As I will be working in less than 400 sq ft. I am concerned about particulates.
I will have Sweep, Mullet, shop vac.
An enclosure is being built.
I was thinking of hanging a fine particulate filter above my workspace like the Wen 3410.
I am planning on wearing an N95 respirator.
Is this a case of suspenders and belts?
Less dust in any environment is always better!!
You could purchase a filter system or make your own? A simple box fan with a HEPA style filter bought a a big box store will work better than nothing at all. Many ways to remove fine dust.
I started with the box fan HEPA filter setup then added a WEN 3410. The pair work well in my 320 sq ft work area until I have to run the table saw. That’s still the biggest polluter in my shop that need dust collection attention.
It is bad to breath in saw dust and in particular certain types of man made things like MDF. That said if your things like masks and filters are a pain to put on you will quit putting them on. I have a jet air filter hung from the ceiling but I seldom turn it on. I run my Jet dust collector for almost every project on Shapeoko but some of the smaller bits are so short that the dust brush would cause problems. I can still let the vacuum hose run without the brush but it does little to no good at removing dust. It might be picking up very fine dust but regular chips/sawdust is not picked up without the brush installed.
The bottom line is in the long run you are going to what is convenient. Between the noise and hassle of wearing a dust mask you will likely not keep it up for very long. That is the bad news and unfortunately is human nature. The good news is there are some masks that are more comfortable than others so be sure to shop around and get what you think will actually work for you.
There is no dust collection system that will work even remotely close to a good sealing dust mask. Everything else is a distant second best especially for the most harmful microscopic and invisible particles. I wear mine virtually always in my shop along with my dust collection systems. It doesn’t have to go against “human nature” to wear a good sealing mask along with good eye and hearing protection. My long term health is definitely worth it.
A good sealing mask that works with glasses and doesn’t make you sweat is a challenge to find.
The ideal (but for cost) solution ia a PAPR (powered air purifying respirator). like the 3M Versaflow. HEPA filtration, a continuous flow of cool clean air, doesn’t fog glasses, works with a beard. It’s the only solution I know of that’s reasonably comfortable to wear 6-8 hours a day.
A “good sealing mask” is something that just doesn’t exist for most of us, certainly not if you have facial hair or a non-average face shape. The common paper N95 masks are AFAIK impossible to fully seal, the rubber gasketed ones can be made to seal but must be uncomfortably tight and will cause skin irritation or worse if used consistently.
I have a Versaflow PAPR I use for wood turning where controlling fine dust at the source is very hard. It also incorporates a hard hat and impact shield to intercept flying objects coming off the lathe.
I have something similar that I bought 20 years ago when I was doing more lathe work. The Airshield Pro. I haven’t used it in forever but it’s still around. I guess ai should see if the r battery will still take a charge.
I was working in an 8 x 12 shed for years cutting and sanding exotic hardwoods (Bolivian
Rosewood, Katalox, Purpleheart, Zebrawood, Leopardwood, Ipe, Padauk) with S#!][Y dust collection, so I had dust on me and all over my shop. It took about 5-6 years, but I am now allergic to all of those woods. I bought Tyvek smocks, but those weren’t good enough, so I went to the full bunny suit and full face respirator (pic that is close enough to get the idea), but that just sucked in the summer.
Sweat dripping down my face, ugh. I ended up buying the 3M PAPR that @rogerwiegand mentioned, and OH MY DOG!!! If you ever need to wear a respirator for any length of time, this is AWESOME!!! Yes, it is stupid expensive, but man, having a cool breeze always blowing on your face and not having that rubber mask pressed up against your face, with the sweat and the heat and the closeness of the air. . . Ugh, I really wish I had bought it 10 years ago.
So, I guess the lesson is - and this is not specifically directed at you - do the best dust collection you can to prevent becoming allergic.
I upgraded my dust collection from a shop vac to an actual DC with a MERV 15 filter. I am not really cutting wood right now because my new shop is not done, and I just can’t really collect all the dust the way I need to in my current shop, so I do the occasional plastic or aluminum thing here and there. I plan on having a ceiling mounted filter, as well as a beefier DC system in my new shop to hopefully capture it (I almost wrote “capture it all”, but that is not realistic) the majority of it at the machine, and then the ceiling filter to capture whatever may be floating around.
I use a 3M reusable respirator with interchangeable P100 filters that filter out 99.97% of particles. I have a beard and also wear glasses. I can get a good seal and have no problem wearing the mask for 2-3 hours when I am actively working on my lathe, saws, etc… It definitely is not perfect but I have to weigh the risks versus benefits.
As an Internal Medicine Physician, I have treated a lot of elderly patients with significant lung disease from lifelong wood dust exposure. It is not hard for me to put up with the nuisance of a dust mask to avoid future problems just like I can put up with my irritating hearing protection around my loud CNC machine, lawnmower, chainsaw, etc…
Oh yeah, I am a big baby when it comes to my hearing. I use these 3M Peltor X5 earmuffs and / or these triple flange ones:
I get the corded ones from work for free, and I actually bought a box of them (not corded) for home. They are 3M 340-4004, and a box of 100 pair is about $115, but that box is like 3 years old, and still has about 25 pairs or so left, so I think it was a good investment.
The Airshield Pro also has a fan to blow across your face but is all self contained rather than having a hose going to it. So, that makes it heavy on your head. The 3M is probably more comfortable to wear.
Do you use a respirator or an N95 standard mask?
I run the large sweepy, a dust collector, rigid vacuum with a bag and a fine filter, then exhaust the vacuum through a hose out the doggy door. I don’t notice dust with this setup for the cnc. Running the radial arm saw is another matter- no matter what, I get some dust.
This topic was automatically closed after 30 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
