Help, my garage is covered in CF dust

[The111]

I don't build boats but I am working on a custom CF project in my garage. I've recently done a lot of sanding and shaping by Dremel and by hand. I wore a mask to protect my lungs, and I did all the sanding in the corner of the garage furthest from the door to the house, and where all our stuff is stored.

But despite my efforts, there is now a thin film of black dust covering every horizontal surface in the garage, even those in the opposite corner from where I was working. It's even getting tracked into the kitchen no matter how many times I wipe my feet before I come inside. It's like a VIRUS.

I realize there's probably no magic solution to this situation, but was wondering if anybody had any ideas other than (a) dust everything with a wet rag by hand (tons of boxes, tools, even canned food shelves) or (b) get a leaf blower and try to blow it all out the door (somehow I think this is not as good an idea as it sounds, would probably just re-distribute the dust and knock my stuff over).

Any ideas? Thanks!

[fiberglass jack]

use a vaccum to get ,ost of it off, then use a swifffer duster, then a wet cloth over a few times, next time use a vac hooked up close to where you are grinding

[the1much]

and if you vac while sanding or grinding,put a sock on the end of the hose, dont cut the toe keep it there, that way you dont make marks on the job,. notha thing good to do is when you vac it up this time put a sock on the exhaust, no matter if your vac has a filter or not., grams old nylons work good., nylons rubbed in 1 direction down your arm will get fiberglass out of your arm, doesnt hurt as much as masking tape

[marshmat]

CF dust? Not fun.
I know what you mean, 111. Fibreglass dust is one thing, CF dust is a totally different animal. Meaner, smarter and more persistent. Goes right through a shop-vac, clogs up a wet rag in seconds and sticks to everything.
Short of a lot of elbow grease with the dust rag and vacuum, I'm afraid there's not much that can get rid of the darn stuff, at least that I know of.

[ondarvr]

Get a vacuum hose for a swimming pool, they come in very long lengths, use it on the shop vac. That way you can leave the shop vac outside so all the dust that passes through it won't just settle back down inside.

[Willallison]

Maybe you need a better qulaity vac. We have a Makita industrial vac that we use at work, which is rated to stop asbestos dust amongst other things. I've used it to collect plaster dust with no probs.....

[waikikin]

111, run your vac pipe through a couple of "bucket bongs" in series, some lidded buckets(like gyprock/drywall set comes in or tile adhesive) & some 1.25" pvc plus some bagging tape to seal, 1/4 fill with H2O but dont set your pipes too deep. All the best from Jeff.

[The111]

Thanks everybody for the numerous replies. I bought a shop vac but honestly it does not move all the dust, either in blowing or suction. I guess the cement in my garage is porous enough that even putting the blower right on top of it does not remove all the dust, you can wipe a wet rag across afterwards and still get black. So I returned the vac and mopped the garage with a $5 mop. That got all the dust up but I still have to clean every single shelf (and every item on them) with wet rag by hand.

On another note, I managed to cut my toe in the garage on a broken plate of carbon fiber (very stupid... I was actually stress testing and intentionally breaking a plate - wearing flip flops - and using my own body as the stress load - go ahead and call me an idiot ). It wasn't very deep and doesn't hurt but now a few days later there is what appears to be a blood blister... sort of black colored, and I can't help but wondering if the black color could be CF dust instead of dried blood as I would assume. I scrubbed it with a soapy brush and sprayed it with high pressure water but I am still going to my doctor tomorrow to be sure, and see what he says. I read on some message board about somebody getting CF splinter in his finger and then one year later noticing massive cartilage growth in that region. That does not sound good.

[the1much]

common,,,,,,,,don't be a sissy geeze,take it like a man ,,have your wife call doc and explain to him what happened to"her" and see if "she" should come in and it warrants the $100.00 doc bill heh ; )

[marshmat]

$100 doc bill?
Oh, right, you're in the USA..... (have you guys ever considered adopting our health care funding system? We pay about a third in healthcare-directed taxes, around $180 per person per month, of what you and your boss pay for your health insurance, and get the same or better care without the insurance hassle...)
111, I learned quickly when working with prepregs to check closely for splinters right after working, again after washing up, and again the next day. Fine tweezers can get most of them out but if there's swelling, a doc visit is probably a good idea. As far as I know CF is not particularly toxic to the skin, but the grinding dust it makes is very bad to inhale (not as bad as asbestos but certainly worse than wood dust) so an N95, P100 or equivalent respirator is essential when dealing with it. The dollar-store dust masks with no certification label won't cut it.

[The111]

Originally Posted by marshmat

$100 doc bill?
Oh, right, you're in the USA..... (have you guys ever considered adopting our health care funding system? We pay about a third in healthcare-directed taxes, around $180 per person per month, of what you and your boss pay for your health insurance, and get the same or better care without the insurance hassle...)

I pay $9 per week for my insurance, and my doctor visit will cost me $20, not $100. My weekly cost is below normal for USA for sure, but $20 for an office visit is pretty common.

But yes, it does suck here in general even if I have it ok.

[marshmat]

That is well below normal for the employee to pay for health insurance in the US, indeed..... you must have a pretty generous employer. If only the 1/3 of Americans with zero to minimal coverage were so lucky.
Back on topic though.... the CF dust... I believe a HEPA-rated filter element can trap it; if you were to use the filter membrane of a HEPA filter as a secondary filter on your shop-vac, you might be able to catch the dust without making a mess.

[Frosty]

If its that much of a problem, then I got to say your premises arent suitable for the job . I suggest you get a compressor and work with neumatic tools and- water, then just hose it out the door.

On the other hand move everthing you dont want contaminating into a corner and sheet it. As for walking into the house --use wellingtons and walk through a water wash tray. Or take your shoes off. Or dont go in the house at all untill you've finished work for the day and take your clothes of outside.

Ok theres benefits of living in warm countries.