Laser Engraver & Cutter - Air Purifier / Extractor

Community Laser Talk
1

Hi all,

I recently purchased the Atomstack Ikier K1 Ultra (36W) engraver, as well as the FB2 Laser Enclosure and the D2 Air Purifier (both same brand). The enclosure measures 760mm long, 740mm wide and 420mm high.

The purifier is connected to the enclosure via a short pipe / tube (see photos).

I have set up my equipment in a spare (unused) bedroom. There is a window nearby.

So far, the laser engraver / cutter and the air assist are working as expected, however the D2 air purifier is not extracting any air. All the cutting residue / fumes remain in the enclosure or gradually exit via the enclosure’s side mesh.

The purifier came fully assembled. I opened the unit to check whether the filter medium was wrapped or sealed but that was not the case.

I would appreciate some advice on the following:
 Should the filtered air from the purifier be vented to the room only or should it be extracted externally (through the nearby window)?
 Would it be better to extract directly through the window, without any filter? I am thinking of the neighbours inhaling the fumes (unlikely, but possible) when walking outside.
 How strong does the filter / extractor motor need to be (m3/hour) to successfully expel all fumes?
 What filter and / or exhaust brands are recommended? The only requirement I have for the unit is that it is not too loud.

I’m not able to do any work until I resolve this issue.

Thanks.

2

It’s not a question of cfm or cubic meter per hour but rather a question of suction force, a classic vacuum cleaner does much better.
A bit like the comparison between a 1000 hp agricultural tractor and a 1000 hp race car with the same power but nothing in common except the hp.

1 Like
3

I’d move it out the window. No purifier cleans the air completely, if your device was below $1000, I’d not trust it at all.

It would be easier, but not better :slight_smile: As you already said, putting infiltered fumes outside might harm the environment (depends also on the material you handle). In case you only use wood, it should not be a major problem, since it’s the same as burning wood in a fireplace.

This depends on the power of the laser, up to 10W diodes, I used fans with 100m³/h, with stronger lasers (20W and up) I use 300³/h fans. For my new setup I plan to use two 300m³/h fans, one for the air inlet, the other for the exhaust.

I have no real recommendation, but I’d only trust filters created by industrial laser manufacturers. No cheap Chinese diode laser brand will create filters that would pass any European certification, at least. But I guess those are quite loud. High capacity will require lots of power.

4

I think it’s more of a case of air flow (including debris) than anything. You can compute the size of your enclosure and get an estimate for a fan that will move that much air in so long.

IMHO, what you want is air flow over and under (if cutting) the work piece. To get good air flow, it must come in, then across the material and be drawn out the vent. If it fills up the enclosure it’s not working.

Keep in mind that in the linked video the lid is fully open, stock fan and stock air assist on my China Blue 50W machine cutting 5mm sub flooring.

I usually run these with the lid open about 1 inch and I get better air flow near the front, but overall works very well. It’s a pretty old video, as I haven’t had an X drag chain for years.

Think of air flow, like water, they react the same, only difference is a coefficient of density in the computations. The best flow is a straight flow, the move bends and how tight the bend is slows your removal just as it would water. Like a smooth pipe moves more water with less energy than one of these expanding tubed with spiral ribs on it, like most of us have.

It’s got to come in, so the case needn’t be air tight. A very slight change in pressure causes room air to be drawn into the leaks not the gasses to leak out.

Don’t make it too complicated, but use your common sense in directing your air flow. You can overcome tight corners or turns to some degree, if you use a more powerful fan system.

It’s likely nobody can give you a real guestimate as each plumbing of the vent, intake and other information comes into play. Most of us do our best and pick a vent system we think should work, even reading on the Internet. However some things in life don’t always work out. I have a 6" vent fan on my fiber, wish I’d gotten an 8" :face_with_spiral_eyes:

Just keep in mind the air must flow through the system, where you want it. Some of the debris is vaporized material, it will condense on whatever cools it down.

I’m in my garage, I vent mine outside. I talk to the neighbors and they have stated they don’t smell the machine operating at all.

Another thing to keep in mind is that any purifier uses filters. These don’t filter out all gasses, but also particulates. I’ve heard from more than one person that the $300/month filer costs were killing them and built pre-filters to catch more of the larger particulates – extending the life of the purifier.

Good luck

:smiley_cat:

1 Like
5

As a professional system costs much too much, and almost a lot of tests (in-line fan, squirrel cage fan, tangential fan, etc.), I came back to an economical solution: an ash vacuum cleaner!
On the tube of the vacuum cleaner there is a metal screen for debris.
It is enclosed in a soundproof wooden box with foam, a tube comes out of this box to go outside through the window, it does not filter all the pollutants for sure but it sucks, the fans for VMC have a good CFM but no effective suction power.

télécharger
télécharger295×289 13.4 KB

Of course you have to let the air enter the box, everything that comes out must be able to enter!

6

Hello Misken,

Thank you for your assistance. Much appreciated.

7

Hello Ganitta28,

Thank you for your assistance. Much appreciated.

1 Like
8

Hello Jack,

Thank you for your assistance. Much appreciated.

9

In the U.S. it is commonly known as a Shop Vac.

10

Same shape, different innards.

An ash vacuum is designed to not go up in flames when it ingests an ember, generally intercepting them in a metal mesh baffle between the hose fitting and the filter cartridge:

Probably overkill for a laser installation, because when the machine dumps flaming embers into the exhaust, you’re in deep trouble … :fire:

11

Thanks for the correction! Hot embers could be a possibility with laser cutting.