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One of the most significant health hazards in the welding process is the generation of fumes and gases. Zinc is the coating used on galvanized metals, and when you heat the metal, it produces vaporized metal droplets, which are called fumes. This is the smoky haze that consists of fine particles of metals or silicates. When you breathe these fumes, they may work deeply into your lungs. The typical effect of breathing zinc fumes is metal fume fever. One or two hours or more after welding—without proper personal protection—you may experience severe thirst, pain in the legs, shivering, congestion in the head, dryness and tickling of the throat, and a cough. In very bad cases, you may feel severe shivering, a high fever, buzzing in the ears, nausea, vomiting, and even hallucinations and convulsions. Your symptoms will usually last only 24 hours.
