Get quick answers to common questions about ICA products

A:

The Duster Air Filtration units are designed to remove the fumes and odors from wide format solvent based inkjet printers, however, it needs to be stressed that the fumes from these printers will always be in the air before our unit can clean them out. Therefore, there will always be a certain level of fumes and odors in the printer room. Once production has ended the Duster will remove all of the residual fumes, leaving a clean, fume free room. The Duster air filtration units work by bouncing the air off of the ceiling and creating an over all air circulation affect that pushes all airborne contaminants down to floor level where they get carried by the air flow to the capture zone of the air filtration unit. ***it is important to note here that for printers that do not have drying attachments, as the outputs are drying they are still emitting fumes, so if they are drying in a room that is separate from the print room you will get fumes in that room also. If the outputs dry in the same room as the printers you should leave the Duster unit running while the outputs are drying to capture the fumes as they are emitted. If you turn off the Duster once the printer is finished all of the fumes that are emitted while the outputs are drying will build up in the room and can permeate to other areas, thus giving the impression that the Duster unit is not 2 working properly. Dusters are engineered to run indefinitely, therefore, they do not need to be turned off.

A:

This varies with the type of printer, and type of solvent based ink used but because the Duster continuously cleans the air the concentration levels of fumes in the print room will be reduced by approximately 95%. This means that you may be able to smell the remaining 5%. Once production has finished the Duster will eventually clean out all of the fumes in the print room.

A:

The Duster unit is fire and safety tested, and the motor is thermally protected so it won’t overheat. You should always run the Duster unit while production is occurring. Since the Dusters have been engineered to run 24 hours a day, they will give you a clean room with very fresh air when you re-enter your facility in the morning.

A:

Generally speaking, and depending upon the layout of a particular facility, when the Duster Air Filtration Unit is running it will contain the fumes to the print room, and stop them from permeating to the rest of the facility. Fumes that have been in an office area prior to using a Duster can usually be removed by opening a front door. Fumes should no longer permeate the office area because they will be contained in the print room by the Duster. The effectiveness of the Duster is best when doors and windows are closed.

A:

Due to the nature and volume of fumes produced by wide format solvent-based inkjet printers the most effective unit to utilize is the Duster 2000 Fume Control Unit. This unit was specifically designed to house 2 large (32 lbs each) Activated Carbon filters. This level of carbon is necessary to ensure that the fumes are removed effectively and efficiently. Our smaller units have smaller Activated Carbon filters that simply can’t handle the volume of fumes produced.

A:

The best place to put the Duster is in such a location that the airflow created by unit is coming down over top of the printer. If the Duster unit is too close to the printer the fumes may get caught in the air flow and circulate around the room 3 before getting cleaned out. Conversely, if the Duster unit is too far away, the air flow will have to drag the fumes across the worker area before it can clean them out of the air. You can experiment by moving the unit closer or further away from the printer until you attain the desired results. Best results are usually achieved when Duster is with-in 5-6 feet of the printer.

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It has been our experience that when employing the Duster with a wide format solvent based inkjet printer the lower speeds are more effective at capturing fumes and odors. The speed at which the fumes and odors pass through the Activated Carbon filters increases the exposure time of the fumes to the carbon pellets thus increasing the ability of the carbon to absorb the fumes. Cross currents and air flows from HVACs and open doors can reduce the effectiveness of the Duster.

A:

The Fume Pro attachment is a device that will allow the Duster 2000 Fume Control unit act as a source capture system while still cleaning the overall ambient air in your printer room. This attachment is perfect for use with Solvent Based printers that have exhaust ports on the unit or its drying attachment. The Fume Pro can be used when the equipment that is causing you fumes is equipped with its own exhaust system. If so, you can run 4” ducting from the exhaust ports on your equipment to the intake ports on the Fume Pro Attachment. If the equipment does not have its own exhaust ports then the Fume Pro attachment is not required.

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The Duster air filtration units work by bouncing the air off of the ceiling and creating an over all air circulation effect that pushes all airborne contaminants down to floor level where they get carried by the air flow to the capture zone of the air filtration unit. The secret to our unit’s effectiveness is having enough airflow to carry contaminants and not let them settle or float around the shop. We also clean the air at ground level which is more effective than overhead units because contaminants are heavier than air and are trying to fall to the ground anyway.

