Written by Jim Rothel, this article appeared in the Mar/Apr 2012, #216 issue of the Fouling Shot.
After tiring from years of toting my casting equipment to the garage for bullet casting sessions, I decided to assemble a vent hood for casting which I could use in the basement away from the extreme cold or heat in the garage usual during the times I chose to cast. I of course wanted to keep the cost of the project to a minimum, so I looked at garage sales for a used range vent hood & eventually found one for $10. Many range hoods are available from folks who change out their nearly new vents in order to install a microwave unit. Look for a model that has a two-speed fan plus a light.
Some units like mine dont vent to the outdoors, but just recycle the air through a filter. So in order to vent through a duct through a basement sliding window, I cut a hole in the top of the vent hood (Fig 1) to fit a flanged starter end for 4 aluminum flexible dryer vent duct.
After tiring from years of toting my casting equipment to the garage for bullet casting sessions, I decided to assemble a vent hood for casting which I could use in the basement away from the extreme cold or heat in the garage usual during the times I chose to cast. I of course wanted to keep the cost of the project to a minimum, so I looked at garage sales for a used range vent hood & eventually found one for $10. Many range hoods are available from folks who change out their nearly new vents in order to install a microwave unit. Look for a model that has a two-speed fan plus a light.
Some units like mine dont vent to the outdoors, but just recycle the air through a filter. So in order to vent through a duct through a basement sliding window, I cut a hole in the top of the vent hood (Fig 1) to fit a flanged starter end for 4 aluminum flexible dryer vent duct.
The two starter ends and 4 duct section cost about $15 at Home Depot. The unneeded exhaust louvers on the front of the hood were blocked off with duct tape.
The other end of the duct (Fig 2) was connected to a starter end installed in a 1/4 plywood piece from my scrap woodpile. This plywood piece was cut to fit snugly into the track of the sliding window. It can be easily removed for storage between casting sessions.
The other end of the duct (Fig 2) was connected to a starter end installed in a 1/4 plywood piece from my scrap woodpile. This plywood piece was cut to fit snugly into the track of the sliding window. It can be easily removed for storage between casting sessions.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2 I selected a salvaged electrical cord from my electrical drawer, hooked up the vent wiring, checked the fan rotation, & checked to see that the light worked.
Next I cut legs for the vent from scrap pieces of wood & bolted them to the corners of the hood to provide about 20 of workroom under the lower edge of the hood (Fig 3). Cardboard was stapled between the legs at the two ends & the back of the unit in order to direct fumes away from my face & into the duct. I am now looking for some scrap light-gage aluminum or galvanized sheets to use for this purpose instead of the cardboard in order to make the unit more fire resistant.
Next I cut legs for the vent from scrap pieces of wood & bolted them to the corners of the hood to provide about 20 of workroom under the lower edge of the hood (Fig 3). Cardboard was stapled between the legs at the two ends & the back of the unit in order to direct fumes away from my face & into the duct. I am now looking for some scrap light-gage aluminum or galvanized sheets to use for this purpose instead of the cardboard in order to make the unit more fire resistant.
I am now looking for some scrap light-gage aluminum or galvanized sheets to use for this purpose instead of the cardboard in order to make the unit more fire resistant.
I cut a piece of 1/4 plywood to use as a floor inside the unit to protect my table from the inevitable burns from lead splatters & hot tools.
I turned on the vent fan at high speed & fired up the lead pot. Any smoke was quickly drawn up the duct to the outdoors. No casting smell was noticed in my workroom (verified by the little woman in the family room above!).
I recommend you check that the fan capacity & duct length on your unit provide sufficient venting. Since the lead pot was already heated up, I cast a boxful of .357 slugs while I listened to news on the TV in the pleasant coolness of my basement.
I cut a piece of 1/4 plywood to use as a floor inside the unit to protect my table from the inevitable burns from lead splatters & hot tools.
I turned on the vent fan at high speed & fired up the lead pot. Any smoke was quickly drawn up the duct to the outdoors. No casting smell was noticed in my workroom (verified by the little woman in the family room above!).
I recommend you check that the fan capacity & duct length on your unit provide sufficient venting. Since the lead pot was already heated up, I cast a boxful of .357 slugs while I listened to news on the TV in the pleasant coolness of my basement.
Fig. 3