How important is having a welding fume exhaust system if only mild steel is being welded? Is a fume exhaust system less vital when welding only mild steel, as opposed to other common types of welding?
Is venting welding fume exhaust to the out doors, without any type of filtration, illegal or against some codes?
Am I correct in thinking that venting several welding stations scattered throughout a large fabrication facility, to the outdoors (with a hood, ducts and blower capable of moving air to a 30' ceiling, and out) would be more expensive than buying individual portable fume exhaust systems for each station?
Here is the situation... the fabrication/manufacturing plant is close to 100,000 square feet, with 30' ceilings. We have 5 welding stations scattered about the plant floor. All MIG welders. We weld pressure vessels & tanks; all mild steel.
There is no current ventilation system on any of them. I've been assigned the task to remedy that, as inexpensively as possible. It was suggested to me by my boss, that he is picturing a hood above each station, that vents the fumes out of the building, with no filtration; no filtration he says, because we are only welding mild steel.
I suspect that that would not be the best solution, and that individual portable, or wall hung, exhaust systems, with the goose-neck type intakes that can be positioned directly next to the weld, might not only be more effective, but more economical, as well... particularly if I choose some of the low end systems. I also don't know the type of CFM requirements that I should be looking at.
The portable systems that I've been looking at run about $1500 to $4000 each, for mid-range systems. Apparently, that is far more than the company was expecting to spend. But their knowledge is even less than mine, on this subject matter. And if I can't find a budget minded solution, I suspect they may do nothing at all. I'd really like to give my welders a bit of a healthier environment. Before contacting any vendors about this, I was hoping for some CR4 feedback.
Any suggestions, wisdom or advice regarding this project would be welcome.
Thanx!
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