OSHA's Silica Dust Exposure Law

Effective Date:? 23 June 2016, Compliance Date:? 23 June 2017.

Are You In Compliance?

The Dust Director? has been used and has figured prominently in just about every silica dust control study since its inception in 2001.

How about Your Vacuum?

Does your vacuum have enough CFM to handle your wheel’s diameter?

OSHA’s Silica Dust Exposure Law – Requires the following CFM Rating: 25 CFM or greater per inch of wheel diameter. For example, a 7″ wheel needs 175 CFM (7″ x 25 CFM).

Final Rule – CFM Requirements

To comply with OSHA’s Silica Dust Exposure Law, one of your first steps is to select a vacuum or cyclone that has enough CFM to handle the diameter of the grinding or cutting wheel that you will be using. Use the chart and information below to help you select the vacuum that will have enough CFM.

AIRFLOW HEPA FILTER SYSTEM - Background, Filter Information

AIRFlow HEPA Filtration – the Ultimate Filter System? The AIRFlow HEPA Filter System includes a HEPA Efficiency Pleated Cartridge Filter and your choice to use the Clean Extreme Filter Collection Bags or the Self-Cleaning Flutter Filter:

DUST DIRECTOR’s CLEAN EXTREME HEPA CARTRIDGE FILTER.

Utilizing state of the art manufacturing and in house testing, the filter has been specifically designed to provide the performance required for the proper operation of a Dust Director? Vacuum.

Wet & Dry Use + HEPA Rated + Longer Life with Applied PTFE Membrane: The Non-stick Dust Release & Water Shredding PTFE Membrane enhances the filter’s capabilities in several areas, including filtration efficiency (meets or exceeds a HEPA rating), cake release, cake prevention, “extreme” service life.

A filter’s base fabric is typically made of woven or felted synthetic fibers, natural fibers or fiberglass. The membrane is a mechanically applied surface treatment (extremely thin, from 0.4 to 10.0 mils) that requires the filter’s fabric for support.

Benefits of the Expanded PTFE in Dust Collection Applications:

Increases Filtration Efficiency to help meet EPA-mandated limits on exhaust emissions while providing the following benefits:

1. Provides surface filtration rather than depth filtration (which is provided by conventional filter fabric). Surface filtration keeps the captured dust particles away from becoming impregnated into the base fabric, thus reducing fabric abrasion and extending the filter’s service life. With longer service life you won’t need to change the filter nearly as often which reduces your replacement cost and downtime during operations.
2. Reduce pressure drop, cut energy (motor) costs. The membrane typically prevents pressure drop across the filter by about 10 percent. This in turn cuts wear on the vacuum’s motor(s) while reducing power consumption by as much as 33 percent!
3. Extreme Dust Cake Release / Extreme Dust Cake Prevention. The expanded PTFE membrane is slicker than a conventional filter fabric and it easily releases any dust cake during cleaning.
4. Most people purchase a vacuum cleaner based on improvements or features of the vacuum cleaner. The vacuum’s cartridge filter alone, applied with a PTFE membrane, will increase the vacuum’s performance by as much as 25 percent – thereby increasing production rates for your entire operational process.
5. Extreme & Diverse Applications. The expanded PTFE membrane can withstand the most abusive of applications, dry or wet, and temperatures up to 600?F — highly suitable for high-temperature applications such as when removing hot mastics. Additionally, as stated, the filter is complete washable.
6. 6) While the PTFE membrane increases the filter’s and vacuum’s cost, the initial cost is offset by improved filtration efficiency, vacuum performance and longer filter life.

CLEAN EXTREME FILTER COLLECTION BAGS (3 included per vacuum):

With a Clean Extreme Filter Bag installed you can expect to collect large volumes of silica dust – to the tank’s inlet port – without incurring suction drop or without the filter bag tearing or accidentally bursting inside the tank.

Improve Productivity. How many times are you stopping to clean or maintain the vacuum’s filter or having to empty the tank all too often? With a Clean Extreme Filter Bag installed, suction power stops when dust begins to exit through the tank’s 2″ inlet port — fine powders collected and contained within the Clean Extreme Filter Bag will not cause blinding (i.e. the powder will not cake the bag’s lining, suction is not diminished.)

When vacuuming any type of power, for hours at a time and you happen to notice suction drop . . . With a Dust Director Vacuum you simply turn off the vacuum, doing so will cause the Clean Extreme Filter Bag to deflate; when you turn the vacuum on the bag inflates and suction resumes 100% ~ Guaranteed.

