Radiation…yes… not radioactive… my bad
You don’t want the Glowforge to freeze. The laser has cooling fluid that runs through it. Freezing will destroy the tube.
As for the class 4 laser… Do you have a microwave oven in the kitchen? It uses the same kind of “radiation”, i.e. Electromagnetic radiation. Same stuff as radio waves and light.
Many people confuse this with things being radioactive–i.e. ionizing radiation caused from nuclear reactions. The two are nothing alike except for having a common word in their name.
In an email you should have received just after your it’s on its way email, is a Laser Safety training course. Read it. Then go over it with her. It explains under what conditions you can operate it where it is no more dangerous than any other Class 1 laser. Only when using it outside of those limits do you need to take Class 4 precautions, which really amount to wearing the safety glasses and having appropriate signage and such.
But she should also understand that when it’s off, there is nothing being sent out. It’s like a light bulb. Turn it off and it’s dark. Again, nothing like radioactivity.
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So long as you follow safety protocols with materials and the slot, it is safer than (or at least no more dangerous than) operating a microwave, blender, stove, toaster, radio, TV, computer, table lamp, standing in the sun for 1 minute, etc.
I sympathize. My husband works in health risk analytics, including air pollutants, so this was our major point of discussion. The conversation very seriously involved garage and back yard talks, without exaggeration. We ruled out garage due to temperature fluctuations and lack of space (and spiders…). We settled on basically make a Little Red Wagon to take it outside for long sessions (SoCal, so that’s pretty doable year-round). We will be making sure it’s well sealed and vented when running inside for shorter runs.
But then, we’re also people that ruled out areas to buy a house based on how far nanoparticulate pollution travels from highways. As two scientists with young kiddos, air quality is a big thing for us and we’re perhaps overdoing it. I’ll mostly be lasing wood/paper things, but even that stuff generates soot and partial combustion products that we’d rather minimize inside the house.
Probably not the response you’re really hoping for, but that’s what we’re hoping will work for us when we finally get the machine.
Good luck!
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The radiation in this case is infrared light. It’s the exact same stuff that makes you feel warm when you go stand out in the sun. Or the heat lamps used to keep food warm. It’s just concentrated into a narrow beam so it can heat things up much, much more (in order to burn all the way through a piece of wood).
You just just need to keep it out of your eyes and you’ll be fine. So wear the goggles if you’re using the passthrough slot.
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Lots of good comments. Hard to judge how to proceed without knowing her.
I’d likely start with:
- Unplugging when not in use (great call @johnse)
- Passthrough jobs are done with the door closed/locked or garrage with safety goggles
- A discussion about how effective the exhuast mechanism is and if extra time/precautions are taken (talking particles)
- A discussion of where the exhaust is pushed to
- Talking about the materiel you’ll be cutting and what they can offgass
From there maybe you’ll isolate a particular conscern you can address.
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Personally consider the GF far less dangerous than a lighted Christmas Tree. But everyone is entitled to their own fears.
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You should certainly vent outside - you won’t want smoke and gasses from lasering collecting in your house. Not dangerous, I guess, but certainly stinky. Especially leather and acrylic! Even burning wood generates smoke you’d rather not have in your house if you’re really concerned about air quality. But venting outside won’t bother anyone - I can’t smell anything outside of my vent, and I am cutting acrylic and there’s just a light breeze now.
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I work with gamma and x-ray radiation machines during the day and I can tell you this machine DEFINITELY doesn’t produce any levels to be concerned about.
If you would like, I could try and measure it’s output on my doesmeter, but it will probably be too low to even register.
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@chris1 went through a long battle with his venting, but finally got it solved. He was measuring particulate levels. His final result was:
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The standard gas furnace produces lethal carbon monoxide by design, in quantities that in a single heating cycle produce more dangerous combustion by-products than a 40w laser could produce in a year. The furnace operates periodically around the clock in winter and the gasses are safely vented outside.
How could laser manufacturers survive by selling death traps?
From bottom to top, the entire electromagnetic spectrum is nothing but radiation. Radio waves are radiation, microwaves are radiation. Visible light is radiation. Heat is radiation. With understanding fear melts away.
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You can tell her that you will keep it at my house, No problem!
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Thank you everyone who commented on this so far. Some great feedback, there is a great group of people in this GF community!!
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Link?
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I have mine in the garage. Would not bring it inside due to fumes
If her concern is just radiation and death rays, then the only risk is exposure to refracted/reflected light from the beam hitting the material, and even that takes pretty deliberate effort to be exposed. Wear laser glasses for pass-through, and don’t deliberately try to peek through the pass-through slot, and your risk is gone. You could tell her that the “radiation” risk is essentially the same as staring into the sun, and requires the same deliberate effort to cause damage. (Technically, peeking through the pass-through with the laser glasses on should be perfectly safe for your eyes, but you risk laser injury to skin by doing that.)
Not a lawyer, just studied the materials carefully.
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Others have addressed the particulates and vapors, plus a bit on the danger of the laser beam.
You say radiation (not taking into account that you made a distinction later on in the topic about radioactivity as a form of radiation) and that means two things in connection with this laser, the two forms of electromagnetic radiation that might possible be a topic of concern to some people. [I am not talking at all about the wired EM radiation that makes up the circuit boards, power supply, lighting, and the generation of an electrical pulse to excite the CO2. If that is a source of concern, then that is beyond the scope of my abilities to offer a response.]
- It is the very narrow beam of EM that is the pew pew factor of a laser. That is a concern. You have to insure that where that beam interacts with anything is controled. Hence the pass-through slots shields and goggles. A simple lesson on the transmission of light through materials will suffice to alleviate this concern.
- The Glowforge is a wifi only device. Now this can be a big red flag to some people. I’m not judging, but if your wife is worried about wifi signals, then this is beyond the scope of what I am able or willing to address.
I certainly agree that a concerted and methodical effort is needed to understand what real dangers are involved in having a laser in your home. Education is the key here. Glowforge is marketed as a laser that can be used in the home, office or classroom. It is not marketed as a tool that must reside in an industrial setting with controls in place that require highly trained and skilled professionals to use.
I have been with this effort for two years. I have read every post (except the ones they archived before I could get to it.) It is my opinion and my experience that the Glowforge laser, Pro or Basic is a tool that can be in your living room. It poses no threats that can’t be managed in the way an oven or a microwave can be managed. If you do not have a microwave at home because of the fear of electromagnetic radiation, then by all means, your Glowforge must reside in the garage, because that’s probably the best indicator of a feeling of well-being and trust.
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Thanks all for the discussion. I recommend that you go to app.glowforge.com, click “Add User,” and invite your wife to use your Glowforge. That will give her an opportunity to read the manual, including the important safety information there.
As for the garage, we have a description of operating environment factors for your Glowforge here.
I’m going to close this thread - please post again if you have additional questions!
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