I have a virgin older model (late 90's-2000) mid-size Gold Buddy drywasher (blower-type) that I want to use in the near future and need to know the proper type of dust-mask to use for staying away from "valley fever"? I bought this new in Prescott Valley Arizona but at the time I was so addicted to "nugget shooting" I never took the time to use it...though I probably would of had better luck finding more gold doing so in some locations? Ha!
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Protection from "valley fever"?
- Thread starter Walknstik
- Start date
Sorry to hear that Tom
Valley fever is the biggest concern for me when it comes to drywashing and at my age I don't want any part of it. I knew some guys out in Arizona that operated drywashers and they never talked much about the fever nor did they ever wear a dust mask. I will have to do some more research regarding proper dust mask to use while drywashing cause from what I gather not all dust masks will protect you from valley fever.?
Valley fever is the biggest concern for me when it comes to drywashing and at my age I don't want any part of it. I knew some guys out in Arizona that operated drywashers and they never talked much about the fever nor did they ever wear a dust mask. I will have to do some more research regarding proper dust mask to use while drywashing cause from what I gather not all dust masks will protect you from valley fever.?You can check out this TEA link.
http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/GeneralHospitalDevicesandSupplies/PersonalProtectiveEquipment/ucm055977.htm
A good quality N95 particulate respirator works well but is restrictive enough to be irritating when working hard and breathing deep The one with one way valve are a little better.
http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/GeneralHospitalDevicesandSupplies/PersonalProtectiveEquipment/ucm055977.htm
A good quality N95 particulate respirator works well but is restrictive enough to be irritating when working hard and breathing deep The one with one way valve are a little better.
Thanks for the information and link ArizFlash
I can certainly understand the inconvenience of wearing one but then again "Valley Fever" would be more of an inconvenience for me. Not too long ago I read where a prospector made some sort of a shroud to contain/control the dust being emitted from the riffle box? Lately Keene has come out with a "dustless" dry washer but it looks mighty big to haul in my small Jeep.
I assembled my Gold Buddy drywasher in the living room trying to figure out a way to keep the dust down and may have one idea. My riffle box has a nice even top that could support a homemade clear plexiglass dust shroud as long as I can still view the riffle flow in action?
I can certainly understand the inconvenience of wearing one but then again "Valley Fever" would be more of an inconvenience for me. Not too long ago I read where a prospector made some sort of a shroud to contain/control the dust being emitted from the riffle box? Lately Keene has come out with a "dustless" dry washer but it looks mighty big to haul in my small Jeep. I assembled my Gold Buddy drywasher in the living room trying to figure out a way to keep the dust down and may have one idea. My riffle box has a nice even top that could support a homemade clear plexiglass dust shroud as long as I can still view the riffle flow in action?
One advantage, once you've been exposed to the mold that causes the fever, you're immune to future infections (though an existing infection could reoccur at a future date).
I recently had a CAT scan done (unrelated to the valley fever) and they found some suspicious spots on my lung. After conducting some more tests they determined it was valley fever...which caused quite a stir locally as it's rarely encountered here in Ohio. I had phone calls from the health department (apparently it's a disease they're required to track), questionnaires to fill out, etc. I had the impression the doctors and health department staff were enjoying the novelty of it all.
Anyway, I was one of the 40% who never had any symptoms. Most people if they're fairly young and healthy just have flu or cold like symptoms. In rare cases it can be fatal (usually the very young, old or those with compromised immune systems). An interesting side note is that African Americans and Filipino's are more likely to get serious infections than the rest of the population.
The irony of it is there's a local mold spore that can also cause similar lung scaring and it infects about 80% of the local population...I tested negative for that one even though I've lived here practically all my life!
(I think I acquired my fever on my first trip to the Phoenix area, possibly while my friend and I were doing some hiking in the desert....)
I recently had a CAT scan done (unrelated to the valley fever) and they found some suspicious spots on my lung. After conducting some more tests they determined it was valley fever...which caused quite a stir locally as it's rarely encountered here in Ohio. I had phone calls from the health department (apparently it's a disease they're required to track), questionnaires to fill out, etc. I had the impression the doctors and health department staff were enjoying the novelty of it all.
Anyway, I was one of the 40% who never had any symptoms. Most people if they're fairly young and healthy just have flu or cold like symptoms. In rare cases it can be fatal (usually the very young, old or those with compromised immune systems). An interesting side note is that African Americans and Filipino's are more likely to get serious infections than the rest of the population.
The irony of it is there's a local mold spore that can also cause similar lung scaring and it infects about 80% of the local population...I tested negative for that one even though I've lived here practically all my life!
(I think I acquired my fever on my first trip to the Phoenix area, possibly while my friend and I were doing some hiking in the desert....)
Tom Slick said:
I'm not sure a mask would work...IIRC, valley fever is caused by a mold. I imagine I've probably already had it, but will never know...My advise would be to not worry about it....try to stay upwind if dry washing and just have fun....I'd be more concerned with rattlesnakes and other such vermin....
