COMBUSTABLE SAWDUST

[Alexam]

Just how combustable is sawdust?

If I an doing some sanding in the garage/workshop and have a gas room heater in the garage, am I risking explosion, or is it not quite that bad? I would rather fall off my pearch than be blown off it.

 

[timber]

Just how combustable is sawdust?

If I an doing some sanding in the garage/workshop and have a gas room heater in the garage, am I risking explosion, or is it not quite that bad? I would rather fall off my pearch than be blown off it.

Malcolm,
Dangerous stuff wood dust, when I had my sawmill ( small ) I was cutting an infested elm tree. Farmers love nails !!! the band was just about ruined so thought I would finish the Cut went home for tea and on return found the saw pit smouldering away.
I think I would be more worried with the gas fire starting a fire.
Fire is a terrible thing, and during my forestry career I have had several near go's setting light to property, and a few engines turn up, especially when working around Gatwick area. No doubt the Pilots radioed in.
I could have as many as 15 fires on the go during the big storm in the eighties.
Take care
Richard

 

[Jacob]

There is a risk with sawdust in the air and a naked flame to ignite it. You can get an explosion. Even if it didn't go bang, having sawdust settle around a gas heater is a fire risk.

Electric oil filled rads much safer and cheaper to run than a bottle-gas free standing heater and you don't get condensation probs.

Basically bottle gas heaters are unsafe (fire and fumes), expensive to run, and cause condensation probs. Very unsuitable for a woodwork shop and a lot of other places. Should be banned altogether IMHO

 

[Ed Bray]

All combustible materials and quite a few typically non-combustible materials can present an explosion risk when in high enough concentrations. Some of the normally non-combustible materials are aluminium and titanium.

Combustible materials are typically powders carbon (coal dust and activated charcoal), wood, flour, sugar and a plethora of others.

To be as safe as possible do what Jacob said and use a oil filled radiator instead of anything with a naked flame.

 

[Jacob]

To see how combustible air borne saw-dust (or other dusty stuff as listed by Ed above) is try throwing a shovelful onto a hot bonfire (carefully!)

 

[dc_ni]

To see how combustible air borne saw-dust (or other dusty stuff as listed by Ed above) is try throwing a shovelful onto a hot bonfire (carefully!)

check YouTube for dust explosions, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enmDe1eayp8

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Diesel engines (or properly compression ignition engines, afaik) were originally built to run on coal dust.

 

[Alexam]

Thanks folks. Looks like it's an oil filled radiatr then.

 

[Owl]

Just how combustable is sawdust?

If I an doing some sanding in the garage/workshop and have a gas room heater in the garage, am I risking explosion, or is it not quite that bad? I would rather fall off my pearch than be blown off it.

I'm rather confused :?

Alex has been advised against using a gas heater where sawdust/dust is concerned (no doubt due to a naked flame).
Yet on another thread (see Briquette making) the OP is asking about making and using briquettes to heat his workshop, obviously this has to be on a stove and therefore a naked flame.

Surely any fuel burning stove is risky in such a situation :?:

 

[Ed Bray]

Just how combustable is sawdust?

If I an doing some sanding in the garage/workshop and have a gas room heater in the garage, am I risking explosion, or is it not quite that bad? I would rather fall off my pearch than be blown off it.

I'm rather confused :?

Alex has been advised against using a gas heater where sawdust/dust is concerned (no doubt due to a naked flame).
Yet on another thread (see Briquette making) the OP is asking about making and using briquettes to heat his workshop, obviously this has to be on a stove and therefore a naked flame.

Surely any fuel burning stove is risky in such a situation :?:

I think it would depend on how good any dust extraction in place was, if good dust extraction was in place then the likelihood of enough dust being in the air to achieve the concentration required for it to be an explosive risk is unlikely, if not, then the potential is there for it to be a risk.

The Op spoke of doing some sanding in his garage, no mention of dust extraction, depending on how much sanding and for how long without dust extraction this could pose a risk. He will have to make the decision based on the evidence given, what I will say is that using an electric oil filled radiator will pose considerably less risk than using an open flame of any description.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Many people use pot bellies in workshops. There isn't really a naked flame as such, as the fire is contained. You'd need a fair concentration of dust to present a problem, but I wouldn't have a gas heater in a workshop because of the condensation.

 

[Alexam]

Good points. Dust extraction would be fairly good, but still some very fine dust around. I hadn't thought about the condensation although this is a double garage with pitched & tiled roof and open rafters. I just wanted to get the area warmish, preferably without electricity, as there is only 13A supply and I don't want to use electric heaterr whilst using equipment due to overload. Will have to look at the output of oil filled radiators, but expect that it wont be very high like the 4.5Kw from gas

Any advice please on the best output for the lowest electric draw with oil filled radiator/s. Thinking of using an extention cable from the house to the garage just for the heater/s instead of drawing off thenormal 13A suply to the garage.

I presume that rules would not allow an armoured cable to be up against the fence or wall to the garage?

 

[blackrodd]

To see how combustible air borne saw-dust (or other dusty stuff as listed by Ed above) is try throwing a shovelful onto a hot bonfire (carefully!)

Shapland and Petter, furniture, and later, door makers, (now closed) had a furnace burning the waste sawdust and timber.
The fire brigade were called out, most weeks and sometimes twice in a week, this was nearly always a sawdust explosion, very dangerous!
Regards Rodders

 

[Terry - Somerset]

My workshop occupies half of a large double garage. Although it may not be possible in your case, I recently had the workshop garage door replaced with wall and windows. Now instead of a 6ft radiator in summer and a cold draft/condensation around the edges in winter it is relatively comfortable year round, and I have some natural light. I have a 2kw electric fire on a 20 minute timer which when cold I switch on at the start of the day - thereafter I only need a heat boost every hour or two.

If you are going to be in the same house any length of time you may find it cheaper and a better working environment to insulate rather than increase heating capacity.

Terry

 

[Silas Gull]

Some of the biggest explosions in history are the result of fuel particles suspended in air. You get the mix just right, and boom, goodbye workshop, house, village, town, county. See http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=S2FGA3Z-oYM

 

[Alexam]

Thanks Terry, but the garage is still used by my wife and son, so cannot block off. With additional power I could have greater capacity to keepheating on when working, but to do this now, I need to use an extention cable from the house to avoidoverloading.

 

[John15]

Hi Alex,

You may find it will take more than one heater to raise the temp by say 5 degrees in an un-insulated double garage with no ceiling.

John

 

[Phil Pascoe]

You will probably find it better to have one of the heat lamps or a halogen heater to keep you warm when working, rather than heat the 'shop - John is right. Been there, done that. Mine was in Cornwall, (which is mostly warmer than you) and it took a pot belly an hour to make a significant difference - which of course meant that if I was only there for a hour there was no point trying.

 

[Alexam]

That may be a thought .... halogen heater, will look them up.

 

[nanscombe]

With a gas powered room heater in an enclosed, not well ventilated environment you may to watch out for problems with fumes / carbon monoxide as well.