The Importance of A Dust Collector For Woodworkers
It’s wonderful to have a hobby that you really enjoy and especially if you can make it profitable as well. This should never be done however at the risk of your health. Naturally, you need to take all of the safety precautions necessary when using your tools and equipment. You need to ensure that your work area is a safe environment to protect from accidents. To go even further to this though you have to be certain that you are not being exposed to certain chemicals and pollutants. This is a fairly high risk in the woodworking hobby. One of the most common but perhaps least thought of is the dust. Predominantly sawdust but dust in general can be an issue.
So what steps can you take to handle the dust issue? There are a few options open to you. Ideally, though if you are working at your woodworking hobby a good deal of the time you may want to consider devising or purchasing some type of dust collection system.
There is always the option of wearing a respirator, which everyone should when they are working on their projects. The problem is as soon as they are through with the heavy cutting they remove the respirator but much of the dust is still present in the air and being inhaled. These types of problems that can be caused from inhaling that type of dust may not show up heath wise to later on down the road. By this time it?s too late, and many seasoned woodworkers suffer with respiratory problems as a result of this.
In many wood shops, you will find the shop vac type of vacuums, which are certainly a necessity, but they are more for cleaning up the debris that can seen. You may find it well worth you while to check out some of dust collection systems that are now on the market. Don?t be deceived into thinking that you have to have some big heavy cumbersome unit running all day while you are working. You can use a portable dust collector. These are just situated near where you are working and they consist of a hood that gathers the dust into a bag.
They are a great commodity because they can be hooked onto your power tools with a 4-inch port connector. If you feel that, the portable unit is just not strong enough for the type of work you are doing or there are more than one of you working in the workshop at the same time you may want to try a more centralized system. This type of unit drives the dust and sanding and cutting residues into a micron bag. To become even more elite you and go with one of the cyclone dust collector systems.
You must understand though reference to a dust collector is mostly referring to the collection of the residue of your work such as the wood chips, shavings and sawdust. It really is not addressing those fine particles that are floating around in the air. This is where the respirator is necessary
Woodworking Safety Tips You Must Follow
Safety always comes first. For any activity, whether it is woodworking or sports, it pays to be mindful of any potential dangers and how you can prevent them. For woodworking, understand the hazard is not only for your safety but the safety of others around you.
a) Alcohol and tools just don?t make a good team. Avoid the consumption of alcohol whenever you are going to be working with your tools no matter how minor they are. Even with a chisel or a knife, you can get some pretty bad cuts. Your mind needs to be clear when involved in this hobby. The same applies for prescriptive drugs for example that may cause drowsiness.
b) Observe the conditions that you are working in. Sawdust as well as toxic fumes can be deadly to your health. The dangers with these are that the results they can create may not be evident immediately. Health hazards such as these can show their results years later. Use only anti explosion fans and make sure you have a good supply of fresh air.
c) No doubt you have seen a lot of protective gear on the shelves where you buy your equipment and supplies. These items are not just fads and can be important to your health. Items like protection for your ears and safety glasses should be a priority. Something as simple as using a push stick when you are work up close to the blade can save a limb.
d) Don?t socialize when you are working in your woodwork shop, even having a television or radio on can be a bad idea. Anything that could distract you and take your attention away from what you are doing could lead to a potential accident.
e) It is imperative that you keep your shop clean. If you leave tools, lying on the floor there is a good chance you are going to trip. If you are, hanging tools make sure they are secure and you don?t run the risk of them falling on you. Watch for cords try to keep them away from areas where you are going to be walking. Sweep up your debris. Sawdust can make a floor like a skating rink.
f) There will be times that your won?t seem like it is cutting right or it is resisting. Don?t get frustrated and start pushing the wood. Stop and inspect the equipment to see what the problem is. If you continue to force the wood, it could spring back and hit you.
g) Think about what you are cutting. Don?t let your thoughts stray you must concentrate at all times.
h) If you are in a hurry then you should not be working. This is when accidents are most likely to happen.
I) Wear the right clothing. If you have long hair keep it tied back. Remove your jewelry before working with your tools.
j) Make sure your power tools have completely stopped before touching them or setting them down.
Just good common sense thinking can prevent the majority of accidents that can occur in the workshop.
Learn How To Bend Wood Easily – Woodworking Plans
How many times have you gone and purchased a piece of wood and got it home and cursed it because it has a bend it in. Then as you move along into your woodworking hobby, you discover that there are times that; you wish you could bend the wood. Well actually, you can and there are a few methods not all that difficult to do to help you achieve this. There are methods such steam bending or microwave steaming. Then there are Kerf cut bending or laminated wood bending, so you can see there are a few options ahead of you.
Don?t even think about attempting to bend wood without a form. When you have removed the treated wood from the steam box you need to get it clamped into place as quickly as possible and that?s where the form comes into play. You can easily make your own forms with several layers of MDF.
Now let?s look at micro waving wood. Naturally you aren?t going to get a big piece of wood into your microwave so this is just for small pieces. Wrap the piecedin a wet paper towel and nuke it for only a few seconds. It works just like a steam box. You will have to experiment with the time because of the variations in the wood.
The most tried and true method for wood bending is the steam method. You will need to make a steam box so you need a heat source, a container to hold the water, which is going to be heated, and a hose for the steam to pass through. A separate box is needed for the wood that is going to be treated. For your heat source it doesn?t have to be anything elaborate it cane even be a hot plate. Nothing with open flames though. A teakettle makes a great water container but you have to be able to modify it so you can add a hose to it.
For the steam box, you can use any type of pipe or wooden box that you construct yourself. The steam has to be able to escape though or you will end up with an explosion. You must be very careful not to get burnt when doing this the steam is extremely hot and heats up everything. Make sure you wear gloves. Again making sure that you, steam has a way of escaping you can start off with about an hour of this treatment; you may need more again depending on the variation of the wood.
Laminated wood is much easier to bend because of its thickness. You will need the form but not the other equipment. Make sure the piece you are bending is longer than you need and it must be thin. Then you just glue the layers together as you stack them in the form and clamp them. Once dry trim the edges.
Kerf cut bending is just a simple procedure of cutting slots across the wood. These are done on the inside of the bend.
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