a welder can't see or smell fire

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Hi again,Yesterday I learned a big lesson.The electrode was to close to some cotton liner and a fire started and I could not see it or smell it ( mask and welding smoke ). Only after the fire was quite big I saw it .
Reply:Yep ! I was welding outside on a cold day. We set up a tarp to keep out the wind and a couple of light bulbs for some heat. Starting welding and felt it getting warmer. Great , heat. Picked up hood only to see the tarp in flames. Not hurt put we gotta get another tarp.My fire watch was inside getting warm.
Reply:Since I kicked Joe Camel out, I can smell alot these days. Like a pile of rags burning from my 6010 spatter. 7018 actually has a smell... Who knew?Lincoln Power MIG 210 MP ( boat anchor )Lincoln Weld-Pac 100 HDHobart IronMan 230Cutmaster 42Jackson NexGenSumner Ultra ClampsDWM120
Reply:I dont smoke but the fumes from electrodes definetely overpower my sense of smell. And yes I can tell the difference between 6010 and 7018 from the smell. 6010 in close quarters tends to make me tear up and choke too (the geniuses at school built no ventilation into the booths) outside is much better for meI try to make sure anything flammable is away from the area before lighting up but it aint always possible of course. If I set something on fire it tends to be my clothjng and I tend to detect that with feelHobart Stickmate LX235AC/160DCRanger 305GVictor 315 O/A rigHope to acquire in the next couple of years: Hypertherm PM45 and Dynasty 200DX
Reply:I tell my co-workers all the time that my sense of smell has deteriorated from all the years of fumes and welding on primed galvanneal. They can smell stuff many times quicker than I can.
Reply:It is all relative. When it smells different, better check your surrounds. Smoke color & smell, stray orange flickering light... not good. I've had to yell "FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!!", like a screamin' banshee only once so far.  Freakin' gasoline. City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:You don't even aware that this might happen to you.You have a fire and can't even see it or smell it.I'm glad it happened to me because now I'm aware of this problem.Never read about it or heard it before .A BIG WELDING LESSON.
Reply:Also, pants or shirts that have holes unraveling with threads hanging....you need to learn when you smell cotton burning,,IT"S YOU!!Used to keep duct tape or masking tape handy for this, worked good.
Reply:Over the years I've learned to pay attention to a difference in smell and lighting. Can actually tell you what's burning by the smell. Not just the basics either,I can smell the difference in different plastics, cotton of coarse, leather, wood, grease, oil, and the list goes on. But the most horrible.....SKIN! Gotta pay attention!Hickory
Reply:I will forever remember the smell of "ironing clothes" means you have set your Army field jacket afire while welding in the cold.
Reply:A lesson to be learned is once our hood is down were in our own world. Sometimes we forget to focus on the other senses we use while were not welding. I have been on job sites where welders were welding and not just catching fire but equipment knocking over jack stands and actually dropping pieces of pipe down on welder's bodies. Point being we have to have some one to help us be our eyes and ears when we are welding. I.E. fire watch, helpers, fitters. I cant even count the times ive been welding and feel warmth on my stomach and look down my shirt is aflame or stuff in my rod bucket is blazing camp fire status. And no firewatch to be found anywhere. Stay safe.
Reply:I always thought of this as a welder's sixth sense.The ability to - while watching the puddle in that dark isolated world behind the shield...-smell exactly what is burning - steel, cloth, plastic, rubber, grease, galvanized, hair, flesh-feel hot spots-see (peripherally) changes in light-sense what the crew is doing around - especially that crane operator, (or that one guy who is compelled to air hump my back because he thinks I wont know) All at the same time while carrying a stellar bead. A skill that has been valuable even when not welding.
Reply:Ah, but it has been said before that the true test of a dedicated weldor is they finish that last few inches of bead or rod before stopping to extinguish the burning shirt/pants/coat . . . MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:Originally Posted by duaneb55Ah, but it has been said before that the true test of a dedicated weldor is they finish that last few inches of bead or rod before stopping to extinguish the burning shirt/pants/coat . . .
Reply:Burn ointment?  What's that?MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:Yeah, more than once out here on our farm I've welded a bead, stopped, flipped the helmet up and whoa, the grass nearby is going up in flames.  This is really something to pay attention to, especially if you're welding alone.-RuarkLincoln 3200HDHobart Stickmate LX235TWECO Fabricator 211i
Reply:Can I use any kind of leather or do I have to buy special kind of leather to protect the area ?What is better to buy ?   the MILLER   or  the  LINCOLN leather jacket ?
Reply:When I was in high school ag class our instructor told us that a real weldor was somebody who when doing an overhead weld, and a ball of slag falls down his shirt and ends up next to the knut sack, he just flinches a little and keeps on welding.
Reply:Originally Posted by duaneb55Ah, but it has been said before that the true test of a dedicated weldor is they finish that last few inches of bead or rod before stopping to extinguish the burning shirt/pants/coat . . .