Are you grinding dry and you come across wet concrete, stone or mortar? No problem – Clean Extreme Filter Bags work even better when the surface is damp!

Besides maintaining suction and collecting large volumes of powder without suction drop, Clean Extreme Filter Bags also collect: Moist debris, sharp objects and hot mastics ALL AT THE SAME TIME. Additionally, when you remove the filter bag you’ll notice that the inside that the inside of the tank, the outside of the bag and the HEPA cartridge filter are “clean”:

Clean Extreme Filter Bags: Collects anything – powders to sludge – they fill to capacity, powders do not blind suction, no accidental bursting or tearing inside the tank or while being handled during disposal, and everything stays clean ~ Guaranteed.

FLUTTER FILTER – Optional Filter.

The Flutter Filter is a self-cleaning drop-in filter that may be used instead of the Clean Extreme Filter Collection Bag. As soon as the vacuum is turned on the tightly weaved “but loose fitting” Flutter Filter beings to flutter and shake, using the air speed and turbulence inside the collection tank to create its motion.

Constantly and naturally in motion, dry debris and roughly 50% of the powders are kept from blinding the surface of the Flutter Filter and causing suction drop.

Additionally, to help prevent blinding while the vacuum is on, a floating filter cage inside the Flutter Filter swings freely and loosely as it shakes and knocks itself about using the air speed and turbulence inside the collection tank.

When you’re on a job site it’s nice to have options . . . with a Dust Director? Industrial Vacuum Cleaner you’re able to use either the Clean Extreme Filter Bags or the Flutter Filter.

The Clean Extreme Filter Bags are the absolute best filter system on the market for collecting “large volumes” of silica dust while maintaining maximum suction performance and for keeping everything clean inside the tank and even during removing and handling ~ everything is kept clean and there isn’t a mess.

But the Flutter Filter works impressively as well, reduces or eliminates the cost of replacement filter bags, uses no electronics to shake or pulse itself clean and it is completely re-useable and washable.

Flutter Filter – Specifications, Additional Features:

• High Efficiency Filter Media, 96.5 @ 0.3 microns
• Dry powders do not impregnate the material like commonly used “felt” filters
• Keeps the vacuum’s HEPA Cartridge Filter from caking. While it may become dusty it will not cake.
• Durable – Completely Washable
• Versatile – Collects dry or wet debris without compromising its effectiveness.

Still Using a Standard Wet / Dry Vacuum as a Dust Extractor?

Compare & Consider

…Shop Vac and Rigid Vacuums have their place. We all have one.

With OSHA’s Final Rule: You Will Get Fined Using a Non-Compliance Dust Extractor.

KNOW THE RULE:

OSHA’s Final Rule to Protect Workers from Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica

Rule requires engineering controls (tools and equipment) to keep workers from breathing silica dust.

What is Respirable Silica Dust? These tiny particles (known as “respirable” particles) can penetrate deep into workers’ lungs and cause silicosis, an incurable and sometimes fatal lung disease. Crystalline silica exposure puts workers at risk for developing lung cancer and other possible debilitating respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary and kidney disease.

How Much Respirable Silica Dust is Safe to Breath? OSHA has issued their Final Rule to curb these respirable and kidney diseases in America’s work force by limiting a worker’s exposure to respirable crystalline silica to 50 micrograms per cubic over an 8-hour shift.

What Does 50 Micrograms of Respirable Silica Dust Look Like? A good example may be one of those small paper packets of sugar or artificial sweeteners found in restaurants.

When used to demonstrate the dust concentration inside a building, the size of a football field (100 yards x 53 yards x 14′ high). The weight of one of those little packets is 53 micrograms, which is slightly over the PEL (permissible exposure limit) for Silica Dust of 50 micrograms.

Such a fine dispersing of dust at this concentration would essentially be invisibility. It is also enough to put the workers at risk by contaminating the work area — the size of a football field x 14′ high.

OSHA’s Respirable Silica Dust Law – Effective: 23 June 2016. Since 1999, the Dust Director? has been involved with various organizations aimed at improving the health and safety on construction sites. On a meeting, dated 23 April 2014, the Dust Director? was invited to participate in a discussion about OSHA’s upcoming Silia Dust Standard. Besides the representatives from OSHA, the following organizations were also present:

• NIOSH
• CPWR (Center for Construction Research and Training)
• Various university research scientists and professors
• Health and environmentalist
• Mike Kassman, National Safety Coordinator for the International Masonry Institute (IMI)
• Jerry Scarano, Vice President of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craft Workers (BAC).

