Maple dust

[Sawyer jake]

Has anyone else experienced any sudden breathing problems or other health problems from cutting spalted maple? I cut a big maple down in my yard and started milling it the next day and two days later I started having breathing troubles, fever and loss of taste/smell. Some say it’s an allergic reaction. No it’s not covid I’ve been tested. This happened before when I was cutting it on my sawmill

 

[Alan in Little Washington]

. . . breathing troubles, fever and loss of taste/smell. Some say it’s an allergic reaction. No it’s not covid I’ve been tested.

Sure sounds like COVID to me!

You may also be having personal allergic reaction to this species of wood dust, or the remains of the little buggers that cause the spalting.

 

[Echd]

I know a guy who did various logging work in between prison stints. He came down with some form of blood poisoning based on exposure to a tree fungus. He was hospitalized for almost four months. It was a great weight loss regimen for the guy too, but he stated that he really didn't recommend it.

I'm sure this is a different fungus, but I always wear my PPE thinking of that dude. And spalted woods and ambrosia maple in general are some or my favorites. There definitely can be some nasty stuff out there, even ignoring the more commonly known allergies that some people have to woods like walnut.

 

[Sawyer jake]

Sure sounds like COVID to me!

You may also be having personal allergic reaction to this species of wood dust, or the remains of the little buggers that cause the spalting.

The dust from the sawmill doesn’t affect me as bad as when I’m chainsaw milling but I’ll be sure to start wearing a respirator. Thanks guys

 

[Oka]

That is a allergy to work.....

 

[iclark]

Several of the pro turners who visited our local turning club when I was first starting turning reported that they had spent time in the ER or worse due to turning green spalted wood. They developed fungal lung infections. At least one of them described it as fungal pneumonia. I am very careful about spalted wood in my shop.

 

[djvanduy]

I have been turning spalted wood for many years now. So far no problems, though I wear a full face shield respirator pretty much all the time. I personally haven't had any problems chainsawing the stuff either, though I think its entirely plausible for something to be breathed in.

I have an article on working with spalted wood... Turning Spalted Maple and Working with Spalted Wood
Now that I think about it I need to mention something about breathing hazards

 

[cyclopentadiene]

Have you been to an allergist? You could be allergic not to the wood but the fungi or mold present in the wood that caused the spalting. Mold allergies are the most prevalent allergies beyond seasonal pollen allergies.

I take weekly shots, left arm, pollens etc. right arm mold. Even with the shots, every time I stay in a hotel with a wall unit AC, I have significant sneezing and my asthma causes breathing difficulties. I generally try to avoid these by staying in hotels constructed in the past 5 years but sometimes you never know what type AC tyhey have or do not have choices.

Waalnut dust was the inspiration to go Festool and I no longr hav issues except when hand sanding or tht one cut that I decide to make ithout turning on the Dust collector.