Post #3763547

2026-07-12 14:44 UTC

Sorry, should have clarified - I’m European so less of an issue. But also, if you’re considering it, it’s not hard to avoid brake dust going into the air for the most part. One guy I met just rained the brake cleaner over everything before starting, for instance. That being said I’ve had an awful lot of brake fluid and cleaner (plus engine and gearbox oil, coolant, etc etc) on my hands over the years, so they’re probably going to fall off any time now … taking care of ones skin is important too :-)

Replies (1)

@idiomaddict@lemmy.world 2026-07-12 15:20

Yeah, that’s absolutely fair. It was fully banned in the EU in 2005, which is still way too late, but much better. Several individual countries had banned it earlier, but I don’t know how many or how effective that actually is in the single market. I was handling all types of latent claims with long term exposures which aren’t exclusively toxin based, but it was mostly environmental/workplace poisoning, like lead paint, asbestos, printing chemicals, or radiation. One of the things I realized is that we’re either all fucked, or we’re more resilient than we expect, because most of us have a lot more casual contact with serious carcinogens than we think we do. I try to lean towards the latter while still taking appropriate precautions, but none of us gets out alive. If I loved working on old cars, I’d probably do it despite the risks (but I’d definitely do a wet clean with as fine a mask as I could find and a disposable smock, then I’d immediately shower and get rid of my rags afterwards), because I think it’s better to use your time in a way that makes you happy than preserve a life that doesn’t fulfill you. Anyway, that got very off track from the original diversion, but it was a fun chat. And now I’m going to throw a pair of dishwashing gloves in my trunk.

Open ##3764103