has any one used a negative ioniser to control dust?

[cosmicexplosion]

Airborne particles are attracted to the electrode of an ioniser in an effect similar to static electricity. These ions are de-ionized by seeking earthed conductors, such as walls and ceilings.

This is the premise for using an ioniser to control pollution in the home. sounds like a good solution to control dusk in the dark room. has any one used one?

people have mentioned running the shower if your's is in the bathroom. running water creates negative ions.

[jp]

I have an old sharper image ionic breeze I run in the darkroom once in a while to keep it clean. It does create some ozone odor which is the downfall. That builds up rather quickly in darkroom, but doesn't in a normal spaces due to doors opening/closing, convection air changes, etc... Thus, it's not run that much, especially when I'm in there or plan to be in the darkroom that day. You'd be surprised at all the dust and truly microscopic crud these things collect on their blades.

My real solution to keeping the darkroom clean though is to prevent dust by not having carpeting, (tile floor) keeping pets out, and keeping needless people traffic out.

I've been thinking about getting a small hepa cleaner with permanent filter. These are under $70 now for small rooms.

[ic-racer]

I use a Delta air filter that filters 99 % of 5 microns and 80 % of 1 micron particles. It has a 300W motor and moves 750 cubic feet of air per min. The specs show it clears the air in a 30-by-30-foot darkroom 10 times an hour.

What are the specs on the ion machine? I doubt it does anything but make the wallet lighter.

[Brian C. Miller]

I was reading up on ion machines, and they really shouldn't be used in a confined space like a darkroom. It is bad for your health to breathe a concentration of negative ions. Yes, they can destroy odors and the like, and I borrowed one to remove the smell of cigarrette smoke from a used vehicle. I'd recommend a good desktop air purifier, like Alen T100 unit.

[Eric Woodbury]

Ozone is a strong oxidizer. It will oxidize silver and most metals. It is not good for negatives, prints, and stuff you don't want to rust.

I don't think running water generates ozone. Running water generates humidity which control static electricity. Also, the water droplets can attach to dust particles and 'rain out' of the air.

To keep dust down, clean and remove unneeded paper from the room.

To keep static down, increase the relative humidity. Easiest way to do this is to cool the room. All that water doesn't hurt. Wear an anti-static lab coat. Use a staticide for problem items.

There were ionizing brushes and negative dusters made. You plugged them in and they had a high voltage power supply to make the ozone. Also, there were radioactive dust brushes made. Maybe there still are, but that seems like a bad idea. Go down to the local nuclear power plant and see if they'll give you a few micrograms.

[jp]

I have not seen anything corrode due to ozone. The ion purifier is great for locking up in a car to clean chemical odors though. If you buy used cars regularly, get a cheap one for your garage. Most of the used car dealers like to use quarts and quarts of smelly cleaning products when a dash would do. I mix garlic concentrate (www.mosquitobarrier.com) in my darkroom, and that's the sort of machine for clearing up that smell.

Those radioactive brushes (staticmaster) are indeed excellent. I have one, but it's well past it's expiration date (apparently a short halflife) and a new cartridge is mucho $. Their radioactivity is of the type that does not penetrate your skin or most surfaces, so it's harmless as long as you don' t eat your static brush. The radioactive part is also encapsulated in some sort of glue as well. Lantern wicks are radioactive too, btw.

[Eric Woodbury]

Didn't know about the wicks. Mantels were radioactive with thorium, but I think this gone now.

[BetterSense]

You can still get thoriated lantern mantles (from china of course) if you know where to look. The Coleman ones you buy at the supermarket are not thoriated anymore, though.

[cosmicexplosion]

thanks for the ideas, besides being hungry for a radioactive brush, i like the air purifier the best.
makes the most sense.
cheers

[Michael Rosenberg]

Passive ionic air cleaners like the ionic breeze sold by Brookstone do not work, and several years ago they recalled them and issued a refund: I had one and know they don't work! I now have 3 air cleaners that are forced air made by Oreck and they work extremely well. I am always impressed by how much dust they pick up out of the air, but it is never 100%. I use two in my darkroom (and one in the laundry room, a great source of house dust). It has greatly cut down on dust. But in the winter you cannot run them at the same time as a humidifier, the plates that collect the dust will begin to corrode.

I also clean/dust the floors and walls with a microfiber towel sprayed with Endust for electronic equipment on a regular basis.

I think an ionizer will only put a charge on dust that allows it to go to walls and floors where it will eventually go back in the air.

Mike