Welder want 2 be
Plastic
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2017
- Location
- Madison Virginia
I am thinking of building my own Welding fume extractor and would like some input from the community. I am a hobbyist and can’t justify the cost of a nice new professional machine. I have a squirrel cage blower fan I salvaged out of a heat pump from a mobile home, I am estimating it is about 1,000 cfm fan. It is 1/3hp. I would like to have it draw across the filters rather than blow. I am thinking of using 3 common home HVAC filters, first a 6 MERV filter then a 14 MERV, and finally a charcoal filter.
I am interested in a fume extractor and not a dust collector. I am very much aware this will not work as a dust collector but my hope is to use it as a fume extractor. This motor/fan that I would like to use will only draw at most ½” of water column, in contrast a dust collector draws probably more than 2”. I have crossed off the idea of a shop vac as I don’t want the noise pollution, further it is more of a dust collector than a welding fume extractor.
Has anyone tried this and what advise do you have? I have spent hours on Youtube and searching the internet and not found much. Yes there are lots of ideas for an exhaust system which I could do however with winter time I don’t like the heat loss of such an idea.
What filter life can I expect from this? Will they stop up in only an hour of welding? I was hoping by having the 6 or 8 MERV filter and then the 14 MERV that I could capture some smoke on the cheaper filter and replace the more expensive 14 MERV less frequently than had I the 14 MERV alone.
Will this 1/3hp motor on a squirrel cage fan draw sufficiently? I am thinking of using a 6” rigid and flexible duct to draw the air to my filter, I don’t want a hood system but rather move my snorkel around to whatever I am welding.
Any advice would be appreciated, I would hope that someone else has tried this before and can say it will work with some modifications or no, save your time and money, it will not work.
I am interested in a fume extractor and not a dust collector. I am very much aware this will not work as a dust collector but my hope is to use it as a fume extractor. This motor/fan that I would like to use will only draw at most ½” of water column, in contrast a dust collector draws probably more than 2”. I have crossed off the idea of a shop vac as I don’t want the noise pollution, further it is more of a dust collector than a welding fume extractor.
Has anyone tried this and what advise do you have? I have spent hours on Youtube and searching the internet and not found much. Yes there are lots of ideas for an exhaust system which I could do however with winter time I don’t like the heat loss of such an idea.
What filter life can I expect from this? Will they stop up in only an hour of welding? I was hoping by having the 6 or 8 MERV filter and then the 14 MERV that I could capture some smoke on the cheaper filter and replace the more expensive 14 MERV less frequently than had I the 14 MERV alone.
Will this 1/3hp motor on a squirrel cage fan draw sufficiently? I am thinking of using a 6” rigid and flexible duct to draw the air to my filter, I don’t want a hood system but rather move my snorkel around to whatever I am welding.
Any advice would be appreciated, I would hope that someone else has tried this before and can say it will work with some modifications or no, save your time and money, it will not work.