A good friend of mine spent 5 years building a boat out of wood and epoxy and is unable to work with epoxy anymore - not without his fingernails falling off and his skin splitting down to the bone......

Another good friend of mine died in a kayak - wrapped around a rock in a river - unable to get out - while training with the British Army.....

Which possibly all goes to prove that some things are preventable (my first friend rarely wore protective gloves or barrier creams) and others are bad luck (the second friend was an victim of early roto-moulded boats which had a tendency to fold up around you - but no one knew it at the time). These days I live in America and sadly feel compelled to put a disclaimer at the bottom of every page on this site (have you read it?).

The real point of this page however is that I haven't read many hobby kayak web sites that stress you can hurt your self in the workshop and that nearly all shop accidents are preventable!

Hobby builders should set themselves the same safety standards as a commercial operation working under their country's health and safety standards. The job didn't get any safer because you brought it into your home workshop - and in many ways the job just got more dangerous because you don't enforce the same standard of personal safety on yourself. The following is by no means a complete list of what will make you safe - but it is a start.

Building

• If you smoke - don't do it in the shop - never mind the fire risk - paint and varnish fumes inhaled through a cigarette can produce even more toxins than the cigarette alone.
• If you need to eat - clean up before doing so and eat outside the shop. Don't ingest wood, epoxy or varnish dust.
• If you need a drink to rehydrate - clean up before doing so and drink outside the shop. Don't....etc.etc.
• You only have one pair of eyes. Wear safety glasses. If they are uncomfortable - go buy a pair that ARE comfortable.
• You only have one pair of lungs. Wear appropriate respiratory protection - dust masks appropriate to the dust you are producing, respirators appropriate to the fumes from epoxy, varnish etc. If they are uncomfortable to wear - try another brand. Two pot varnishes and paints give tremendous results but are extremely hazardous to your health - especially in the typical hobbyist's shop which has no forced draft extraction. There is a reason that commercial sprayshops have their paint crews in paper suits, respirators and even air fed hoods.....
• You only have one pair of ears. Earplugs when sanding and grinding. Those kayaks are GREAT soundboxes.......
• DO NOT get epoxy or varnish on your skin (the cause of my first friend's problem). Long term exposure sensitizes your body and there is no way back or recovery from sensitization. Wear barriers such as creams and latex (or PVC if you are allergic to latex) gloves EVERY time you use epoxy.
• After work and if you are dusty - shower in very cool water with lots of soap. In this way you will wash off the dust rather than open your pores in hot water and have the dust enter your skin surface - causing itching and possibly excema.
• Keep an eyewash handy just in case
• Keep a gallon jug of white vinegar handy to flush and neutralize epoxy spills on you.
• READ and take heed of the product use and safety warnings on all the products you use. You might be surprised at how they should be safely used!

Paddling

I can't even BEGIN to talk about safety in this area.

I'm not qualified (you can tell from the picture - right!) though we offer some tips on the "Trials" page.

There are plenty of good references and courses out there. Start here with the British Canoe Union.

For those in North America - try a Google Search for BCU courses - which are offered by many US and Canadian kayak centers.

 

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