# Shop Fire Safety



## Seffers93 (Sep 1, 2020)

Hey everyone!

I posted my new garage setup and we ended up getting into fire safety discussions so I figured I would start a new Fire thread. I'm sure I'm not the only one in this position so I'm hoping others will benefit from information shared here too. 

My garage shop has no windows so I'm not sure how I would run a ventilation system. Although Tim just showed me a nice looking dust collector that I might have to look into! All I have to work with right now is a shop-vac to vacuum up the wood and metal dust that doesn't make it into the bin under the grinder. And I've learned from my last thread that shop-vacs are pretty susceptible to combustion which is super scary! 

So I'll give a little example situation to seek advice. Right now, my shop-vac has a bunch of wood dust from cutting up scrap wood for various things around the new house. I've also started grinding out the rough profile for my first knife (having a blast by the way!). So now I need to vacuum up the metal dust. I'm assuming I should clean out the wood from the shop-vac before I do, right? Also, I swept up a bunch of metal dust that has some wood dust mixed in with a push broom.. its just in a pile in the middle of the floor waiting to be vacuumed. Is this a hazard? Or is it fairly safe after its been cooled down?

This is the kind of advice and tips I'm looking for. Running out to buy fire extinguishers tonight after work. 

Thanks everyone and stay safe! Can't wait to show off my first knife!!

- Seth


----------



## Tim Rowland (Sep 1, 2020)

Beyond a real metal dust collection system you need to think about the particulates in the air getting away from the dust collection. Bad for air quality, creates a combustibility liability (say that 3x fast), and when it settles it gets on EVERYTHING!
So you also need to invest in a shop air filtration system that hangs from the ceiling. Depending on the size of your shop is how big you need to go. there are the smaller 400cfm systems and larger 1000cfm systems. Below would be my suggestion for a "lower cost" 1000cfm unit. Low noise, and effective unit.
You can use these while in the shop and set on its timer to run for an hour or two after you leave the shop to filter all the stuff still floating before it can settle. 



https://www.amazon.com/WEN-3410-3-Speed-Remote-Controlled-Filtration/dp/B07KKXNY26/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=shop%2Bdust%2Bfilter&qid=1598979159&sr=8-2&th=1


----------



## Seffers93 (Sep 1, 2020)

Tim Rowland said:


> Beyond a real metal dust collection system you need to think about the particulates in the air getting away from the dust collection. Bad for air quality, creates a combustibility liability (say that 3x fast), and when it settles it gets on EVERYTHING!
> So you also need to invest in a shop air filtration system that hangs from the ceiling. Depending on the size of your shop is how big you need to go. there are the smaller 400cfm systems and larger 1000cfm systems. Below would be my suggestion for a "lower cost" 1000cfm unit. Low noise, and effective unit.
> You can use these while in the shop and set on its timer to run for an hour or two after you leave the shop to filter all the stuff still floating before it can settle.
> 
> ...



As much as that would help, I think I'll squeeze it into my budget in the next week or two. I'm sure it makes a huge difference.


----------



## Bensbites (Sep 1, 2020)

I run 2 Honeywell HEPA filters in my shop at all times. That doesn’t stop the grinding dust from settling, but the air does smell much better. 

you can use your shopvac to clean up the settled metal dust without worrying about a fire hazard. The hazard come from collecting hot sparks off the grinder into a pile of saw dust, them being fed by a steady flow of air. I also run hepa filters in my shopvacs.

I upgraded by cheap jet dust collection with a 3rd party better quality filter. It feels like a hack and a new dust collector will be in my future.

It doesn’t hurt to keep a bucket of sand and a fire extinguisher near by. Make sure the fire extinguisher is rated for whatever material you are working with.


----------



## Seffers93 (Sep 1, 2020)

Bensbites said:


> I run 2 Honeywell HEPA filters in my shop at all times. That doesn’t stop the grinding dust from settling, but the air does smell much better.
> 
> you can use your shopvac to clean up the settled metal dust without worrying about a fire hazard. The hazard come from collecting hot sparks off the grinder into a pile of saw dust, them being fed by a steady flow of air. I also run hepa filters in my shopvacs.
> 
> ...



Thanks for the reply. I appreciate the tips! Didn't even think to get a bucket of sand along with extinguishers.


----------



## icanhaschzbrgr (Sep 2, 2020)

Instead of buying air filtration system you might want to build one yourself.
Some plywood, car hepa filters and a powerfull fan — are pretty much everything that's required. There are many examples on youtube. Powerfull fan and good hepa filters aren't cheap so I don't think you can save tons of cash while building your own system, but it's a fun project on it own.

I have 2 two shop vacs in garage. Most of the times I use just one of them. Except for the disk grinder. That thing will throw dust all over the place, so I wrap most of it into an old shower curtain and insert hoses of 2 vacs from different sides. That almost eliminates dust. Almost.


----------



## NO ChoP! (Oct 19, 2020)

I run a ceiling air filter. My shop is completely tarped, and I use two box fans, one for fresh air in, and one going out. Both have a house air filter bungeed on and you would be shocked how much particles they catch. I use the compressor to blow all the dust off everything after a good sweep, and quickly vacate. After an hour or two, it's pretty pristine. 

I do the old fashioned metal grind into a bucket of water and use old licence plates as spark shields. 

Wood, I use a wall mount dust collector with a 25 foot hose. I have 2.5" connectors on all the tools for easy connect. I'm in the middle of fashioning a ceiling mount pulley system for the hose. The bag is only 5 micron, and I would like to upgrade someday, as it's a bit messy.


----------

