Portable (Temporary) fume extractor

[Pollywog]

This topic might have been covered in terms of proper facility needed to have while fuming the plates.

Though, I have some idea to throw in before I start the DIY process in making a small fuming cabinet, just need to see what the rest of the senior members might think.

I do plan to travel somewhere warmer in a month or so, hopefully to make some dag plates if possible.

To fume the plates, hopefully without harming the environment too much, will it be possible to use hydroponic tent and the extractor?

Its kind of a combination of these kinds of materials:
Hydroponic Tent
Fan extractors

I know the fan and the filters probably would go bust after a long periodic use, its replaceable, common and cheap enough.

As I think for its simple design being portable, easy to set-up, and dismantle, and I could let go from using only fume cupboards in the labs.

I just need some opinions to see whether if this is a good idea, just for a temporary solution in terms of fuming plates outdoors or while travelling.

I have a rough napkin-sketch just in case if what I typed made any sense.

-Pollywog

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[jgmotamedi]

While the tent looks like a great idea, I think the fatal flaw is that you would have to be in there with the chemicals, no? The idea of a fumehood is that only your gloved hands are exposed to the chemicals, not your eyes, nose, or mouth.

So, can you provide a little more details on your process? Are you planning on using mercury in there? Diluting your bromine in there? If so, no this won’t work. If you are going to use this for iodine only it would be ok, but with caveats.

The fan would probably work fine, just make sure it is powerful enough and inspect it regularly for corrosion. The activated charcoal is, I think, a waste of money. Venting outside is the best way of dealing with these fumes. Bromine and iodine react so quickly that in the quantities we are using (unless you spill!) they are effectively inert once they hit the outside air. Mercury is more of a concern, but again in the small quantities we are using the main concern is to keep it away from your (and your neighbors’) lungs. Do not use the charcoal filter inside for mercury, as they have no end-of-life indicator, and you can easily poison yourself.

[Pollywog]

I doubt I’ll be doing mercury & bromine with this type of setup. Too dangerous and I don’t think the authorities and the public would appreciate it.I’ll do those only in the proper lab fume cabinets and it should remained so.

The idea for the tent (lightproofed and with only a small filtered window) and would fit me (unfortunately) alongside with the fuming box and a little space for the working hands. It’s pretty much a suggestion that I want to try to do dags in the outdoors, which will be quite away from any sort of infrastructures. Hopefully this plan might work.

It’s pretty much meant to make Becquerel Daguerreotypes, which I will work with only resublimed Iodine crystals. I just need the fumes to be sucked away from me.

Taking your comment of me being in the tent with the iodine fume, I think I’ll build another smaller tent, just to fit in the fuming box and a bit of space for my hands) for the extraction. I don’t want to walk out like Barney the Dinosaur each time I sensitize the plates.

Thank you for reminding me of me being in there with the chemicals, it totally skipped my thoughts and very crucial indeed.

I’ll try to build one and post it here later (if I don’t die) when I finish building it and do a test run.

[jgmotamedi]

Look into the boxes which the collodion cult members use, these are small boxes on a tripod which allow them to pull a black cloth over their heads and pour their plates. I have at times considered getting one of these dark boxes and converting it into a glove box, where you look through a red plexi window into the box, while your hands slip into gloves attached to the box, and do the work of moving the plate. With a setup like this you wouldn’t need a fan using iodine only.

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