If you work in a metalworking or manufacturing facility, you already know that fire presents a serious risk to your employees and your workplace. In any shop, including welding and cutting operations, there’s always the potential to trigger a fire if the proper precautions are not sufficiently followed. Most of the time, fires that occur in manufacturing facilities start in a small area and spread relatively quickly. An unmanaged fire can be extremely costly, and most of all dangerous. When a fire occurs, companies can incur large capital and operational costs from downtime on their damaged systems. In this blog, we’ll take a look at fire risks in fume extractions systems and what can cause these fires to occur.

At Bisco Enterprise, we’re proud to be a leading provider of clean air solutions and collection products. We offer a wide variety of high quality fume extraction systems, fume arms, dust collectors in more. If you’re interested in learning more about our products or you have any questions, contact us today!

What Causes Filter Fires in Fume Extractors?

As you may already know, a fire can start with the help of three key elements: fuel, oxygen, and heat. Fuel, or any combustible substance, can accumulate as a mixture of particulates in the air. Within your fume extractor, a source of oxygen enters the system through the extraction power of the fan. Heat components can derive from other potential sources of ignition sparks, smoldering, or even the burning of particles.

As you can see, any time you have a spark, heat, and oxygen near a filter system, you run the risk of a fire or spontaneous combustion within the system. Other contributing factors may include:

• High temperatures within your facility
• Excessive splatter of particles or matter
• The amount of oil or other flammable items in the workplace

When it comes to your shop, the manual, robotic, and automated welding of oily parts or products can present a serious fire hazard.

A Few Solutions for Fire Safety

At Bisco Enterprise, we understand how important it is to maintain a safe and clean workplace in order to avoid the risk of fire. While every factory is different, there’s no such thing as a cookie-cutter safety system that suits all operations. The most effective systems are specifically designed to control fire risk before, during, and after the operation. Let’s look at a few key factors to consider to reduce the risk of fire in your facility.

Spark Arrestors

One of the best ways to prevent a fire in your fume extraction system is to utilize a spark arrestor, such as the  Nordfab QF In-Line Spark Trap. This unique safety component is very popular among the metalworking industry, as it starts its prevention measures where a fire begins - at the spark. Extraction systems without a spark arrestor are at a much higher risk for splatter, sparks, and dust to reach the combustible filter cartridge. In-line spark arrestors are an excellent option for may business owners, as they require little to no floor space and they have the ability to remove well known ignition sources for your system.

Limestone Feeders

In addition to spark arrestors, limestone feeders are another excellent prevention component that manufacturers can add to their current fume extraction system. If your shop performs welding on components that are covered in rust preventative oils, limestone feeders can also provide extra fire protection in these environments. So, how does limestone do this?

Limestone decreases oil’s combustibility by absorbing oily particulate upon contact. In these units, limestone is continuously injected into the ductwork to reduce particulate concentrations that are present in the air. The mixed limestone and oil eventually becomes dry matter, and once it reaches the filter it will fall into the dustbin during the cleaning cycle. Limestone can also be used to help protect filter cartridges against the premature clogging of oily particulate. This can considerably extend the cartridge lifespan, reduce filter replacement costs, and lower your operational costs.

View Fire Protection Products

As you can see, facilities with fume extractors can experience the unfortunate event of a fire if the proper precautions are not taken. If you have any questions regarding your fume extractor, or you’re interested in upgrading your current model to a new, energy-efficient version, contact the professionals at Bisco Enterprise today.