Safety Notice:
This Testor’s glue is the kind that sits in the little triangular bottle with the applicator tip. I just read the warning label. It contains Xylene!
Wikipedia on Xylene toxicology:
I thought this was the same stuff that was found in the testors roll tube. Anybody know if the roll tube kind has Xylene? I liked this kind because it because it was easy to apply and held the parts together well.
Oh well back to gap filling CA for me!
Every type of plastic cement contains some sort of solvent like that, and most of them have some sort of neurological effects if concentrated and inhaled. You just have to make sure to have plenty of ventilation while you’re using it.
Even CA has its problems…ever gotten a strong whiff of THOSE fumes? [xx(]
Are you seriously quoting Wikipedia at us about health concerns??? I could log into Wiki and change it so that Xylene whitens teeth and adds 50 points to your IQ. Does that make it true?
If you want to start a serious discussion about the health risks of modeling cement, bring a serious source to the table, not Wiki.
Paul A. Cutler III
Weather Or No Go New Haven
The tube type (red and white) contains tuluene and oil of mustard.
Hmmm… I was wondering how I ended up the way I am! [swg]
stay in a well ventilated area, you will be fine.
Absolutely! I don’t know of any glue other than white glue that is even remotely non-toxic. CA glue certainly does not fit into a non-toxic category. They all have their fumes and all of those fumes are harmful if inhaled in any concentrated way or for prolonged periods of time. Then again cigarrettes will make you dizzy, have all sorts of poisons in them and are proven killers but people inhale them all the time…makes a guy wonder… [:-^]
Goes good on hot dogs…
B
Good point about Wiki…
It stands for What I Know Is… [D)]
Okie Dokie:
From http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/chem_profiles/xylene/health_xyl.html
From http://cira.ornl.gov/documents/XYLENE.pdf
It’s not as bad as toluene. However, you should be careful with it, as it absorbs through the skin.
Is the Agency of Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) serious enough for you?
Scientists have found that the three forms of xylene have very similar effects on health. No health effects have been noted at the background levels that people are exposed to on a daily basis. Short-term exposure of people to high levels of xylene can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, nose, and throat; difficulty in breathing; impaired function of the lungs; delayed response to a visual stimulus; impaired memory; stomach discomfort; and possible changes in the liver and kidneys. Both short- and long-term exposure to high concentrations of xylene can also cause a number of effects on the nervous system, such as headaches, lack of muscle coordination, dizziness, confusion, and changes in one’s sense of balance. Some people exposed to very high levels of xylene for a short period of time have died. Most of the information on health effects in humans exposed for long periods of time is from studies of workers employed in industries that make or use xylene. Those workers were exposed to levels of xylene in air far greater than the levels normally encountered by the general population. Many of the effects seen after their exposure to xylene could have been caused by exposure to other chemicals that were in the air with xylene.
Results of studies in animals indicate that large amounts of xylene can cause changes in the liver and harmful effects on the kidneys, lungs, heart, and nervous system. Short-term exposure to very high concentrations of xylene causes death in animals, as well as muscular spasms, incoordination, hearing loss, changes in behavior, changes in organ weights, and changes in enzyme activity. Animals that were exposed to xylene on their skin had irritation and inflammation of the skin. Long-term exposure of animals to low concentrations of xylene has not been well studied, but there is some information that long-term exposure of animals can
I am not trying to be dismissive but,
Life causes cancer.
What is the toxicity level for Xylene? The levels I have seen on the net suggest greater than 200ppm and that it’s real problem is when it is mixed with toluene, gasoline, btuyl acetate, ethayl acetate and whole bunch of other -tates and -enes and -tones. By itself toxicity well under 200ppm, at 400ppm. It has no carcongenic effect and in adult and teens the worst than can develop is non Hodgkins Lymphoma and this has only been observed in a very small minority of cases and can’t be linked to Xylene at all. What is more likely is that you will end up with a slight headache or an irritated lung, and that’s pretty much if you are mainlining the stuff.
Note to all: Look’s like I picked a bad day to stop sniffing glue.
A peer reviewed study I found so no problems below 435mg/m^3. So I doubt very much that your Testors cement is going to be a problem.
Oh and the body can move this stuff through it’s system easily enough. It doesn’t bond with anything critical in the body. So you shouldn’t have too much of a problem continuing to use it. Making it, I could understand your concerns, in the quantities that we use it’s a non-issue.
And I see no good reason to accelerate it.
If it really causes you heartache, here’s an option: Non-toxic liquid cement from Testors (http://www.testors.com/catalog_item.asp?itemNbr=1984)
You can also request the material safety data sheet from Testors; it will tell you all about how dangerous it is and how to protect yourself. They are required by law to provide MSDSs on request. I suggest clicking the Contact Us link on their home page.
Regarding CA, many people develop a sensitivity to it over time and it causes them respiratory distress if they are exposed to it. I don’t use it because it causes my throat to tighten and my sinuses swell shut.
Sometimes I feel like everything is toxic and we just have to choose our poison, but it is important to remember that our own biology includes systems to clean impurities out of our systems. As long as we don’t overwhelm our cleansing capabilities or subject ourselves to substances that our bodies cannot deal with at all, we tend to do OK.
Life or cancer?
I heard that alcohol is poison, causes auto accidents, high insurance rates, loss of jobs & liver cancer. Dispite all this I heard that some people actually drink the stuff!!
Have you seen what is in Petrolium (Gas)! You get a good hit of Benzene every time you fill up your car.
Cancer of course.
Number 19,934 of things that can cause cancer and keep me awake at night worrying about it. NOT! [zzz]
I guess i should stop putting xylene on my salad then.