Welding Smoke

[IBU KING]

A little background here I've been a production welder for about a year and a half now, making mainly aluminum and steel Insulation Blowing units (IBU) I will be going for certification in a night course at the local college this Jan. This is a fairly small company with 12 employees and 7 miller welders including the mm350p I use, we also have a hi-def plasma table. All of that together makes it look like there is a layer of fog over the entire building. All we have is a 18 inch hole in the ceiling in the welding room with an exhaust fan and a vacumn setup that sucks the smoke from under the plasma table it worked real well with the old plasma not so much with the new one anyways to the question at hand. Whats the best way to get rid off it? Keep in mind the building is about 100 yards by about 30 yards and its in a cold climate enviroment. For those working in this type of scenario would does your work have.

p.s. I'm new!

[precisionworks]

I've gone to fab shops that resembled a scene from TheDark Ages - they had ventilation like you describe. The most effective way to bring fresh air in without loosing all the heated air is by using an air-to-air heat exchanger (aka Heat Recovery Ventilators).

Commercial heating companies will inspect your building & determine the size needed to exchange the air *** many times per hour. You should have no trouble getting two or three estimates.

http://www.fantech.net/hrv_erv.htm

[metalfab]

I work in an aluminum shop as well. I always wear a filter mask, a proper one from 3M with particulate filters. Until your shop gets proper air flow going I wouldn't be without one. On that note welding aluminum even with proper air flow I'd still wear a mask.

Some people say you don't need to as they have been doing it for 'years' without one. Personally, they can play with their health, I won't.

[IBU KING]

I have one of those particulate filters as well that I use, the main problem is that the owner doesn't think its worth the money to get a system. Right now the guy next to me and I have box fans right above us pointed at the exhaust fan to help it up beings we are the ones usually welding aluminum. Kinda hi-tech huh. Not too bad of a place to work just lacking clean air.

[Fishy Jim]

I have a 23" box fan I'm going to be making a filter mount for (using furnace filters) and then placing that high on the wall to get some of the dust out of the air in my shop. I bought a respirator, but it wouldn't clear either my hood or my face shield, so it got returned. I'm going to see about the remote canister ones the next time I'm at Grainger.

[metalfab]

We have a large single bay door with one exit door in the back. The exit door has a 5HP 30" fan on a stand which works well when the front bay door is open, great flow through. During this time of year its a different story. A "foreman" their insists that welding aluminum is not a health hazzard and wonders why we wear masks...makes you wonder . It is a nice place to work though

[IBU KING]

Fishy- I use the 3m low profile respirator has little round pink cartridges it clears my Auto darken miller lid just fine, but when I had my old standard lid it would rub occasionaly but it still worked. Maybe try Carquest if you have one in your neck of the woods.
Its nice in the summer all the doors open just a little chilly to do that now. Its going to be in the 40's tommorrow thats shorts and t-shirt weather.

[metalfab]

I set the Miller BWE as far forward as possible and use the 3M 'pancake' filters, clears the helmet just fine. I first bought North's Backpack system, it didn't fit properly either.

[Fishy Jim]

The one I picked up was the AO Safety 3M 7500 series clone with the regular cans. The cans hit my shield and the sides of my hobart auto hood. I was actually going to get a 3M shipped to me, but forgot what size mask I wore in the Army (been a few years), so I had no clue what size to get. Having the remote filter doesn't thrill me in the slightest, so I'll be looking at the low profile ones before I go that route.

Most of the stores I frequent all have the AO's and nothing else. Grainger isn't far from me, but I don't get over there very often. Airgas didn't have any low profile ones on hand either when I checked back around the time I bought my TA251. If I remember when I'm by there, I'll stop in CarQuest. The last time I tried to go there they weren't open and it was regular business hours - no sign or anything. I can't say that makes me want to go back.

[NOS]

Boy! Readin all this makes me happy I work outside! (And I'm worried about the fumes from 7018. ) It does worry me tho so I watch the smoke and learn new positions as the wind shifts.

Walls insulated coveralls and good boots& gloves don't seem so bad now! Be safe guys!

[IBU KING]

Heres what the one I use look like got this from another thread.