What are the manufacturer's commitments concerning my safety and the environment ? FILTRATION. Any ductless fume hood pretending to comply with a filtration standard (especially the most demanding one, the AFNOR NF X 15-211 standard) should be equipped with an electronic monitoring system for the filter saturation associated with an alarm and/or sampling device for periodical detection of filter saturation checks. MOLECODE DETECTOR SAMPLING PORT FOR PERIODIC MEASURE There is no universal detection method of filter saturation. Only solvents can be detected electronically. Beware of hoods which are always equipped with an electronic detector : they might cost you more without offering you a genuine protection. For a frequent use of the ETRAF, or if you plan to handle large quantities of chemicals, your ductless fume hood should be equipped with a back-up safety filter, to prevent any risk of chemical exhaust within the room when the main filter becomes saturated. SAFETY BACK-UP FILTERS, ON A CAPTAIR TOXICAPS For a periodical use of the ductless fume enclosure, or if you plan to handle smaller quantities of chemicals, your ETRAF should be equipped with an hour counter, which rings every 60 working hrs. to remind the user of the need to conduct a filter saturation test. TIMER VENTILATION. If you want to be sure that the fan of your ETRAF functions properly, your ductless fume hood should be equipped with a continuous ventilation monitoring system associated to an audible and visual alarm in case of a fan breakdown. FAN FAILURE THE CONTAINMENT EFFICIENCY OF THE ENCLOSURE. The containment efficiency concerns the ability of the enclosure to prevent dangerous and odorous chemicals from escaping through the front opening where the user is located. According to the latest containment standards (XP X 15 203, DIN 12 927, BS 7258), a maximum of 0.1 ppm (French standard) and of 0.5 ppm (German standard ) of a given chemical (SF6) can be released through the front opening. Invent UK TEST REPORT CONTAINMENT ON CAPTAIR TM ETRAFs < 0.05 ppm Beware of the ductless fume hood manufacturers who imply that containment efficiency also includes filtration efficiency. Filtration and containment are two very different matters and it is much easier to comply with containment standards than with filtration standards. THE AIR FACE VELOCITY. The average air face velocity is not essential as long as the ductless fume hood complies with the containment requirements. Nevertheless the AFNOR NF X 15-211 standard requires that the average air face velocity be maintained between 0.4 m/s and 0.6 m/s. AVERAGE AIR FACE VELOCITY OF ALL CAPTAIR ETRAFS : 0.50 m/s.
Is a ductless fume enclosure really suitable for my application ?
Is the filtration system efficient ?