Low-Cost Filter Keeps Shop Air Cleaner

Low-Cost Filter Keeps Shop Air Cleaner FARM SHOP Handy Hints 24-2-38 "I was tired of breathing dirty air," says Arvin De Cook, Sully, Iowa, who came up with an idea for a low-cost air cleaner to remove dust, smoke, paint and other airborne particles. "During the winter, I spend many hours a day doing repairs in my heated farm shop. After a couple hours of cutting, grinding, welding or spray painting, the air becomes quite dirty. Usually you don't realize it until you blow your nose. This air can do permanent damage to your lungs. "You can run an exhaust fan but it'll bring cold air into the shop, which gets costly. And few farmers can justify spending hundreds, or thousands, of dollars for a commercial air cleaner. "I came up with this idea for a low-cost air cleaner that you can put together for less than $30. It consists of a 3-speed box fan which pulls air through four cheap furnace filters. The fan and filters are mounted in a plywood box which hangs from the ceiling in the shop. The fan also circulates warm air through the shop. "The four plywood sides of the box screw together. A slot is cut out of one side for the filters to fit into. Then a cover is screwed over the slot to cover it. A piece of window screening goes over the open filter side of the box. The fan bolts into the other end of the box and pulls air through the filters. "Maintenance depends on how much it's used and how dirty the air is. The filters generally cost less than $1 apiece to replace. Because the fan pulls air through the filters, it's always running on filtered air. However, when you need to replace it these fans can be bought for about $15." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Arvin De Cook, 9658 Hwy F 62 E, Sully, Iowa 50251 (ph 515 594-3438).

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