So asbestos is super dangerous to your lungs. It’s tiny, and sharp, so your lungs can’t remove it using mucus etc as it would with other dusts/particles.
*That makes sense.*
But what about fibreglass insulation – it’s tiny little super sharp glass fibres that (in my head) aren’t much different to fibreglass.
What about fine sand, or even diatomaceous earth which is famous for its ability to kill bugs/insects BECAUSE it’s super sharp on a micro level?
^For ^the ^flair, ^not ^sure ^if ^this ^is ^a ^biology, ^physics ^or ^chemstry ^question. ^I’m ^hoping ^’bio’ ^is ^OK.
^I ^just ^finished ^insulating ^the ^loft ^with ^my ^father-in-law. ^I ^wore ^a ^respirator, ^he ^didn’t ^(too ^’proud’?) ^- ^I’m ^fine, ^just ^itchy ^skin, ^but ^he’s ^had ^a ^bad ^cough ^for ^a ^few ^days.
In: 4960
https://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/publications/working-fibreglass
“ Continuous glass filament is too thick to be breathed into the lungs.”
Here’s the official view on fibreglass from an Australian state government organisation
I find it hard to understand myself, as I was trained that all dust (even sanding timber) should be avoided.
Edit “Typically, glass wool insulation fibres are between 5 and 10 microns in diameter (a micron is one thousandth of a millimetre). However a small proportion of the fibres are fine enough (less than 3 microns in diameter) to be breathed into the lungs.”
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