Questions for the guys who like smoke-
What type of ventilation systems are in your train room and how well does it work? My trainroom is in basement room with no windows.
I recently overhauled my postwar steamers smoke units with the liquid kit-added fiberglass, and dumped the sock. In addition, I now use Megasteam fluid. Coal fired steamer to be exact. The stuff is great-tons of smoke. After awhile, though, it gets hazy. Thinking a fan might be needed...
Oh-anyone else use Megasteam and tried postwar pellet and no scent?
Tom
The MSDS on smoke fluids does not refer to smoke fluid as toxic I would not want to be in a room with a concentrated cloud for a long period of time because it may cause some sensitivity issues. Particullary with eyes and nose.
Can you put in like an exhaust fan like you would use in a bathroom?
Jim
northernpikeQuestions for the guys who like smoke- What type of ventilation systems are in your train room and how well does it work? My trainroom is in basement room with no windows. I recently overhauled my postwar steamers smoke units with the liquid kit-added fiberglass, and dumped the sock. In addition, I now use Megasteam fluid. Coal fired steamer to be exact. The stuff is great-tons of smoke. After awhile, though, it gets hazy. Thinking a fan might be needed... Oh-anyone else use Megasteam and tried postwar pellet and no scent? Tom
Sorry, Tom, don't have an answer for you, rather another question. Does the Megasteam work well in your PW steamers with no modification of the old smoke units? Seems to be okay according to the website, but first hand info is better. Thanks.
Charlie
My train rooms are upstairs. Installed bathroom type exhaust fan in ceiling. Works. Also a tower type fan on the floor will help move the smoke around.
God bless TCA 05-58541 Benefactor Member of the NRA, Member of the American Legion, Retired Boss Hog of Roseyville , KC&D Qualified
If you have no access to be able to vent to the outside you might try one of those electronic air filters. I have one, Ionic Breeze, that is used in the trainroom and it works great for dust but not sure how well it would work on smoke.
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Does everyone understand that it's not really smoke, but a mist of mineral oil?
Bob Nelson
From what I've noticed it is not so much the basic fluid but the additional scents added that can be offensive.
I don't regularly run smoke just because the scents added to the mineral oil as Bob noted just bother me. Come to think of it, I don't think I have any smokers in my current fleet. When I did run them (ie K-line Plymouth), they smoked very little and I ran a simple fan just to dissipate it a bit. But our basement is pressurized for radon mitigation - no special ventilation.
Doug Murphy 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...' Henry V.
I am thinking about adding an exhaust fan to the outside, not sure what I will use but a bathroom vented fan would do well to get rid of the smoke from MTH steam engines. My layout is on the second floor and the smoke will eventally get downstairs as there is a vent between the first & second floor installed in the floor. Currently my wife knows when I run my steam engines that have smoke because of the smell, I am using MTH's coal scented oil and it really is strong. I have used MTH's unscented smoke fluid and it works great without as much smell to it.
If you install an exhaust fan be sure to have an on/off switch for when you are not using it. Also make sure that the exhaust fan has a one-way flap to prevent outside air or rain from coming in. A simple way to install a fan would be to mount the fan near the ceiling and use a clothes dryer vent tube and a dryer vent from a clothes dryer.
In a basement setting you can open a small window if you have one or try to vent the smoke to the chimney if you have an ash-pit cleaning door. I do not suggest adding a vent to a basement area because of possible water getting in when it rains.
Lee F.
Wouldn't a bathroom fan be too small for a room large enough for a layout? I know some of the fans you find in range hood vents come with/advertise their output in CFM and can be pretty powerful.
Jack.
IF IT WON'T COME LOOSE BY TAPPING ON IT, DON'T TRY TO FORCE IT. USE A BIGGER HAMMER.
RockIsland52 Wouldn't a bathroom fan be too small for a room large enough for a layout? I know some of the fans you find in range hood vents come with/advertise their output in CFM and can be pretty powerful. Jack.
Does great as long as you do not buy the "cheapy". Clears it right out. Get one with the most CFM and lowest noise. Works great and it pulls two rooms. I also [like Doug W] have an Inoc Breeze in the train room. Does cut down on dust [also one in living room and it does the same].
The Megasteam is the greatest. It works great in my liquid postward retros. I did the conversion on the ones with burned out pellet elements. I think the resistor gets slightly hotter in the retro. The original pellet ones work almost as well. My postwat pellet ones are a 681, 736, 2025. The 736 smokes best, then the 681. Megasteam is superior to the Lionel fluid, seems to have a lighter viscosity. Thicker, whiter smoke.
Don't have anything installed in the train room yet...
But I do have a "smoking room" and find these fans to work great and are very quiet. Forget its on so quiet.
http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-electronics/shop/Building-Products/Ventilation-Systems.75111_11002_7000000000000005702
Also use an ion generator or Ionic Breeze as stated.
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