Dust can be a huge problem on construction sites.
It becomes an even bigger problem if work is being done in an occupied home.
There are several steps contractors can take to make sure that clients’ homes are protected during renovation projects, but not all contractors are equal in this area. In fact, many contractors put little thought into dust control and protecting your home and family. There’s no excuse for this.
I’m going to share 3 ways that we take control of dust on our jobs to maximize your comfort and minimize the mess.
Step 1: Physical Barriers
Depending on the type of project, a physical barrier to dust can be anything from plastic sheeting and painters tape, to entire temporary walls built to separate work space from livig space.
This system from Zipwall can really cut down on airborne dust transfer from work areas, and is a good first step in most interior renovation projects. These are readily available for anyone to purchase, and are very cost effective.
Other similar systems are available from FastCap, or there are many ways to replicate this with materials already available on most jobistes.
Image from Zipwall
Step 2: Dust Collection
Some people don’t know it, but there are several lines of power tools available that are designed almost entirely around the principle of excellent dust collection. Have you ever heard of Festool? Festool power tools are made in Germany, and each tool is designed to work with one of their dust collectors. Weuse the Festool CT26 dust extractor pictured here.
Every Festool tool, from circular saws, routers, sanders, and even tools from other brands connect to this dust extractor to collect virtually all dust during use. We even use a drywall sander that captures over 90% of the dust produced during the sanding process.
The dust collector works like a vacuum, and is HEPA Certified.
Step 3: Active Air Scrubbing
During demolition or other phases that produce airborne dust, we use active air scrubbing. This unit has a large prefilter, as well as a HEPA filter. When combined with physical barriers and placed inside the work zone, it can clean the air in a 6000 cubic foot room 6 times per hour, while removing 90% of airborne dust.
When the output is ducted to outdoors, it can be used to place the work area in negative pressure. Negative pressure means that air is coming into the work area from the living area, and therefore dust cannot escape. Oscar was impressed with our BuildClean unit and named it Fred.
Rest assured we will treat your home and health with respect during renovation projects, our reputation depends on it!
Dan
