[ravnsdaughter]

Hi all,

I'm just starting to set up my new studio in the house my husband and I just bought, after having taken a break for almost 2 years because I was in a rental unit that wasn't conducive to lampworking at all. At the same time, I'm upgrading from my HotHead to probably a Nortel MegaMinor.

I'm going to be setting things up in my basement, in one corner of a really big open rec room, directly under a window that is about 2 1/2' by 2'. I've already pried off the painted-on outer window, and then the inside window lifts up and can be propped open (or removed, for that matter). It's got a sill that's probably at least 4-6" wide in between the two.

I'm actually going to be building myself a workstation out of plywood and sheet metal, and can set up the ventilation just about however I want. But I'm having a really difficult time finding out how many CFM I need the fan to move. I went into a local plumbing and heating shop yesterday, and the guy that helped me seemed to think that a regular bathroom exhaust fan would be sufficient. I think the one he suggested was 50 CFM, but for some reason I'm thinking that's not enough.

What I'd like to do is cut a piece of plywood (or maybe 2, with some insulation between the two) with a hole in it to the outside, then run a duct down to the workstation and have it open closer to my torch to vent the fumes away. I do have to work with the fact that I live somewhere that gets 6-7 months of winter a year, with temperatures reaching -40 Celsius occasionally during the middle of winter. So I need to try and avoid having very much cold air getting in the house from my ventilation system. I'm also wondering if the cold is going to cause problems with the propane working properly. I know the tank will freeze up at -44F but as long as it's above that, will it run ok? I'm going to be having the propane tank outside the window as well, with a second opening to run a hose through to my workstation.

Thanks in advance for the help!