The flimsy white masks will not stop particulates and are a complete waste of money. They do not seal around your face so don't be fooled by them. A true respirator would be required to stop the particulates from the mold. However, NO ONE should ever wear a respirator without being tested first. If you are a smoker you will not be able to wear a respirator because you have already severely damaged your lungs and won't be able to breathe through the respirator. It takes a lot of effort to breathe through a respirator and if you are not tested and pass the test you could end up damaging your lungs and possibly die from using one. Even a very healthy person with no lung problems will get fatigued quickly wearing one.
If you pass the test and get properly fitted for a respirator (they are all made differently so one size does NOT fit all) you will not be able to do hard work with it on. Getting tested and fitted for a respirator is not cheap and should be done only by a trained professional.
Another note, Valley Fever is only one of the extreme dangers of drywashing. Silicosis is a condition that happens over a period of time and you will not notice any problems until it is too late. There is no way to reverse this.
Silica particles are normal in the air we breathe and are invisible to the eye, but when those particles are concentrated, a person can breath in too many of them. These particles are too small to breathe back out so they get trapped in your wet lungs and because the edges are razor sharp they cut the surface of your lungs which causes bleeding and eventually scar tissue develops. These areas never heal because the silica is never removed and continues to cut the lung tissue. Once scar tissue develops, your lungs ability to absorb oxygen from the air decreases. Over time and continued exposure the problem gets worse to the point that you will have extreme difficulty walking up stairs without difficulty breathing.
I am not posting all this to scare people but to warn you all of the potential problems you can face with this kind of mining. If you know the risks and feel you still want to do it go for it, but you have been warned and can't say you did not know.
If you pass the test and get properly fitted for a respirator (they are all made differently so one size does NOT fit all) you will not be able to do hard work with it on. Getting tested and fitted for a respirator is not cheap and should be done only by a trained professional.
Another note, Valley Fever is only one of the extreme dangers of drywashing. Silicosis is a condition that happens over a period of time and you will not notice any problems until it is too late. There is no way to reverse this.
Silica particles are normal in the air we breathe and are invisible to the eye, but when those particles are concentrated, a person can breath in too many of them. These particles are too small to breathe back out so they get trapped in your wet lungs and because the edges are razor sharp they cut the surface of your lungs which causes bleeding and eventually scar tissue develops. These areas never heal because the silica is never removed and continues to cut the lung tissue. Once scar tissue develops, your lungs ability to absorb oxygen from the air decreases. Over time and continued exposure the problem gets worse to the point that you will have extreme difficulty walking up stairs without difficulty breathing.
I am not posting all this to scare people but to warn you all of the potential problems you can face with this kind of mining. If you know the risks and feel you still want to do it go for it, but you have been warned and can't say you did not know.
Thanks for all the additional information regarding "valley fever" ...caheaton, tomtowns and watchdr! Seems like most of the drywashing videos I've watched the miners aren't wearing any type of protection. As I stated earlier I knew some guys in Arizona that drywashed and they never used any protection...to me that seemed a little risky from what I've heard it could do to a person? I wonder how many people have been infected when they are caught in those monsoon dust storms and dust devils that are common for that region
Silica isn't the only naturally occurring element that can damage your lungs....asbestos is another....many people don't know this but quite often the dirt/gravel roads we travel on contain particles of asbestos in the dust...along with a myriad of potentially harmful pathogens from molds, animal fecal matter etc. etc. "hanta virus" comes to mind too... like watchdr said these "dust masks" are of little value in protecting us from exposure...
The best thing you can do is not worry too much about breathing it in, but avoid it as best you can and enjoy yourself....I'm not even gonna mention how many creeks I've drank from...as good as the human immune system is, none of us are gonna make it out alive...
The best thing you can do is not worry too much about breathing it in, but avoid it as best you can and enjoy yourself....I'm not even gonna mention how many creeks I've drank from...as good as the human immune system is, none of us are gonna make it out alive...
What if you had some sort of water mist spraying the dry washing area like they use in the grocery store on the veggies?
Sounds like a water recirculating system would actually be safer.
I had issues with breathing dust in Arizona in the late sixties as a kid.
We had some nasty dust storms blow up on us at times too, worse than heavy fog. Would not want to be driving in one.
I better stick to highbanking and detecting.
-Tom
Sounds like a water recirculating system would actually be safer.
I had issues with breathing dust in Arizona in the late sixties as a kid.
We had some nasty dust storms blow up on us at times too, worse than heavy fog. Would not want to be driving in one.
I better stick to highbanking and detecting.
-Tom
Tom when working those dry-washers the soil has to be DRY for best results. To be honest I would rather use a water system but hauling enough water in a small Jeep is not practical. My main plan is to snipe bedrock crevices /benches,raking old dry-washing piles and searching old mine dumps for specimens using a couple of VLF gold detectors for the most part 