barley box construction

ShellyJo1969 · #1 2010-06-16, 2:28am

I'm really excited I'm going to get to make my first lampwork bead soon! (I've made tons of clay beads in the past but these will be my very first glass ones).

I've almost got my work area in a corner of my hubby's shop building set up. I still have to build a barley box though. I will have a 900CFM hood over my work table and my hubby isn't convinced I even need a barley box..but I told him it's highly recommended so I'll feel safer if I have one.

What I wanted to know is:
#1 Do you use a barley box?
#2 What's your's made of?
#3 Has anyone used one made of that foil covered foam board as suggested over on Art Glass Answers?

In the long run I WILL make a custom one from metal or perhaps wood, I don't know yet but something sturdy. But for the immediate future, I may have to make the easiest/quickest one I can manage.

Just looking for good ideas.
Thanks
Michele

NMLinda · #2 2010-06-16, 6:44am

I use barley boxes for both of my workstations. I borrowed a clever idea from Lorraine Chandler (see her horse trailer studio thread here in Studio, it's great). She used metal shelving that big box places like Lowes and Home Depot typically carry and made her work station/ barley box hood out of that. Turns out to be pretty easy to assemble the shelving with the right height for the hood above the work area, and one of the shelves makes a convenient work surface. I then screwed left over pieces of wood to mine to form the back, sides and front baffle. It's easy to seal the inside seams with duct tape. Like her, I put my fan on top. Makes the whole arrangement pretty self contained. If you can vent with only one bend, use 10" diameter vent ducting and keep your ducting run very short, you can just get away with your fan for a 4' wide station (and the bottom edge of the front baffle no more than about 28" above the work surface), but you will absolutely need to make it a well-sealed barley box. The reason I say that is that the kind of shelving Lorraine used, and that I also used, comes 4'wide. You might be able to get this shelving 3' wide, but you'd have to check.

I wouldn't recommend making your barley box out of foam insulation. If you get a hot piece of glass on it (think popping glass off your rod...) it can melt and release some noxious fumes. I don't consider it safe material for that reason.

Linda

Dale M. · #3 2010-06-16, 8:42am

Just ask if your husband if he wants you to die of some horrible lung disease or have a continuing respiratory problem.....

Its not what he thinks, it is what you think.....

Have him read up on Carbon Monoxide (CO) poisoning and or Nitrous Oxides (NOx) in a room environment.....

A Barley box may not be absolutely needed but it is probably the best solution for ventilation.... 900 CFM should be sufficient for most applications (but do the calculations)...

Wood or foam board is not my most favorite material for these applications, metal sheet would be preferred.... If you can find soft aluminum sheeting it is very easy to cut and shape..... All you need is a "something" that is a solid barrier to direct air flow.... Something non flammable is preferred... There is inexpensive solution like aluminum roof flashing material (in rolls) available at places like LOWES or HOME DEPOT ( in roofing dept) that easily cut and bent.....

Also if you do not like closed in feeling , clean poly carbonate sheeting may be a solution...

Dale

ShellyJo1969 · #4 2010-06-16, 1:56pm

I absolutely agree Dale. I WILL have something for a barley box, I'm just trying to figure out how to go about it the easiest way for me. The flexible aluminum sheeting sounds like a good solution. I'll look into that.
thanks
michele

Lorraine Chandler · #5 2010-06-16, 3:27pm

I did the foam board covered with foil and metal tape..It works..sort of. And is FAR FAR from ideal. I ended up throwing it all out rather quickly.

Then we set up my horse trailer and wish I would have just set everything up that way the first time around.

Linda and I really love the ease of setting up the metal shelving unit work bench, and the sturdiness of the bench. It's not that expensive and makes a perfect bench for one person and it's perfect to set the exhaust unit on top.

ShellyJo1969 · #6 2010-06-16, 8:41pm

That sounds interesting, problem is I already have my metal worktable all set up and my vent hood on the wall waiting to be connected to the outside, so I don't know if I could find any way to utilize the workshelf idea. I'll go try to find the horse trailer studio and see if i can find any good ideas for me.

Dale mentioned using bent metal. That sounds do able too.
thanks
Michele

NMLinda · #7 2010-06-17, 4:54am

Since you already have a table and vent hood, adding sides should be relatively easy. Metal sheeting is easy to work with. I have it at the back of the vent hood I described, covering the plywood I used. You want to be sure you have a fire-proof surface behind your torch. Polycarbonate can good for the sides, but I wouldn't recommend it for the back. If you ever decide to set up a second torch station, Lorraine's shelving idea might be of interest, but she has a lot of other marvelous ideas in her horse trailer thread.

Linda

ShellyJo1969 · #8 2010-06-21, 12:14am

Where did you purchase your sheet metal? I live in a small town and it's difficult to find things like that really. You can buy stuff like that online but the shipping is outrageous.

Dale M. · #9 2010-06-21, 7:00am

A lot of times the local hardware stores will have galvanized metal sheet about 2ft x 3ft.....

Ask around at different place like plumbing shop or local fix-it shop ....

