Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Another homemade fume hood post (with a difference)

paulr1234 - 29-9-2012 at 23:12

I'm thinking about building a fume hood for my office / work area but really don't want an industrial looking hood sitting in my house (truth be told, I would love one but my wife saw what I was thinking about and wasn't impressed).

I was thinking about the feasibility and safety of buying a large self assembly wardrobe from Ikea or similar, Configuring the interior with the right baffles, a sliding sash and lining the entire interior work area with something like PPS which is highly solvent, chemical and fire resistant.

http://www.curbellplastics.com/engineering-plastics/pps.html

Only problem with PPS is that it is hella expensive, maybe as much as $700 and up for 2' x 4' sheets.

Anyone have any other ideas for other suitable materials that might not be as $$$. I really like the idea of cabinet with door that I could close and keep everything tidy and secure but I know that the high density particleboard that this type of furniture is usually made from, will require careful protection from chemicals, moisture and heat/flame.


hyfalcon - 30-9-2012 at 01:49

What's wrong with HDPE, or am I missing something about that particular material?

Epoxy Paint

cal - 30-9-2012 at 07:27

The epoxy paints are also good, but the poly plastic sold at Home Depot for bath rooms are quite reasonably priced and also chemical resistant. I use the stuff where I work in a food processing plant that uses acids and chlorides to cover the walls behind the reactor pots and it works very well. It has to be cut with a large pair of metal shears or plywood saw blade turned backwards on a circular saw.