True, that, however, thinking about the broken window theory of urban decay, a flimsy piece of Celotex at ground level is inviting investigation by the local hoodlums: the raccoons have been known to pull of siding on my house!
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But is the mounting unbreakable? Or will the frame give when the Lexan is kicked? Or is there another glass window near it that will break without even a kick?
I’m doing the Lexan in the basement window myself but only because I figure it’s a bit more proof against a rock being kicked up by the lawnmower.
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I re-enforced the frame to match the .30 inch Lexan. No other windows around. The door cannot be opened either (still two exits from the garage). As good as I made it, any determined criminal can break into a house. They would be sorely disappointed in my house though (not much worth stealing) and I have security cameras. 
- Rich
That’s my defense 
Plus a sign pointing to my neighbor - “Good stuff here” 
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Yeah, I love telling friends that go too far on “security” devices about my “universal key”. When they give me the look, I tell them I have a sawzall and can make a doorway anywhere on their house. It takes a second to sink in, but it does the trick. This honestly didn’t dawn on me until I was a carpenter for a few years and got into a company that did additions on existing houses. I watched a guy with a sawzall make a door sized hole in the side of a house in a matter of 3 minutes one time. Mind blown.
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I don’t have definitive environmental #s yet, but as a general rule you’ll want to keep extreme temperatures & actual moisture out of it. A blast gate or flap or similar is a good idea.
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Thank you Dan. It will be exciting to see what everyone does. And to see environmental numbers.
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Also in Utah. The kids go outside for the snow, and the mice and spiders come in. I did pre-order the GF filter, but also plan on using an outdoor vent, but have been likewise concerned about undesirables getting access to the house through it. I think it should be easy to make a sort of blast gate to seal off the vent using the Glowforge itself.
In Nevada we had installed several vents to different pieces of equipment to vent exhaust directly outside. The shorter vents became enticing places for the creepy crawlies of the high desert to enter the shop. We solved the problem using a truck cab-air filter which let the exhaust out, and kept the spiders from getting in.
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I wonder if an automotive pre-filter would work? This one is made for a 4" diameter cone-filter, might be able to slip it over a 4" exhaust fitting.
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That is 100% worth a try. Thank you very much
I had not thought of using the truck filter, that is incredibly creative solution. It worked pretty well for keeping the crawling things out?
Worked just fine. We had tried a flapper cap, but the outgoing pressure wasn’t enough to keep the flap open without pushing out the exhaust elsewhere in the system. I imagine one of those stainless steel dishwashing pads would work just as well and be available more abundantly.
For the Glowforge, I am still planning on installing some sort of hard gate to keep the heat in the house, and prevent the atmospheric moisture from coming back into the machine when it’s not in use.
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I ordered the Basic and the filter. I was planning on using the filter when weather was really bad. I was planning on setting something up for out the window on days when the weather is better. I have thought about installing another vent more and more. I have a spot that would work really well. Just have to convince my wife to let me put it in that spot. 
@dan Utah is really close to Washington. 
And we practically have a Users group already…
@winkelkotter, @nick07lee, @cmreeder, @mspricethelibrarian, @Tuck I think Utah Glowforge Group of Users UGFGU would be a good name. 
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Very palindromic. The artwork on the logo will be amazing. UGFGU 4EVR!
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Oh I like it. And I’m in! UGFGU 4LIFE
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That filter looks interesting! Good find.
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By the way, if you don’t have a backflow preventer flap or a blast gate, you would be wise to disconnect the hose at night or the cold will come in and the Glowforge will get colder than recommended environmental conditions.
And then don’t forget to reconnect the hose next day when you print. You will quickly find out if you haven’t. Cough, cough.
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Since we’re talking about the exhaust hose here, does anyone know if we can extend the hose safely? Also if the fan is powerful enough to vent the exhaust out longer lengths of hose? I’m curious because I may need to move my Glowforge around my basement.
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My guess would be that they made it as long as is recommended if the airflow isn’t helped. But I could be wrong.
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