Are lead weights poisonous?
- Thread starter Hap
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
- Messages
- 3,100
- Reaction score
- 435
- # of dives
- I'm a Fish!
I've never seen, or heard, of a case of lead poisoning from dive weights. The lead from shot weights can leak out, and contaminate the water.
Tigerman
Contributor
There used to be a rather long thread on this topic, but it might have vanished in the crash we had some time ago.
Short answer to your question is "No".
The more correct answer is that lead is indeed poisonous, but youre not ingesting your weights. You probably shouldnt handle the lead weights (the lead itself, not the pockets) bare-handed and then grab an apple or lick your fingers, but do as you would doing any other "work", wash your hands before you eat..
Short answer to your question is "No".
The more correct answer is that lead is indeed poisonous, but youre not ingesting your weights. You probably shouldnt handle the lead weights (the lead itself, not the pockets) bare-handed and then grab an apple or lick your fingers, but do as you would doing any other "work", wash your hands before you eat..
Never try to ingest more than one 3lb lead weight per day.
No, they are not. Do you lick them,do you allow your children to lick them. Do you rub them all over you and your hands and then lick your hands clean--I doubt you do therefore you can quit worrying. Not only that, I assume your an adult, that means your already grown up, your brain is more or less what it is, your not going to be hurt by a little bit of lead. Now, if you have a baby, I would suggest not storing the weights in his/her crib. N
Here in California dive shops display signs stating that lead is reported to be bad for your health. The caution against handling them and then eating food without washing your hands may be a good one to follow if you dive frequently.
I use coated lead weights... lots of them. So does my LDS in the shop and on the boat.
I use coated lead weights... lots of them. So does my LDS in the shop and on the boat.
Dr. Bill: The signs in our stores in California are due to the miss-wording of Prop. 65 years ago.
Prop. 65, rather than using the established limits for exposure to certain chemicals, stated any detectable levels of chemicals know to cause cancer, etc. Since even apples and oranges have detectable limits of carcinogens and teratogens, not to mention outright poisons such as arsenic,
every apple, orange, peach, etc. would have had to carry that label. Grocery stores won an amendment in the legislature that a single label on the door would suffice. Since the Prop. 65 was a ballot initiative, it would require a public vote to overturn it.
Virtually all lead contains detectable levels of mercury and a few other heavy metals, so, the Prop. 65 label has to be on the wall. That same label is on the side of the gas dispenser at the gas station and all sorts of other places, too.
Just another result of the lack of science education in our schools... <sigh>
Ian
Prop. 65, rather than using the established limits for exposure to certain chemicals, stated any detectable levels of chemicals know to cause cancer, etc. Since even apples and oranges have detectable limits of carcinogens and teratogens, not to mention outright poisons such as arsenic,
every apple, orange, peach, etc. would have had to carry that label. Grocery stores won an amendment in the legislature that a single label on the door would suffice. Since the Prop. 65 was a ballot initiative, it would require a public vote to overturn it.
Virtually all lead contains detectable levels of mercury and a few other heavy metals, so, the Prop. 65 label has to be on the wall. That same label is on the side of the gas dispenser at the gas station and all sorts of other places, too.
Just another result of the lack of science education in our schools... <sigh>
Ian
matt t.
Contributor
Don't eat them and you'll be fine.
Similar threads
