Woodworking Safety

February-March 2001

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.
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by Doug Lloyd

Safe woodworking has many similarities to safe paddling-you need to have a good understanding of the basics, followed by common sense and the right attitude. The motto, "safety first" really is a state of mind, requiring concentration and attention to inherent dangers. The days when anything that smacked of "shop safety" was seen as sissified are over. Shop-smart do-it-yourselfers and professionals alike care about injury prevention and personal health responsibilities. "Digitus longaevitas" is the new salute- with fingers intact.

THINKING IT THROUGH

Advanced woodworking skills are not required to build your own kayak-or to do it safely. Some kayak designs only require a few basic hand tools and a drill. The more challenging designs need to be broken down into manageable steps. What you will need is a good plan and an ability to stay organized. Accidents often result indirectly from not knowing what the next step should be, aggravated by too little patience combined with a rigid agenda.

Though spouse-less (or soon-to-be!) folks have been known to build their kayaks in living space, a shop or shed is recommended. You need enough space to work, dry conditions, adequate lighting, ventilation, a safe source of comfort-inducing heat (in the winter)-and the right frame of mind. It also helps to keep the work area tidy-removing excess debris at each juncture or as needed-and to have tools and supplies close at hand and in proper working order. A mounted vice and a good bench help a lot.

SAFETY GEAR

By analogy to paddling, it is prudent to use safety gear and 'safety back-ups' in case something goes wrong. Flying debris, air-born off-cuts, and splashed solvents are dangerous. Proper eye protection is vital.

Goggles provide good side- and top-entry protection, and are best around chemicals, but tend to fog up. I much prefer a full-face mask, whose clear shield flips down. The latest eyewear from companies like UVEX are lightweight polycarbonate wrap glasses, unobtrusive to wear, that even fit over prescription eyeglasses.

Pushsticks are another item sacrosanct in the safe-work ethic. Both pushsticks and pushpads help keep fingers away from moving cutter-heads and blades. With such devices I've taught well over 1200 individuals the basics of woodworking safety.

Most boat building will inevitably involve some sanding and possible exposure to chemical vapors. In most instances, the danger is in long-term exposure. Working outside helps, but why expose yourself to any degree of respiratory risk? Fine cedar dust can be particularly irritating, as is the sanding dust from certain exotic wood species. Inexpensive, semi-disposable dust masks are available. Additionally, I always try to buy my power sanding equipment with built-in dust pickup.

The proper protective device for fumes is an approved respirator with organic chemical cartridges (often with a dust/paint particulate pre-filter). The cartridges will absorb impurities, so they should be sealed in small plastic bags when not in use. The respirator I use has interchangeable dust-specific filters and chemical filters, allowing the fullest protection possible and quick-change ability to one or the other. For sanding epoxy I always wear the full respirator which seals around my face.

Hearing loss is cumulative. Maybe you don't care to hear your grandchildren later in life, but hearing protection does have immediate benefits. Ripping strips on a saw or running router bits, etc, can be both an annoying and an ear-exhausting experience. Quality earmuffs or even cheap foam earplugs lower exposure thresholds-while allowing greater relaxation and lower anxiety.

CORRECT TOOLS & TECHNIQUE

In the past, I've received some N-A-S-T-Y cuts from simple handsaws on the push-stroke. I now much prefer the highly rated Japanese saws, which cut on the pull-stroke.

Boat building presents ample opportunity for the use of a router. Best described a motor with handholds, with a decorative or functional cutter-choice mounted on the end-shaft, they have revolutionized the home workshop. Mortise slots are easily done on Baidarka gunwales using a small made-up jig to reference the router.

While a portable router is an effective free-hand device, I much prefer to bring the work piece to the router, rather than bring the router to the work piece. You don't need an expensive shaper table either. A router can be mounted upside-down in a homemade router table using a baseplate. Add a fence and an outboard switch, and you have a highly effective, inexpensive, and safe shaping device. This really is the safest and most efficient way to make those 15-foot long dowel stringers or cove-and-bead those hundreds of feet of cedar stripping.

Normally you always feed wood against the rotation of a cutter or blade. You should feel a steady resistance as you move the wood along. The average tip-speed on a tablesaw blade is close to 120 mph. Moving the work piece in the same direction as the blade rotation, or backing up the piece during a cut, is to invite disaster. Push the piece past the danger area, and always wait until the blade stops moving before retrieval. I've found that a splitter mounted just behind the blade is the only fool-proof way of preventing kickbacks where the work piece climbs the back of the blade and throws it toward the operator.

For long cuts on stationary power equipment, be sure to provide proper in-feed and out-feed support. I wax and buff metal surfaces with paraffin wax to make sure wood slides well, and use roller-stands and/or an out-feed table. For particularly long pieces of wood, create an extended fence. And don't raise blades any higher than necessary to complete a cut.

CONCLUSION

I've only briefly touched on a few of the issues, but most shop accidents are preventable. Safety is up to you. Knowing what to do is as important as knowing what not to do. Good paddling is about knowing and respecting the dangers. So is shop safety. Respect the tools and respect yourself. That is the end of my sermon.

Doug Lloyd is a longtime paddler and woodworker from Victoria. He is donating his author's fee from this article to the Georgia Strait Alliance. ©