Hey dan, or glowforge staff
I am stoked about getting my glowforge but disappointed about the email that I will get another email in December to see if it will ship then.
But this post is about the filter. Originally when I ordered my gf I was excited out not having to vent it to the outside. When we started getting delay notices we were appeased by offerings of freebies. And that was great. I certainly could wait for the best machine I could get. It wasn’t until later that we were notified that the filters were being delayed a few months. I know we have always been told that we could hold off on getting the gf until the filters are shipping. I had thought of having them hold my gf till I could get the filter but now it’s a 5 month at least delay between my expected delivery notice of my gf and my filter. Am I not the only one who thinks dan and his crew should also ease the pain on this?
I want my gf as soon as possible and don’t want to wait but I think glowforge should offer some perks here as well. I have never had a laser and only used one twice.I don’t know how to vent this out my window. I will have to hire someone to do this as all my tools are at a maker space. Could gf subsidize the duct work, the piece that goes in the window and I don’t know what else is involved. Are there even instructions on how I would accomplish this.
Just me venting and I hope someone will reply with an answer that is NOT you can always cancel you order.
I have no idea where you live. I’m simply showing how easy it can be to vent outside. As stated, your mileage may vary. In the absence of details in the original post, I provided the most straight-forward solution.
My mileage varies considerably. I could never get away with just sticking the hose out an open window, partly because of the weather and partly because of the fumes that would come right back in.
I will say, to jbmanning5’s point, if you have a nearby window to vent out of, it’s worth at least considering it as a way to get your laser up and running sooner. It is the same duct as a dryer vent, so chances are it’s not hard to find parts and plans or an installer who knows how to put one in. What works best depends on your situation, of course. I had a basement window that needed replacing anyway, so I had the company put in this style: http://www.bestlouver.com/product_info.php?products_id=176
Only Glowforge can answer your actual question about whether they’ll make it up to you, and I believe Dan has previously stated that they don’t regularly read these parts of the forum, so your message may not get seen. You may want to reach out to them directly. In the meantime, all us non-employees are going to annoyingly fill your thread with speculation and advice because that’s what we do.
Another thing you may want to consider about the air filter, and this is what has me on the verge of cancelling mine, is that we don’t know its performance characteristics and we don’t know the filter life. I’ve heard it said about some other commercial filters that it can cost $250/month for replacements. I originally planned on using the air filter instead of venting outside, but now that I’ve gone to the trouble of setting up my vent, I’m not sure I’d even bother to use it if it’s going to make the room smell more and add maintenance costs.
I do live in upstate NY some of the time and I found it easy to make a window fitting out of cardboard (literary took 3 mins) and I just take in out of the window when not using it.
Knowing that you live in Upstate New York and deal with very cold temperatures helps. Thank you.
Your individual requirements may vary, because we don’t know what kind of windows you have.
I went ahead and modeled a basic 24"x24" window for you though. Given the very cold temperatures that you potentially incur in Upstate New York, I opted for a treatment of seal fur which is both insulating and waterproof. I find it to be a very nice material and more affordable than arctic fox and polar bear (which are also suitable).
Chuckle! All joking aside - the idea of creating a board or cardboard with a hole in it that has some insulating foam around it might completely solve your problem. You might want to consider it. Foam can be cut easily and glued to the board with something like 3M Spray Adhesive.
I don’t live in upstate NY, but I feel like this seal fur option may be just the ticket for my cold Chicago winters. Do you happen to know a good source for this material, or perhaps a nice club so I can “procure” my own?
I feel like the yak fat may attract bugs and other critters. I’m still interested in the seal fur… or maybe arctic fox if I can use my $20/month credits.
The Windy City is no joke when it comes to wind. Brr. Seals are used to dealing with onshore flow so I think seal would be a good option for you as well. Obtaining fur from the lazy side of the seal (windward side) would be your best value and performance.
Don’t tell anyone else, but I think we may have stumbled upon a product that could make us millions. I’ll accept a 30% share of all profits in exchange for providing the name for this product, and a tagline: Seal your window with a Seal Seal!
Vermont. I’ve been using a thin plywood fitting till now. Yesterday I stopped by HD for a quick-release hose fitting, today I’m putting primer on the ply. Why yes, I do have a bunch of spare pieces of insulating foam lying around.