Dale

Bunyip · #10 2010-06-21, 7:15am

Check with roofing supply houses as well - you can often buy 4 x 10 sheets of galvanized metal (steel) for very reasonable prices. I believe 26 ga. runs around 20.00 per sheet, although you may want to move up to 22 or even 20 ga. for rigidity. They may not give you that pricing, however, unless you're a roofer - so hopefully you know someone in the business

Do yourself a favor and don't even ask about the price for stainless unless you're sitting down.

National Roofing Chains include ABC Supply and Bradco supply.

Additionally, if you look up sheet metal in the yellow pages, you may find a firm that can cut, break, fabricate and solder the metal for you to form an airtight enclosed box to your specifications.

GlassyEyedGirl · #11 2010-06-21, 7:46am

My DH and I (well mostly my hubby) made mine out of plywood. I put ceramic tile on the countertop area. I plan to cover it someday with sheet metal, but for now it works just fine. I put it up against a wall with a window, and installed an inline louvered 10" fan with 3 speeds. I am super sensitive to fumes, so I also installed a plexiglass window on the front between me and my torch so the fumes won't ever blow back into my face. It would probably drive most people nuts, but I want to be safe and not get headaches, etc. I put hinges on it so I can lift it up if necessary or to clean my bench.

Very Glassy · #12 2010-06-21, 3:32pm

Oh - I can help with this one. I had to think long and hard about this one since I could not find one to buy......so I went to my local Home Depot and purchased a metal shelf that seperated into 2 pieces, used one half for supplies and one half to capture the "fumes". I bought sheet metal and drilled holes, then screwed together a "box". SUPER SIMPLE. The fan I have is really loud but it sure makes a difference. At first I thought the smell that I was smelling was the chlorine from my pool (which is right off the deck that is connected to my studio) but nope - it was the fumes from my glass, torch....whatever it was is no longer a problem! Here is my humble little "bead hut".

animagusbc · #13 2010-06-21, 9:09pm

Thanks Spitfire Bead Art for sharing your Ventilation system Idea. I will be doing the same for my studio this weekend.

Lorraine Chandler · #14 2010-06-21, 11:14pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by SPITFIRE BEAD ART

Oh - I can help with this one. I had to think long and hard about this one since I could not find one to buy......so I went to my local Home Depot and purchased a metal shelf that seperated into 2 pieces, used one half for supplies and one half to capture the "fumes". I bought sheet metal and drilled holes, then screwed together a "box". SUPER SIMPLE. The fan I have is really loud but it sure makes a difference. At first I thought the smell that I was smelling was the chlorine from my pool (which is right off the deck that is connected to my studio) but nope - it was the fumes from my glass, torch....whatever it was is no longer a problem! Here is my humble little "bead hut".

Great Job!!!

NMLinda · #15 2010-06-22, 6:39am

Quote:

Originally Posted by SPITFIRE BEAD ART

Oh - I can help with this one. I had to think long and hard about this one since I could not find one to buy......so I went to my local Home Depot and purchased a metal shelf that seperated into 2 pieces, used one half for supplies and one half to capture the "fumes". I bought sheet metal and drilled holes, then screwed together a "box". SUPER SIMPLE. The fan I have is really loud but it sure makes a difference. At first I thought the smell that I was smelling was the chlorine from my pool (which is right off the deck that is connected to my studio) but nope - it was the fumes from my glass, torch....whatever it was is no longer a problem! Here is my humble little "bead hut".

-

Fantastic job!!! Looks like you used the upper part of the same type of shelving Lorraine and I used - clever adaptation. I like how you attached the metal to the sides. You're right, it looks like it couldn't be easier to do. The only tweak you might consider is taping all the edges with ventilation duct tape and doing the same to seal the sides to the table. Folks here have reported that this dramatically improves the draw efficiency of the fan, and helps cut down substantially on any annoying flame 'bounce'.

Thanks for posting your pics! Looks like you've considered your ventilation carefully

Linda

VitreousTyro · #16 2010-06-22, 2:47pm

Great pics Lori!! So glad you shared.

- Jill

glasshobbit · #17 2010-06-23, 10:44am

What a great idea!

Very Glassy · #18 2010-06-24, 3:10am

Thanks guys. The only thing I would have changed is where the fan is. I wish I could have put the actual unit outside because it is quite noisy. I have seen where some have mounted theirs outside on a small platform located on the outer wall with a little "cover". But because of the winters here in Maine, I didn't dare. Figured it would freeze up tight as a drum.

NMLinda · #19 2010-06-24, 4:43am

I have my fan mounted like you do. I built a small box around it, which I lined with foam insulation. Helped deaden the sound a fair bit. Other folks have noted that wrapping insulation around the ducting helps cut the sound down, too. Haven't tried that yet. In your case, you could move your fan and mount it on the wall - might give you a handy way to build a sound baffle around it if you felt like trying that.

Linda

Very Glassy · #20 2010-07-24, 5:26am

The fan I purchased was a Can-Fan 737 CFM 8 inch intake and 8 inch exhaust. I bought mine on ebay for about $140. It works great.