My nose and cheeks getting burned?

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For the past several years I have been having this going on.  I sometimes sit down and weld a job shop project for 5 hours or more at a time.  Later that night after my shower I notice I have a sunburned nose on the end and my cheeks are tender also.......I immediately assumed that my auto darkening hood had gone bad and went out and purchased a new one......I use good hoods (Jackson top of the line) after buying the new hood it still kept happening...no matter what shade I used......   I just kinda got used to the burned face and used sun block (that helped some)  I  have heard that some meds are UVA sensitive.....I take a couple meds every morning when I get up....Blood pressure meds and Allopurinol  for gout.  Anyone ever have this happen to them?  Last edited by B_C; 03-26-2011 at 10:40 PM.  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:The autodark helmet should block 99.someodd per-cent of the UV no matter what.. whether or not it has darkened.  The darkening is purely about the visible light.  It also blocks the long-wave IR (heat) no matter what.This is just a super wildass guess, but perhaps there is someone welding behind you or something reflective above/behind you and then the UV is coming in from behind and reflecting off of the inside of the helmet?  If you have sensitive skin, perhaps it does not take much."Great spirits have always encountered violent oppostion from mediocre minds."  --  Albert Einstein
Reply:Yes, some meds can make you more sensitive to UV. light. I rarely sun burn but if I'm on Doxyciclene for sinus infections I'll peel like an onion with very limited exposure to bright sunlight.Tough as nails and damn near as smart
Reply:I haven't run in to that with regular welding BC. Like above, maybe you're getting reflections from all the shiney stuff you work with.I know a few on blood pressure meds, but don't know any that are battling gout.Matt
Reply:Originally Posted by B_CFor the past several years I have been having this going on.  I sometimes sit down and weld a job shop project for 5 hours or more at a time.  Later that night after my shower I notice I have a sunburned nose on the end and my cheeks are tender also.......I immediately assumed that my auto darkening hood had gone bad and went out and purchased a new one......I use good hoods (Jackson top of the line) after buying the new hood it still kept happening...no matter what shade I used......   I just kinda got used to the burned face and used sun block (that helped some)  I  have heard that some meds are UVA sensitive.....I take a couple meds every morning when I get up....Blood pressure meds and Allopurinol  for gout.  Anyone ever have this happen to them?
Reply:I would imagine that after a straight 5 hours of welding, some of that light is going to bounce back into the helmet. Although I have TIG'd aluminum for a straight 8 hour shift for a 40hr week and did not have any sunburn on my face at all. That was with a cheap Harbor Freight auto darkening mask too.Lincoln Precisoin Tig 1851980's Miller plasma cutter.Used to own...Hobart Tig Mate.
Reply:Its likely bouncing off the walls inside your garage.  They are white I take it?  If you know you're going to be welding in one spot for a while I would suggest putting up a black sheet behind your back, it should absorb the extra rays and prevent the burns.Have we all gone mad?
Reply:It also might be coming up from under the helmet, reflecting off of your chest. You might wanna hang a piece of leather down from there, or something, I'd guess... Just a thought...[Account Abandoned 8/8/16 Please Do Not Attempt Contact Or Expect A Reply]. See you on YouTube! -ChuckE2009
Reply:I have white walls in the shop..........My wife's shiny pick up truck is right behind me...and I wear a white hooded sweatshirt ........Hmmmmmmmmm those  could be my sunburned face........I should have known this but just didn't think......Thanks guys...I'll make some changes...  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:If the light was coming from behind into the helmet the back of his ears would be tender, and from below, the under side of his chin would feel it.  Just to confirm direction (like was stated earlier) hang a block from the bottom and from behind, I believe it is coming through the glass ( Slow switching or bad UV blocking) Make sure not to block the switching sensor as I have done.
Reply:Back of my ears and head (Bald spot)  never get beat up?  It is really starting to bug me though, I need to fix the problem right now before I get delivery on my new Dynasty 350 machine because I plan on welding with it a lot....  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:UV rays will not penetrate a welding helmet, even if it is turned off.Have we all gone mad?
Reply:I always thought it was coming in from behind and bouncing off the inside of the plastic shield?  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Maybe it is the allopurinol ?  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Originally Posted by B_CI always thought it was coming in from behind and bouncing off the inside of the plastic shield?
Reply:At my old job I was burning the hell out of my face everyday,so I wore a hoodie sweatshirt with the hood up, under my hood, sunblock on the face in the morning and a piece of leather flap hangin off the bottom of my hood..
Reply:Did that fix the  burned face ?  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Have you looked at what your wearing? Or maybe reflective things around your workspace? We had a issue of folks getting burned from welding all day with a white name tag. Turns out that the white was reflecting the light from TIG under the hood of welders. Just a thought.And FWIW I feel you on the high BP and gout, I have the same problems...
Reply:I don't own white clothing. We had a fair number of TIG students get light burns from reflection off their white garments.Also, use the highest SPF sunscreen you can find.The insides of some helmets aren't really flat black, but should be to reduce reflection. I'm gonna have grab a can of flat black header paint, mask with painters tape, and have at it since I notice some reflection from behind when working outdoors.
Reply:when I'm tig welding I sometimes have a hard time seeing the puddle. I tried a cheater lense & it helps but I noticed that I get some glare off the cheater lense, noticed that I get some glare off the whole inside of my helmet really, & I can't help thinking that's kinda like watching a large screen movie with the lights on... I mean it seems it would be much better viewing overall with the rest of the interior dark.to test my theory & threw my leather jacket over my head & wrapped it round the bottom of the chin opening. bam, problem solved. the interior of the helmet is pitch black & the only thing to see is the window itself. viewabilty was much improved... I could now see in front of the puddle & behind the puddle better, like the contrast has been turned up without the glare.so the next thing I tried was to turn the lights out in the garage, as having my jacket wrapped around my head was not going to cut it.I had just a small light directly above my work & that's it.. when I pulled the helmet down it was completely dark inside... I could only see what there was to see through the lense. I welded it a bit & it was much better with the lights out in my garage, but I noticed that many times the inside was getting lit & having glare anyway... even wearing a dark grey sweatshirt, the light from the arc was without a doubt illuminating the inside of the helmet at times & to varing degrees depending on position & stuff.so yeah, some light will always find it's way in. I plan to make a leather bib & cap to seal it all off, but then the problem becomes you'll die in there, so you need some kind of ventilation system now... you'd be surprised how much better your overall view of the weld is when the rest of your helmet remains pitch dark inside. if you ever have trouble seeing the weld you should try it & see...miller 330a bp TIGmiller dynasty 200DX TIGmillermatic 185 MIGthermal dynamics cutmaster 101 plasma cuttersnap-on YA5550 plasma cutterhypertherm powermax 30 plasma cutterbaileigh CS225 cold sawetc....
Reply:Originally Posted by SR20steveHave you looked at what your wearing? Or maybe reflective things around your workspace? We had a issue of folks getting burned from welding all day with a white name tag. Turns out that the white was reflecting the light from TIG under the hood of welders. Just a thought.And FWIW I feel you on the high BP and gout, I have the same problems...
Reply:I use a speedglass and took a leather glove and cut of a flapper and riveted it to the bottom of my hood so I don't burn my neck and top of my chest. This seems odd to burn where your talking so it must be a reflection. You can try this and see if it helps.
Reply:I will, it makes since and can't hurt....  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock