Update: A coworker's cough made me see respirators as essential for all jobs.

Ignoring a respirator during finishing tasks damages your lungs over time.

3 comments

3 Comments

Last year, the local hardware store sold out of dust masks during a DIY boom. It proves people only care about protection after they see the dust cloud in their own living room. This pattern repeats with chemical cleaners and cheap paint fumes in everyday homes. We ignore the risk until a health scare makes it real, which is a flawed way to handle safety. Your coworker's cough is just the latest example of that costly wake-up call.

hannah_perry1d ago

My 3M half mask respirator has been in my basement workbench drawer for five years now. It only gets used when I'm already choking on drywall dust, which proves Laura's point perfectly. Now I keep the filters right next to the sander so I see them first.

brian_fisher651d ago

We only fix safety problems after the fact, like hannah_perry's filter setup, which is why we keep having these cough-based wake up calls.