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Sandblasting media UK silica

Updated: 21.10.2026

You are about to fill a hopper because a review said kiln-dried sand worked, or because a listing tells you to use dry silica sand. Sandblasting media in the UK stops that advice. Sand, and other abrasives that contain free silica, are prohibited as the blasting abrasive. The bag can still be sold for paving. It still does not go in the gun. The table is the [sandblaster comparison](/hub/compressors/sandblaster). The Products Compared editorial team used the 19 October 2026 listings and public UK sources. It is not a lab test or a certificate for one bag. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are about to fill a hopper because a review said kiln-dried sand worked, or because a listing tells you to use dry silica sand. Sandblasting media in the UK stops that advice.

Our top picks

Metabo Metabo SSP 1000

Best overall

Metabo Metabo SSP 1000
7.5/10about £21.79
View offer
InoKraft InoKraft Sand Blaster Premium Kit

Alternative

InoKraft InoKraft Sand Blaster Premium Kit
6.8/10about £49.99
View offer
BGS BGS 3244

Best value

BGS BGS 3244
6.5/10about £14.87
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What the rule actually says
  2. 2.What the listings and reviews get wrong
  3. 3.Abrasives these guns can meter
  4. 4.Dust does not stop when the silica does

What the rule actually says

In Great Britain, COSHH 2002 Schedule 2 prohibits sand or any other substance containing free silica as an abrasive in blasting apparatus. The schedule describes that apparatus as a jet of sand, shot, or grit driven by compressed air, steam, or a wheel. A handheld compressor gun is that apparatus. Northern Ireland has the same prohibition under COSHH NI 2003. HSE's CN7 note and HSENI both use about 1% free silica as the line for containing silica. At or above that, the material is not a blasting abrasive. Kiln-dried paving sand is still sand. Washing it or drying it does not change the schedule. If the bag is sand, or the supplier's free-silica figure is about 1% or more, it stays out of the gun.

What the listings and reviews get wrong

The HoldOneLight pressure-washer kit at £26.28 names dry silica sand, baking soda, or washed river sand. Washed river sand is still sand. Dry silica sand is the substance Schedule 2 names. A review on that listing cites the health concern and used kiln-dried sand instead, which does not escape the rule. The LIYOU listing at £10.99 names sand alongside aluminium oxide, beads, soda, and fine walnut shells. The lawful names in that sentence do not launder the word sand. The name of the machine is not the abrasive. Matching the gun to the compressor, after the bag is allowed, is the buying guide.
Metabo Metabo SSP 1000

Testsieger

Metabo Metabo SSP 1000
7.5/10about £21.79
View offer

Abrasives these guns can meter

Aluminium oxide is the cutting abrasive named in this set. The BGS 3244 listing specifies brown aluminium oxide, grain 46–100, which is 106–425 µm. You still need that sack's free-silica figure. The InoKraft guide names glass bead with soda and aluminium oxide. Soda is the gentle end. Frost says you wash the film off with a damp cloth and clean water before paint. Walnut shell is what the AUTOOL HTS558 supplies, for inlet-valve carbon. The Metabo listing names current steel abrasives and does not print a grain size. Olivine and garnet appear in UK catalogues as sand alternatives. Scangrit describes olivine as combined silica rather than free silica, which is supplier language, not a certificate. HSENI notes that garnet can still carry crystalline silica as an impurity, so a garnet sack can fail the 1% line. How oxide, bead, and soda change a rusty surface is on sandblast rust off metal.

Dust does not stop when the silica does

A lawful abrasive still makes dust, and open blasting is still the CN7 job. HSE asks for an air-fed helmet at assigned protection factor 40 for the person blasting. The compressor sits upwind, and you keep other people out. The goggles in an InoKraft, BGS, or HoldOneLight box are not that helmet. HSE's WL18 note is the narrower case: a small enclosed, extracted cabinet, with you standing outside it. Old paint may contain lead, which CN7 flags as a hazard you can put into the air with the grit. A silica-free sack does not make a lead coating safe to strip in the drive. If you suspect lead, you stop. Dry air, a tested shut-off, and where to stand are on how to use a sandblasting gun.

Common questions

Is it illegal to sandblast with sand in the UK?
Sand is prohibited as an abrasive in blasting apparatus. In Great Britain that is COSHH 2002 Schedule 2. In Northern Ireland it is COSHH NI 2003. The apparatus includes a jet of grit by compressed air, so a compressor gun is covered. HSE's CN7 says do not use sand.
Does kiln-dried or paving sand get around the rule?
No. Kiln-dried paving sand is still sand, which is what the schedule names. Drying it stops clogs. It does not remove free silica. Washed river sand, which the HoldOneLight listing names, is the same problem.
What is the 1% free-silica line?
HSE and HSENI treat about 1% or more free silica as containing silica for this purpose. HSG201 is the guidance behind that line. At or above it, the material is not a blasting abrasive, even if the bag does not say sand on the front.
Is aluminium oxide allowed?
It is the cutting media these listings name instead of sand. The BGS 3244 specifies brown aluminium oxide, grain 46–100. It still has to meet the free-silica line on that sack's analysis. A tub with no figure is not cleared by the name alone.
Does soda count as sand?
No. Soda is a different abrasive, and the InoKraft guide names it. It is the gentle end, and it leaves a film. Frost says to wipe that film with a damp cloth and clean water before paint. Calling it sand in a review does not make paving sand acceptable.
What respiratory protection does HSE describe for open blasting?
CN7 asks for an air-fed helmet at assigned protection factor 40 for the blaster, and at least 20 for a helper. Kit goggles are not that. The compressor should be upwind, and other people outside the zone. A small extracted cabinet, with you outside it, is the WL18 case.
Does the same rule apply in Northern Ireland?
Yes. HSENI applies the same prohibition under COSHH NI 2003, and the same practical 1% line. A gun bought on amazon.co.uk and used in Northern Ireland follows the same abrasive rule.

Related pages

Blasting media

Sandblaster

Best sandblaster gun UK: match the job and the air

Sandblaster for air compressor: match air and feed

How to use a sandblasting gun: air, media and faults

Sandblast rust off metal: thick steel, not a panel

Sources

Sources taken from the research digest. amazon.co.uk prices and star lines were checked on 19 October 2026. Stated pressures and airflow figures are listing claims, not measurements at the nozzle.

  1. COSHH 2002 Schedule 2 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. HSE CN7 Abrasive blasting (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. HSENI silica dust (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. HSE WL18 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Atlas Copco UK sandblasting compressor (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. Metabo SSP 1000 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Frost soda blasting (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Scangrit olivine (retrieved 19 October 2026)