A:

The Duster Air Filtration units are designed to remove blanket wash fumes and odors. However, it needs to be stressed that the fumes from these presses must be in the air before our unit can clean them out. Therefore, there will always be a certain level of fumes and odors in the pressroom, but the level of fumes in the area will be greatly reduced. Once production has ended the Duster will remove all of the residual fumes, leaving a clean, fume free room.

A:

Generally speaking, and depending upon the layout of a particular facility, when the Duster Air Filtration Unit is running it will capture all dust, spray powders, and airborne particulate and carry them in the airflow created by our unit to where they can be captured in the filters. The amount of dust and spray powders accumulating on your floor and equipment should be significantly reduced.

A:

This varies with the size of press, and type of blanket washes used but because the Duster continuously cleans the air the concentration levels of fumes and dust in the press room will be reduced by approximately 95%. This means that you may be able to smell or notice the remaining 5%. Once production has finished the Duster will eventually clean out all of the fumes in the print room.

A:

The Duster unit is fire and safety tested, and the motor is thermally protected so it won’t overheat. You should always run the Duster unit while production is occurring and we actually recommend running it all day and night long Since the Dusters have been engineered to run 24 hours a day, running them overnight will give you a clean room with very fresh air when you re-enter your facility in the morning.

A:

There will always be individual characteristics of a pressroom that can affect which unit should be utilized. But generally speaking, the square feet of the area will determine which unit should be used. It is important to recognize here that the cubic feet of a pressroom is not a major factor in the choosing of a unit. Because our unit works by setting up an overall air circulation effect in an area, the only difference between a 10’ ceiling, a 20’ ceiling, or a 30’ ceiling is how long it will take to set up the air circulation effect when the unit is initially turned on. Once the air flow is set up it will remain constant and as any new dust or fumes are introduced into the environment they will be captured by the air flow and carried to our unit where they can be removed from the air.

A:

The best place to put the Duster is against a wall or a post behind the press that is causing most of the problems. This will cause the airflow to come across the press and back into our unit cleaning the air in a relatively quick time frame (see Diagram). If you place the Duster across the shop then all of the contaminants will be carried all the way across your shop before they are cleaned out of the air.

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The main dust filters on the unit are cleanable and will not deteriorate over time. The outer green dust pad is a coarse pre-filter and will deteriorate over time, but it is vacuum cleanable and should last between 3-6 months. These pads are inexpensive and serve to protect the main dust filter. The main dust filter is made of a spun-bonded polyester and is not a paper element, so it will not deteriorate over time. This filter is vacuum cleanable and pressure washable. With proper cleaning and maintenance these filters should be able to last 5-6 years.

A:

The main dust filters on the unit are cleanable and will not deteriorate over time. The outer green dust pad is a coarse pre-filter and will deteriorate over time, but it is vacuum cleanable and should last between 3-6 months. These pads are inexpensive and serve to protect the main dust filter. The main dust filter is made of a spun-bonded polyester and is not a paper element, so it will not deteriorate over time. This filter is vacuum cleanable and pressure washable. With proper cleaning and maintenance these filters should be able to last 5-6 years.

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There is an indicator on the unit that will tell you when the filters need to be cleaned. All units have an airflow readout, and an indicator light that tells you when the filters are restricted significantly enough that you need to clean them. The Duster 3000 has a green indicator light, the Duster 2000 and 1000 have a red indicator light, and the Duster 600 has a flip up indicator. When the unit tells you to clean the filters you should vacuum them off. Once every 8 to 12 months we recommend pressure washing them to completely clean out the dust (refer to owners manual for proper cleaning insructions).

How long the unit will run before the indicators tell you to clean the filters is entirely dependent upon your level of production, but it is not uncommon for print shops to have to clean the filters every 3 to 4 months.

A:

The only way to tell when an Activated Carbon filter is saturated and needs to be refilled is by weight. For your convenience the original weight of the filter and the saturated filter weight have been placed on the filter frame. You will then need to weigh the filter once every month, and when the filter reaches its saturation weight you will need new Activated Carbon for your filters. The activated carbon filters are re-fillable, so you only need purchase the refill pack once the carbon is saturated. On average these filters are lasting between 8-12 months before becoming saturated.

Duster 2000 Series: Refillable

Duster 3000 Series: Needs to be replaced