In past meetings, by the use of various air testing meters, NIOSH determined that the Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) of a worker being exposed to silica dust should not be greater than 93.4. [On record, NIOSH tested the Dust Director? System (dust control guard and vacuum), and determined the complete system “provided the greatest reduction of capturing silica dust at 94% than any other vacuum and dust guard that was tested.]

Currently, to simplify the understanding and importance of containing silica dust exposure, OSHA and all parties involved, have adopted the buzz phase of “visible dust,” as their measurement of whether silica exposure is being sufficiently contained for both the workers and public.

CASE STUDY: Dust Left to Fly from a Skyscraper

An interesting case study was provided by a Detroit contractor who was tuck pointing at a high rise office building in downtown Detroit, 35 floors above the sidewalks. A summarization of his findings on silica dust exposure is as follows:

• Two workers were tuck pointing an office building, 35 floors up, without the use of dust control
• The thinking was, to leave the silica fly and let it disburse into the sky . . . that it wouldn’t harm anyone or anything
• As the safety coordinator for the company, he monitored the air quality of his workers
• His air quality readings were as follows:
  • Employee “A” was working in air quality that measured 85 times over the NIOSH established PEL
  • Employee “B”, working downstream from employee “A”, was receiving a concentrated dose of dust as his air quality measured 135 times over the PEL!

While this case study shows how “visible dust” may be seen, more importantly was the moral obligation we need to take for our construction workers, the public, and the environment.

Dust Emissions — Does Your Vacuum Leak Dust?

Check your vacuum! With OSHA’S “No Visible Dust Law”, is there a gasket beneath the motor head to seal the tank?

With the OSHA ruling You will get fined using a vacuum that leaks.

• With a Dust Director? Vacuum, Like-New Suction is Every Time –
  Unlike other vacuum cleaners where the same cartridge filter is used again and again and again . . .
• With a Dust Directo? Vacuum, the HEPA cartridge filter stays clean.
  While it may get dusted, it will never become caked ~ Guaranteed.

Urethane Motor Head Gasket. Beneath the motor head of every Dust Director? Vacuum & Cyclone is a poured-in-place urethane gasket that is used to ensure a positive airtight seal between the motor head and its tank. Commonly used shop vacuums and even higher priced vacuums will use foam or nothing at all.

The urethane gasket ensures against dust leakage into your work area and prevents even the slightest loss of vacuum which would naturally reduce suction power. Many wonder how the suction of a Dust Director? Vacuum and Cyclone seems so much more powerful than other brands, one of the reasons is the urethane gasket.

Dust Director’s Increase in Suction Power? While a complete Dust Director System (vacuum and dust guard) have been successfully monitored by NIOSH to operate within the guidelines of their established PEL, a very important feature in all of the Dust Director? Vacuums and Cyclones is the poured-in place urethane gasket.

While some vacuums use foam as a gasket, 90% of all vacuums use nothing! This startling statistic includes vacuum’s that cost well over $2000 dollars. While the Rigid vacuum, for example, does not use any type of gasket (while leaking profusely), the consensus among morally conscience contractors is a Rigid vacuum is simply not designed to be used for silica dust containment.

Dust Director? vs. the Competition:

On a visit to masonry tuck pointers in Chicago and Detroit, the suction power of the Dust Director? Vacuums was compared to the Bosch 3931 Airsweep, Hilti VC20 and Fein Turbo I vacuums. Simply by placing our hand over the inlet port of each vacuum, the following was the agreed upon results:

• Dust Director? Model DD1000: 15% greater suction vs. Bosch & Fein, 25% greater suction vs. Hilti
• Dust Director? Model DD1200: Easily 20% greater suction than the DD1000
• Both Dust Director? models where considerably lighter than Bosch, Fein and the Hilti vacuums.

Testimonials

Feedback from Hardwood Floor Contractors

I should have bought the 2-Motor – we haven’t used the 3rd Motor yet

(Customer purchase our DC 3-Motor Vacuum)

The vacuums hold so much dust. And there isn’t any filter maintenance. The filters simply don’t clog, they just keep sucking dust.

We have a few of those real expensive pulse vacuums and the dust lays in the hose. We’re always having to lift and shake the hoses to get the dust out of them.

Decorative Concrete Floor Contractor, Thousands Oaks, CA

The Clean Extreme Filter Bag is remarkable. We fill the bags completely and there isn’t one spec of dust on the cartridge filter . . . The vacuums are work horses…

Wood Sanding Contractor, Califon, New Jersey