Can I get sued if someone goes blind looking at me welding?
 

Might be/might be not a obvious answer but I need other people's opinions, but could I get sued if someone walking by starts looking at what I'm doing while welding?

(don't have a very secluded area or welding wall things or w.e)

I think people should be smart enough to look away from it rather than stare at it.

I'll bet you an idiot with the right lawyer may probably be able to pull off a lawsuit. If not here, then maybe in the states

noob question: how does staring at welding spark make a person blind? parents always said look away, but never say why when I asked :(

:suspicious: What the fuck kind of thread is this?


Welding sparks are extremely bright, if you stare at where exactly it's being welded it's about the same as staring at the sun directly.

Technically I would think you could get sued.. Blindness is pretty much considered bodily harm..

Apply the principle to something else.. Instead of welding, what if you were taking a sledgehammer to some old furniture and a piece of wood hits someone in the face?

Yeah, it'd be stupid for someone to walk by while you're doing that, or to stare while you're welding.. But I don't think you'd have much to say if the judge asked if you took any safety precautions to prevent any accidents..

I think PJ's got it.

If you fail to take the necessary safety precautions to protect a person in the vicinity of you welding, that might be grounds for a law suit. I suppose you could argue the person should not have stared directly at you welding, but I don't think that would be an adequate defense.

Buy a curtain. If you have limited space and can't find one that's collapsible it would be simple to make something.
6 x 6 ft Portable Welding Screen | Princess Auto

the uv rays and brightness while welding is so extreme its comparable to as if you were to stare directly in the sun or while there is a eclipse. pretty much if you stare at it for more then 10 seconds the tissues in your eyes get burned and all is forever lost :alone:

@pj: yeah thought of that pretty much, but I've seen CoV workers, welding the fence on kensington community center along knight without any curtains so that got me thinking (cause i have a tendency to look at bright things lulzz)
thought i could also probably put signs just before each side of the sidewalks of my house just to warn people too.. i've seen some workers post signs a few meters away from their welding site
along with a few blockades :alone:


@mindbomber curtains pricey :alone: probably just put a blanket over everything with me under it and weld lulzzzz, catch on fire GG. or buy some poster paper and tape it on chairs and put it all around me lol

I have seen middle-aged bodyshop men welding w/o a mask. seemed totally eff'd up to me.

I think if you have visible signage nearby stating not to look at the welders while they're operating, it would be a good start to protect yourself.

i've wondered this myself. when i was building the new box for one of my trucks in my back alley after i finished a bead i looked up and there was a guy standing behind me watching.


i dont know if i would say the sledgehammer/furniture analogy is what i would use.

that sort of implies negligence on your part causing pieces of what you are doing to physically fly at someone. similar to if someone got hit by a rock flung off of your weed whacker if you were whacking weeds along a sidewalk. your fault because you should either stop, block off the area, or take safety precautions if people are nearby.

i would say its more a long the lines of you having a fire burning (legally), and someone walked thru it.

I remember when I was arc welding one time.. and after doing some adjustments, I forgot to pull my mask back down.. Tapped the rod, and the flash blinded me so much that I took a couple steps back in recoil.

coolstorybro

not really a high traffic area for me, but just afraid a neighbor might walk out of their house and want to peak at what is so bright lol

kinda can imagine a kid reading a sign i've posted and wonder what is welding and runs over to see whats going on though sadly :alone:
prob take precautions anyways... :woot2:

Yeah it was kind of just the first thing that came to mind. But I'm sure we all get the idea.

I'm trying to think of something more fitting, but can't seem to find one :okay:

Regardless, whenever questioning safety of others, just ask yourself if you took the right precautions to prevent accidents.

@OP, just buy the screen or make something.. It's unlikely that anything would happen.. just think of it as cheap insurance I guess


Haha that's usually how it goes.. You tell a kid not to touch something.. the first thing they do is touch it.

the welding arc can be brighter than the sun
looking at it would be a VERY bad idea

also
OP

at the office (we have a steel fab shop in the back), we had to make some temp (1 day use) screens for a rush job. we just doubled up on some black garbage bags and taped them to a frame made with steel tubing.
worked quite well though make sure you keep it away from the sparks unless you want melting plastic.

If someone can get within 40 feet of you, put up a screen. Otherwise you're good.

The arc is usually pretty small, and can be obscured from stupid onlookers with a small 1x1" plate, toolbox, or whatever. I usually try to weld so that any passerbys would be behind me, and the arc would be shielded by my body.

I would suggest if someone is too dumb to look away from a welding arc, they should sue their parents for raising them stupid.

its like a firework :alone:

what do you guys say if its in my backyard... with a fence thats about 8ft high? but people who are on balconies can visibly see still? would you considering it "enough precautions" or i still gotta set up a a barrier :alone:?

I got sued for being too good looking. So you might.

Walk next door, and tell your neighbours that you'll be welding.
If they get Flashed, they're idiots.
But getting flashed doesn't really do enough damage to get sued. It'll be hard for them to prove.

Photokeratitis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I get flashed everyday at work. So now I just walk around like an asshole with my helmet down.

Someone on a balcony would be pretty far away. Since you are working in your backyard I'm gonna assume you won't be welding at very high amperages nor for very long durations. In that case I'm sure there will be no problems with arc flash. That being said, putting up a barrier would be the considerate thing to do.

What are you welding anyway?

yes, take adequate precautions as mentioned, signage, screens, a notice of intent to residents, etc anything to protect yourself and others

Over time welders that look at this constant bright spark can give them the worst migraines, even when wearing a welding mask.

so yea never look at the light

wow 10 seconds and blind. welding is serious business.
learn something new every day.

my welder is only 70amps anyways :alone: just welding a bolt on a screw cause it stripped and a damn extractor wouldnt take it off lolol (not worth getting sued over, over welding a damn bolt :alone:)

If you get flashed for 10 seconds you won't go blind, another tip if you are working beside welders just wear clear safety glasses like uvex with uv protection. I worked beside welders for 8 hours a day at the shipyard and had no flash issues. Make sure to wear sunscreen if your skin/face will be exposed as well. 70amps is nothing.