How To Protect Yourself From Silica Dust

How can I protect myself from silica dust?

The most important way to protect oneself from silica dust is to wear a respirator that's appropriate for the type of work that one is doing. There are different respirators that are rated for different types of work, and there are specifically respirators that are rated for the type of exposure that silica dust confers. So that is certainly the most important way to prevent developing silica-related lung disease. As a secondary issue, it is also important to wear protective clothing. If one is wearing their regular clothes with a respirator, the dust from the air that's airborne can become impregnated on the clothes and as soon as the respirator comes off, people are going to be breathing the dust that's on their clothes. So it's not just an issue of wearing a respirator over one's mouth and nose, it's also an issue of wearing protective clothing that one can shed as soon as they are done with the work.