Kim Overall on thu 31 may 07
If your work area where you throw/handbuild suffers the most,
try laying down small sections of tarp.
Small sections are easy to lift up and hose down outside
as well as contain the dust.
Any areas outside of the tarp can be sponged or 'gently' swept. Or,
I usually scrape dried bits of clay (not off the floor though) into a
recycle container covered with water. This helps keep dust out of my studio
pretty good without all the extra effort. A really cool tool for table top
is plastic wallpaper scrapers/smoothers. they're long and have a built in
handle...the second item in this link:
http://www.ingersollproducts.com/drywall.htm
anything off the wheel, out of the splash pan goes straight into a recycle
bucket with water. When full, it's time to recycle that bucket.
Kim in Houston
Chris trabka on thu 31 may 07
Linda,
My studio is in the basement. I do not want to expose the family (and
house) to a lot of clay dust. I do have time to spend an hour for cleaning
after a couple hours of work.
Some rules I've adopted. The broom is "forbotten" - way too much dust (same
for the vacuum). I only use water to clean up (a good old mop and lots of
water).
My work area is covered with professional cooking mats (the kind that lock
together, are about 1/2-inch thick and have large holes in them). The clay
drops into the holes and sits there. When the clay is in the holes I can
not dusturb it even when I walk over it! When I start to notice the clay in
a lot of holes, it is time to pick up the mats and get out the mop.
Chris
Charles Hightower on thu 31 may 07
I wet the studio floor completely and then I sweep it wet with a really wide
broom. This does a great job of getting those troublesome pieces of clay
that are freshly stuck to the floor as well as everything else. Sweep
everything into a pile and scoop up if there is enough to. Throw in trash
and squeegee the floor with a large squeegee. If you have streaks, and more
water, sweep, and squeegee again. Never sweep dry. I hate mopping and find
this works best for me and is a quick process if done daily. Uses less water
as well. Just make sure you use enough.
The Goodsons on thu 31 may 07
Dear John and Wayne,
Thank you so much. Wearing a respirator is the one thing about
pottery that makes me "cringe".
Back to the old wet mop, as I do not have a central vac!! The ole' "new
rainbow" vac was short lived!!
Best to you both.
Linda
John Hesselberth wrote:
My recommendation is very simple. Wet clean with a sponge or a mop or
get a vacuum that exhausts outdoors or some combination of the two.
WJ Seidl wrote:
> Linda:
> Sorry, dear, but do not delude yourself.
> Once those particles are airborne, it can literally take days for them
> to settle out of the air
> again. Are you willing to wear a respirator for weeks?
> Wet mop.
>
> Best,
> Wayne Seidl
>
>> ______________
>>
> .
>
>
The Goodsons on thu 31 may 07
Hello, all,
I am one of those potters who can not throw without getting clay all
over the place.
What ways have you found best at keeping your studios clean - without
stirring up dust?
In the past I have found that:
sweeping/vacuuming stirs up too much dust
hosing everything down is a major job/ not something that I want to do
everyday.
damp mopping doesn't always get all the clay up, but seems maybe the best?
I am looking for helpful advice for everyday cleaning._ I was thinking
that using my wet/dry vac occasionally with water added to it
might be a great thing - but I think that you are saying that too many
silica particles are still going into the air, even if I can't see them?
What if I still wore a respirator while I vacuumed this new way?
I would appreciate any thoughts on daily cleaning.
Good afternoon, and good potting to all,
Linda Goodson
Lincolnton, NC
WJ Seidl on thu 31 may 07
Linda:
Sorry, dear, but do not delude yourself.
Once those particles are airborne, it can literally take days for them
to settle out of the air
again. Are you willing to wear a respirator for weeks?
Wet mop.
Best,
Wayne Seidl
The Goodsons wrote:
> Hello, all,
>
> I am one of those potters who can not throw without getting clay all
> over the place.
> What ways have you found best at keeping your studios clean - without
> stirring up dust?
