in half way in. I don't use chemicals to clean my hands of I do use brake clean or solvents in sure to have gloves though I don't always use a respirator. I have one with the cartridges for solvents.

My uncle died from colon cancer back in 07 and he was a old school auto body. I Rarely saw him use respirators and I, like you feel that contributed to his cancer.

My dad also used gas and would dip his finger in the antifreeze now and then to test it. I don't used methods life that my self but my dad was a great mechanic I use what I learned from. He passed in 99 unrelated to car stuff.

Sorry I went off a bit I think.

I use pumice hand cleaner which I don't think works great but a good dish washing soap cleans hands very good.

If you are going to work with solvents get a respirator that can use organic vapor cartridges or a respirator with the charcoal in it. They absorb the fumes and obviously a well ventilated area is key for chemicals.

 

[565bbchevy]

Once I get the heavier stuff off out in the garage I will come in the house and use the washer tub and scrub my hands and arms down with Dawn dishwashing soap and mild scrubber with a handle used for dishes, it gets me pretty clean plus gets rid of any oil residue.

 

[ssn696]

I agree about bare hands and chemicals. Prior to 20 years ago, I would clean parts in a solvent tank bare-handed. I remember a tingling sensation if I was at it for a while. Then I started using solvent gloves - and dropped stuff a lot. But I'll probably live longer.
Today I use the cheap nitrile gloves from Harbor Fright. The light duty, light blue ones work great for painting. Spray them with brake cleaner, and they just swell and fall apart after a few minutes. Skin, anyone?
HF also sell medium (dark blue) and heavy duty (black) ones. I think the last type the police keep in a pocket for dealing with blood, sharps, or crazies. The latter two put up with brake cleaner much longer.
It's hard to tell if something is hurting you when you can't detect an immediate result. Smoking or chewing tobacco, for example. By the time you know, it's too late...
[I can't even picture cooking heroin in a spoon and injecting it into my bloodstream.]

 

[87BlazeLS]

When you think about all the what if's it becomes clear why this is something for us to talk about.
If just one novice on this site thinks twice about if these chemicals can hurt me if it's on my skin.
Then this post and our comments may have saved someone down the road....
Thanks for the comments....

 

[ssn696]

I won't comment on the decision-making once behind the wheel. I think that one's been beaten to death already...

 

[pontiacgp]

I wear glove sometimes but when I was a kid my dad inspected an asbestos mine for his insurance company and brought me home a nice sized rock filled with asbestos fibers. I played with that rock for years pulling out the asbestos and I'm still here so I don't think oil or gas will do me in.

 

[Kwik_Cutty88]

I've never ever cleaned my hands with gas. There are the occasional spills, but I try to rinse my hands off as soon as I can. I'm hesitant about using brake clean and carb cleaner without gloves as well, that stuff is nasty. They put warnings on these kinds of stuff for a reason, so I try to pay attention to that. I suppose you could say many many years ago, way before my time, things were much different. I'm not sure that lots of people really thought about the effects of chemicals and stuff on their bodies

 

[Clone TIE Pilot]

I always use gloves, but they do often fall apart so I always have spares and change them after a little while or when I feel them start to break down. Just expect to go though a few pairs for a single job. I use a respirator now when doing body work, I have used lighter fuild a couple of times to remove burtyl sealant off my hands but I am going to try dish washing soap next time. The majority of the time I use hand cleaners. I do my work outdoors due to a lack of indoor space, so my work area is well ventilated.