Hi All, I learned mig welding at the VCL, and they have a fume extraction system
that allows welding indoors. I think their fume extractor cost about $8000 or so.
But I’m thinking you could do the same or better with something like a sheet metal shower
stall, with a bathroom fan inside. Of course you would be limited in the size of project
that you could get inside, and limited in the welding power, but it could be figured out with
some controlled experiments.
Haven’t checked the space out yet, for all I know you might already have a small
bathroom that can be converted to this dual use. Or triple use, for anyone doing
urethane casting or something else that gives off objectionable vapours …
The reason why welding fume extractors are expensive is because they also do some filtering which can be a tricky business. Creating a welding booth is a good idea, but I don’t know how practical a DIY option will prove to be… I think venting hazardous/smelly fumes directly outdoors isn’t necessarily a good idea.
There were some issues with that in regards to the Laser cutter at the
bunker.
There are still some issue with venting fumes from the laser cutter. Try
standing outside when someone is processing acrylic.
How is the laser cutter ventillation presently being handled?
If ventillation to outdoors is not allowed, welding
would seem to be impossible.
It is filtered and vented outdoors. No one is saying ventilation outdoors is not allowed… Welding is currently done in the loading bay.
We have a huuuge filter box with progressive finer activated carbon furnace
filters. They get changed regularly, but you can still smell it in the
alley and sometimes the space when people are doing large runs of acrylic
or wood.
Apparently welding fumes are particles less than 0.3 micron,
and even mig produces this invisible metal smoke which can be toxic,
depending on the parent metal being welded.
Miller sells some high-tech “self-cleaning” filters (cost about
$600) not include the fan and ductwork.
But if you put that filter in series with the filters that are already there for the laser cutter, then the the overall flowrate is going to go down, so maybe it should be a separate stream.
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