The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop respirators

anyone know of any decently priced respirators that will protect against silica, without going to a fresh air respirator.

Brent don't cheap out on the safety stuff, go to your local auto paint supply and look at the North or 3M half face type(you'll still need a face shield). These work fine but remember to change the filters often. DO NOT breath the air from your compressor, Ive seen some screw ball set-ups that do just that. Stick with a name brands and inspect your filters before each use. Happy stovebolting.

Figure $30, and that's a cheap price compared to medical bills, so in that respect, they are all reasonably priced. A good respirator fits over your face and has a valve that clicks as you breath giving you a sort of Darth Vadar effect. With ones I have bought with activated filters (charcoal or whatever) you don't smell the chemicals in spray paints of thinners. If you do smell stink, then you are probably not getting a good seal around your face. Many have replaceable cartridges. 3M also makes a disposable one that most paint places carry (English Paint and Color for us in Dallas) that you pitch when you are done with it.

Brent. I made my own fresh air supply for about $20.00 Can. I use a bathroom fan, 3-1.5 abs adpt and a old central vac hose. I put the fan out of the blast area and run the hose under my hood. I still have a mask on but it stays clean and the air keeps my head cool. A good mask is still cheap life insurance.

Barney, Good idea. Do you have any type of filter over the fan intake?

I put a K&N on my wife's Tiburon. The old air filter was next to new so I use that with a couple of rubber bands to keep it in place.

just got a respirator from Northern Tool, made by AO Safety, about 35bucks, changable filters. Don't forget the safety googles, ANSI 87, they were only 3 bucks! Play it safe!