>
> In the past I have found that:
> sweeping/vacuuming stirs up too much dust
> hosing everything down is a major job/ not something that I want to do
> everyday.
> damp mopping doesn't always get all the clay up, but seems maybe the best?
>
> I am looking for helpful advice for everyday cleaning._ I was thinking
> that using my wet/dry vac occasionally with water added to it
> might be a great thing - but I think that you are saying that too many
> silica particles are still going into the air, even if I can't see them?
> What if I still wore a respirator while I vacuumed this new way?
>
> I would appreciate any thoughts on daily cleaning.
>
> Good afternoon, and good potting to all,
> Linda Goodson
> Lincolnton, NC
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
>
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
John and Judy Hesselberth on thu 31 may 07
On May 31, 2007, at 3:15 PM, The Goodsons wrote:
> I am looking for helpful advice for everyday cleaning.
Hi Linda,
My recommendation is very simple. Wet clean with a sponge or a mop or
get a vacuum that exhausts outdoors or some combination of the two.
Central vacuums are designed to function well with the long hose
required to exhaust outdoors; some people have adapted shop vacuums
to do the same thing and seem to think they work well. My own system
is a central vacuum and wet mopping/sponging. I would never consider
a HEPA vacuum.
Regards,
John
Lee Love on fri 1 jun 07
On 6/1/07, The Goodsons wrote:
I was thinking
> that using my wet/dry vac occasionally with water added to it
> might be a great thing - but I think that you are saying that too many
> silica particles are still going into the air, even if I can't see them?
> What if I still wore a respirator while I vacuumed this new way?
I wouldn't trust water filtiering the dust in a wet vac. I
have a long hose. They use them $B!! (B for plumbing drain here. My shop
vac is outside and I only bring the hose into the studio. Any dust
is vented outside.
I saw this kind of set up at a small shop in the same
building as Continental Clay.
--
Lee in Mashiko, Japan
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
"To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts." -
Henry David Thoreau
"Let the beauty we love be what we do." - Rumi
Michael Wendt on fri 1 jun 07
Don't overlook the humble squeegee.
Many hardware stores sell them.
We gently pour a bucket of water
onto a spot on the floor and herd
the water across the floor with
the squeegee (ours is 24" wide)
and gather every last speck of
dust that way. Once we get to a
convenient spot, the wet vac sucks
up the dirt laden water.
Side note:
I built an add on filter housing to
the Trane high efficiency HVAC
unit which has a constant run
fan unit. The pre filter is 24" x 24"
x 4" pleated with a rated dust
collection of 55% to 1 micron.
The second stage filter is 95%
to one micron. Then the electronic
air cleaner gathers the last of the
dust.
I did this because the furnace guy
pointed out that dust settles inside
ducting and on the furnace parts,
lowering both heating and cooling
efficiency as well as being a constant
source of airborne dust.
Anyone can built such a box of
plywood and glue. Caulk the seams
to assure it is air tight, or it will
whistle.
Regards,
Michael Wendt
Wendt Pottery
2729 Clearwater Ave
Lewiston, ID 83501
USA
208-746-3724
http://www.wendtpottery.com
wendtpot@lewiston.com
shane mickey on fri 1 jun 07
I understand that there are better ways to clean a studio, johns system sounds to be great. i can not afford a system like that yet, so i do use my shop vac, here is what i do about every 10 days, i will lightly mist down the whole floor until it pools, i then use a squiggy (sp?) attachment to suck up all the liquid. i will repeat this a few times using the bristles on the back of the squiggy to get up stubborn glaze or what not. This may not be the best way but i do notice the studio is not as dusty overall compared to when i drymopped.
shane
Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 15:15:25 -0400
From: The Goodsons
Subject: Best ways to clean the studio?
Hello, all,
I am one of those potters who can not throw without getting clay all
over the place.
What ways have you found best at keeping your studios clean - without
stirring up dust?
