dumbass question #2

[AAP]

Ok, when welding, you are not suppose to look at the arc as it will burn your eyes.

What if you are standing 30 feet away from someone welding. Will it still damage your retina?

 

[jh1]

Yes it can... never look at the arc... it is brighter than the sun...

 

[Seashell]

Much jibberish welder-talk here but I believe the answer is somewhere in the chart..
http://www.aws.org/wj/dec02/feature.html

And a few different people's perspectives:
http://www.aws.org/cgi-bin/mwf/topic_show.pl?id=2707

 

[AAP]

Yes it can... never look at the arc... it is brighter than the sun...

Dude, how can anything be brighter than the sun?

 

[Robert Jan]

30 feet isn't that much. 100 feet is more like it

 

[Becoming]

I accidentally looked at one once from about 20ft (the dude was not looking out for anyone but himself obviously)

I got a pretty good spot in my vision for a while but it went away...

 

[wutangnomo]

Thirty feet is not all that far away and can still damage your eyes in the event of no obstruction... ie smoke, etc. However, with distance the intensity of the light does decrease.

 

[jh1]

Dude, how can anything be brighter than the sun?

Don't know. That's what I have been told.

I would imagine, if true, it is only true based on the fact that your face is only a few feet from it.

I.E. you are millions of miles from the sun so it's intensity, by the time it reaches you, isn't as much as the welding arc a few feet from your face.

Just don't look at it....

 

[coverguy]

i wouldn't risk it.

 

[Evil_Frisky]

Dont look into the light!

It will burn you eyes, I have never had it happen to me but I have been told that it feels like a sunburn on the eyes or even salt in the eyes. You even have to be careful not to subconsciuosly (perphial vision) look at it.