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supplied air respirators

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I am thinking about getting one of the supplied air respirators that are on the market that utilize a hvlp turbine to deliver air to a helmet or face mask. can anyone who owns and uses them offer any feed back on these.
two companies i have seen that offer them. one being breathe cool and the other being hobby air.
 

Steve Worcester

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I have an Axis Air Hobby air 2. It uses a turbine and 40' hose to supply air from the turbine unit that I places in another room. I use it to shoot clear coats where a mask and charhol filter are not enough protection.

Even though these units are NIOSH approved, it works fine for this use. I cannot imagine using it for everyday wood turning use. The turbine is very loud, like a bad shop vac, and gets warm enough, I don't know if it could take the duty cycle required. Also, the hoses are big enough, it makes it cumbersome to move around, and I am only using a hood, not a faceshield or mask.

If you want something that does a good job for the money, get an Airmate
 
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sapr

in my research i have only found two companies who produce a turbine designed for sapr. one being axis or hobby air and the other being breathe cool. Neither being nisoh approved however axis does have one that is approved at a hefty price tag for that designation. My only question was of the people who own either of them how do you like it and which hood or face shield do you use??
 

Bill Boehme

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I have an Axis Air Hobby air 2.... Even though these units are NIOSH approved ...

According to their web site, they are NOT NIOSH approved. They also claim that their respirators are cool, comfortable, and can be worn all day long. Based on your comments, it seems that you can't have all three at the same time.
 

Steve Worcester

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Steve, you miss a word in there? I was curious and looked up the "Breath Cool" and the only mention I found said it was NOT NIOSH approved. Perhaps yours is different?

Your correct, this unit is NOT NIOSH approved.
tere are more expensive units that are
 
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I am thinking about getting one of the supplied air respirators that are on the market that utilize a hvlp turbine to deliver air to a helmet or face mask. can anyone who owns and uses them offer any feed back on these.
two companies i have seen that offer them. one being breathe cool and the other being hobby air.

Curious as to why you think you need one of these? Are you working with highly toxic substances? Do you have C-P issues that mandate this level of protection for working with any wood? Not meaning to pry, but except in unusual circumstances, one of these supplied-air rigs, just 1 step away from a moon suit, is not indicated for woodworking.
 
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The Breathe Cool has served me well.

I've used the Breathe Cool from Turbine Products since around 2005. I initially bought the hood and found it worthless - I now use the half mask. If you're using 2K class finishes, you really don't have an option - the fumes will go through the best of cartridges. I have the pump in the downstairs area and go through 2" schedule-40 to the spray-booth upstairs. All sanding is done with a n100 cartridge mask.

Some other things to consider:
- You need to have a spray booth. Before you go off the deep end, you can build one. I bought a 300' x 40" roll of filter material and built my booth 5" across and, you guess it, a bit less the 40" high. The exhaust fan is 2000-cfm - it is designed for spray-booths with the fume-flow completely isolated from the motor, belt, pulley and outside world.
- Again, if you're spraying 2K-class finishes, which are a few steps up on the nastiness scale from most clear coats, you really do need to be spraying in a separate building - spraying in a room that has a common attic or vent system with family living space in unthinkable.

Back to the Breathe Cool. Mine has served me well. If you have an employee doing your finishing, which I doubt, buying a non-approved is insanity. I priced approved units and they are over $1000 more than the Breathe Cool. The serious units are designed to be worn all day by employees that file workman's comp claims - I wear mine 10-minutes max in a session and, unfortunately, have no one to sue.

We all have around 86-billion neurons. As we get a bit older and are resigned to losing a few, better to use a good respirator and drink more beer.
 
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John Tisdale said:
-

We all have around 86-billion neurons. As we get a bit older and are resigned to losing a few, better to use a good respirator and drink more beer.

I'll drink to that!!!, Gretch
 
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