In the past I have found that:
sweeping/vacuuming stirs up too much dust
hosing everything down is a major job/ not something that I want to do
everyday.
damp mopping doesn't always get all the clay up, but seems maybe the best?
I am looking for helpful advice for everyday cleaning._ I was thinking
that using my wet/dry vac occasionally with water added to it
might be a great thing - but I think that you are saying that too many
silica particles are still going into the air, even if I can't see them?
What if I still wore a respirator while I vacuumed this new way?
I would appreciate any thoughts on daily cleaning.
Good afternoon, and good potting to all,
Linda Goodson
Lincolnton, NC
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Charles Hightower on mon 4 jun 07
Is there any hazard in shopvacing wet clay. I don't
see why there would be.
--- The Goodsons wrote:
> Good advice from good people :-) !! Thank you all.
>
> I will try a combination of all the things that you
> have suggested.
> Ahh, the squeegee- my first job was working summers
> at a public swimming
> pool in our hometown. About 4 nights a week, we had
> to hose down the
> bathrooms and then squeegee them. (The squeegee was
> not our favorite
> tool =-O ) I do see how that could work in the
> pottery studio, now
> that you mention it.
>
> I am going to think of a way to vent my vacuum
> outside. The ideas for
> easier to clean floor coverings- like the tarp and
> restaurant flooring
> are great ideas too. And I like the idea of wet
> sweeping between
> moppings. My house is really old, and my basement
> actually has those
> old garage doors that you pull open ( only very
> small cars would
> actually fit in this garage-basement) we laugh and
> say -well it was
> originally built to house the horse and buggy- which
> was probably
> true. There are big spaces on the sides between
> the doors and the
> house, so leaves, dirt, birds, etc- come in very
> easily. So thank you
> all so much for all the wonderful ideas. Hopefully,
> my basement will be
> cleaner than ever- and much safer as well.
>
> Enjoy your week,
> Linda Goodson
> Lincolnton, NC
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change
> your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be
> reached at melpots@pclink.com.
>
The Goodsons on mon 4 jun 07
Good advice from good people :-) !! Thank you all.
I will try a combination of all the things that you have suggested.
Ahh, the squeegee- my first job was working summers at a public swimming
pool in our hometown. About 4 nights a week, we had to hose down the
bathrooms and then squeegee them. (The squeegee was not our favorite
tool =-O ) I do see how that could work in the pottery studio, now
that you mention it.
I am going to think of a way to vent my vacuum outside. The ideas for
easier to clean floor coverings- like the tarp and restaurant flooring
are great ideas too. And I like the idea of wet sweeping between
moppings. My house is really old, and my basement actually has those
old garage doors that you pull open ( only very small cars would
actually fit in this garage-basement) we laugh and say -well it was
originally built to house the horse and buggy- which was probably
true. There are big spaces on the sides between the doors and the
house, so leaves, dirt, birds, etc- come in very easily. So thank you
all so much for all the wonderful ideas. Hopefully, my basement will be
cleaner than ever- and much safer as well.
Enjoy your week,
Linda Goodson
Lincolnton, NC
Lesley Alexander on tue 5 jun 07
I've been wet mopping, but even after wiping with a towel there is a
residue. So now my favorite way to clean the floor in my small
vinyl-floored studio is to use a bucket, sponge, rubber gloves, and
towel, and scoot around on a low wheeled stool. Lesley, p;ut-putting
around with foot power.
Veena Raghavan on wed 6 jun 07
Great Idea!
Now to find a low stool with wheels!
Love the idea. Thanks.
Veena
In a message dated 6/6/2007 5:54:47 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
celadon7@COX.NET writes:
>
> I've been wet mopping, but even after wiping with a towel there is a
> residue. So now my favorite way to clean the floor in my small
> vinyl-floored studio is to use a bucket, sponge, rubber gloves, and
> towel, and scoot around on a low wheeled stool. Lesley, p;ut-putting
> around with foot power.
VeenaRaghavan@cs.com
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