Fume Extraction

Fume Exhausting and Extraction

Maintaining safe levels of indoor air quality is crucial in any industrial, commercial or residential environment, and achieving this goal often requires the use of fume extraction systems. 

You use to capture air that is contaminated, so that it can be routed away through your filters and duct work to then send it out of the facility, causing no harm to people or property. Risks of unmitigated fumes center around pollution, explosions, fires and asphyxiation. 

Therefore, fume exhaustion protects employees, customers and visitors from toxic materials as well as safeguarding facilities when hazardous materials are in use or are being stored. Without adequate air circulation, conditions would be too dangerous to allow work to go forward or to allow members of the public to enter, let alone remain inside the building.

Benefits of Fume Extraction

Facilities where people are regularly exposed to dangerous gases and fumes will benefit from fume exhaustion systems. Factories, warehouses, construction sites and commercial establishments with the potential to produce or emit fumes are at the top of the list of beneficiaries of fume removal systems. 

Examples include locations where workers are using welding or grinding tools as well as laser cutting or plasma torches. 

Chemical factories and laboratories where chemicals are stored and used necessitate fume extraction fans. Likewise, pharmaceutical plants will need to keep fumes at bay. Petrochemical processors and storage facilities will have a high need for fume exhaustion technology too.

Locations where the public may be exposed to hazardous materials include hospital settings where formalin is used for pathology work. University and high school chemistry departments are mandated to install this type of protective equipment to extract dangerous fumes as well.

Water treatment facilities as well as public swimming pools that rely on chlorine for assuring safety against pathogens are also prime candidates for installing fans for dispersing hazardous fumes. 

In many cases, the fumes have unpleasant odors that at minimum are distracting and annoying to people in the immediate area but can also contain hazardous materials that must be mitigated by exhaustion and filtering.

Installing and Using Fume Removal Equipment

Once you and fellow stakeholders have determined that your organization requires equipment for exhausting fumes, it is time to survey the property with your in-house experts or work with third party professionals to verify if you need a portable system or fume extractors installed in place. 

The volume of air that needs to move through the environment and at what rate will inform the size of the fume extractor fans to install. Sizing the system will ensure that you have the right amount of air movement at all times.

In some cases, portable fume extractors are more suitable, such as if your work routinely has you visiting different job sites. If the type of work being done inside your own facility only intermittently requires fume exhaustion, portable rather than permanent installation may be the best approach.

Basic requirements to keep in mind include electrical load and any noise level regulations, which you can address specifically once you have a firm idea of the system’s size and airflow.

It’s worth keeping in mind that the nature of your business (whether in manufacturing, storage or research and development), you can install blowers instead of fans inside your facility. Your facility engineers may determine that your processes are better served by blowing fumes away from the work area instead of directing them using powerful fans. 

Fans for Removing Fumes in Explosive Environments

When there is a risk of explosion because of the nature of the substances in fumes produced in your facility, you’ll want to safeguard the process by setting up explosion proof fume extraction fans. 

In extreme conditions and where conditions warrant much rapider ventilation of dangerous gases and fumes, the best option is to rely on explosion proof high velocity fans.

Lighting

Worker efficiency and safety in your facility depend on proper illumination. In environments where hazardous materials are being used so that dust or fumes are present in the air, it’s of paramount importance to install explosion proof lighting. 

Otherwise, using conventional lighting introduces a source of ignition in the workplace. You may also see these installations referred to as vapor proof lighting. They offer you the peace of mind that comes from knowing the building is illuminated safely with no threat of explosions to property or people.

For more information about our fume extraction fans, portable fume extractors and blowers as well as our range of explosion proof lighting systems, please call us at 866-727-1060 today.