Exhaust fan for small (micro) shop

[JackOfDiamonds]

In my small 1-bay garage shop, I do some electronics soldering, brazing, rare welding, and some chemical things sometimes (like maybe cleanup with solvents or something).

So far when I want ventilation, other than just going outside to do it, I open the roll-up garage door. That sort of works, but destroys my climate control (i.e. freezes me in the winter and roasts me in the summer....I have a mini-split, but it can't keep up with an open garage door). Plus, ventilation still isn't that great even with a door open on one side, because the smoke just goes up to the ceiling and lingers because there's no cross-flow. The smoke just stays inside anyway. Unless I set up a fan to blow fresh air in, but then it's still not really a cross-flow situation, just stirring everything up.

I'm thinking I should put in a ventilation fan on the opposite side of the garage door to **** air out. Then, it would pull the smoke out from the ceiling, and I could just crack the front garage door if needed for make-up air, but at least it would exhaust the fumes out.

For a 200sq ft space, could I just use a bathroom fan for this? These are dirt cheap at the home stores. Or should I be looking for some specific type of exhaust fan for a garage, and what would the advantage be over a bathroom fan (maybe explosion-proof or something)?

 

[ScottsGT]

Not in my garage, but I built a paint booth for my models. Uses a squirrel cage fan from Grainger.
It vents through a 4” pipe to a window where I built a drop in panel with a dryer duct exit mounted on it.

Maybe something similar you could make for your needs?

 

[Spud McGee]

I made a plexiglass hood for my 3D printer. In the top is a $13 fart fan from the bathroom section of lowes. Then a flexible dryer duct I stick in the window. They make all sorts of different fart fans with different decibel and CFM ratings. From $13 to $1300. No ragrets. I say just do the math for how much air is in your space and how fast you want to be able to exchange it.

 

[no704]

Possibly a kitchen stove vent hood with a manual vent under or nearby the area.

 

[kbs2244]

"Possibly a kitchen stove vent hood with a manual vent under or nearby the area."
this
put it over your workbench
they make all kinds of outside vent covers if you feel you need one






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[rlitman]

I made a smoke eater for my son's desktop soldering station using a 4" axial fan and matching cylindrical carbon filter canister designed for a grow tent. There are lots of good products hitting the market for air scrubbing now.

 

[bb29510]

i bough a small squirrel cage . hook to some 3 inch pvc as a welding hood vent, but to really cool, I got a 24 inch louvered fan, like tractor supply sells that will drop the temp in seconds

 

[Sumboodie]

Not in my garage, but I built a paint booth for my models. Uses a squirrel cage fan from Grainger.
It vents through a 4” pipe to a window where I built a drop in panel with a dryer duct exit mounted on it.

Maybe something similar you could make for your needs?

Isn't half the fun of modeling getting high off the paint and glue?

 

[PoorUB]

For a 200sq ft space, could I just use a bathroom fan for this? These are dirt cheap at the home stores. Or should I be looking for some specific type of exhaust fan for a garage, and what would the advantage be over a bathroom fan (maybe explosion-proof or something)?

A small bath fan right over your work area is probably enough.

200 sqft and 8 foot ceiling is only 1600 cubic feet. A 50 CFM bath fan will exchange all the air in the space in 30 minutes. You probably do not even need to open the door as there will be enough leaks in the overhead door and other places to provide make up air.

You don't need explosion proof. For the air to be so saturated with flammable gases that it might explode you would probably be dead already from breathing the fumes.

A range hood would be over kill unless you buy a variable speed unit. Many are 300 CFM or larger. 300 CFM will exchange all the air in 8 minutes!

A lower volume fan running constantly makes more sense to me that a large fan that ***** all the air out in a few minutes.

 

[PoorUB]

delete!

 

[FL Guy]

I have this exhaust fan in my garage. It’ll turn over all the air in garage every 2 minutes. Over kill? Yes! But when I want fresh air I’m not Waiting 10,20 or 30 minutes.

 

[welder4956]

I would go with a bathroom vent fan in the largest CFM and lowest noise rating that fits your budget. A range hood fan is very effective, but most are very noisy. If you can find a rage hood fan with a low noise rating, that would work well. I have a 1450 CFM gable mounted attic fan in a 3 car garage with auto opening louvers. Works well for welding, but is noisy.

 

[CraigStu]

In a previous house I wanted to add an exhaust fan to the master bath. It was on the side of the house where the roof overhung a little so typical location in the ceiling would have had me working in the attic w/ maybe 18in headroom. So I looked around the web and found an exhaust fan to went through a typical drywall, 2x4, osb, vinyl siding outside wall. I had to buy a 6inch holesaw but otherwise the install was pretty simple. It was similar to this one;

Broan-NuTone 200 CFM Through-The-Wall Exhaust Fan with On/Off Switch 509S - The Home Depot

The Broan Direct Discharge 180 CFM Utility Through-Wall Fan can be used in rooms up to 160 sq. ft. for effective ventilation. The 180 CFM fan helps improve airflow with a powerful 6-1/2 sones motor. The

www.homedepot.com

 

[old_smokey]

I used a cheap bathroom fan in my 12x18 shop and it's great. I've done small painting jobs, cleaning with solvents, and welding in there. The fan makes a huge difference. My fan is located in the attic and connected to a 6" PVC pipe that pokes through the interior ceiling. That way I can connect a 6" flex duct and bring the intake close to my work area.

 

[Imatk]

I have this exhaust fan in my garage. It’ll turn over all the air in garage every 2 minutes. Over kill? Yes! But when I want fresh air I’m not Waiting 10,20 or 30 minutes.

How large is that fan?

 

[mike93lx]

A small bath fan is what I would do. If you do some looking, you can get them so quiet that you can barely hear them running.

I used a small one for ventilation in a tornado shelter. Just installed a cord and plug to keep it simple

 

[jskicet]

I installed this in my garage. It's a little bigger than yours. I also "Y" split it down to 6 inch pipe and ran two separate inlets. I also bought a remote control to plug it into so you can put the remote switch anywhere.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06WGPJ2MQ/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[FL Guy]

How large is that fan?

30”. 5500 CFM. Building is 11000 cubic feet.
Northern Tool.

 

[JackOfDiamonds]

Fart fan installed. I just installed a pull switch to avoid running wires to a wall switch.

I went with a Panasonic 50/80 CFM switchable unit. I put it on 80 because you can barely tell a difference and it's really quiet and hard to tell if it's actually doing anything. The soffit vent I bought has a spring loaded check valve in it which seems pretty stiff but you can feel air coming out at least.

 

[mike93lx]

That's, um, some wiring

 

[rlitman]

That's, um, some wiring

It's probably for the suicide shower.

 

[mike93lx]

It's probably for the suicide shower.

Shock wire!