Hit 500 tube welds on my first big boiler job and it hit me harder than I expected

3 comments

3 Comments

500 tubes on my first big boiler job and I bet your neck and shoulders are feeling it too. I remember my first big welding gig I was so cocky after the first 100 and by tube 300 I was sitting crooked on my tool box trying to pop my back like a glowstick. The funny part is I told my foreman I had it handled and he just laughed and said check back with me at tube 450. Sure enough by then I was using my offhand just to hold my hood up because my arm went dead. It's one of those things where your brain says you're a welding god but your body reminds you you're just a bag of meat with a stinger.

the_linda4d ago

@rubysingh that glowstick comparison is perfect lol. Real talk though, it's not just the joints and muscles that get wrecked, that many welds on a boiler will mess with your eyes if you're not running a proper auto-darkening hood with good shade control. First timer on a big job like that usually doesn't realize how much peripheral flash can accumulate even through a standard shade 10.

alexk605d ago

Did you catch that article about ergonomics for welders @rubysingh mentioned hits the nail on the head?

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