building a studio; introducing myself

[RandyJ <beetle@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hello stone friends,

I'd like to take Howard Gottlieb's request for information on studio
design as an opportunity to introduce myself. I am an editor-turned
sculptor working harder stones (i.e., not alabaster or soapstone) into
abstract shapes in southern Utah. I do almost all my work with
pneumatic angle grinders and diamond saws and cup wheels, as my small
hands don't like air hammers or chiseling, and I don't go in for much
detail. I  completed my own 13 x 21 (too small!) studio a couple of
years ago and can now report on what works and what doesn't.

I spent a lot of time and effort to research ways to control noise,
because I work in a residential neighborhood with picky neighbors; to
be frank, I went overboard on the construction (insulated concrete
with additional soundwalls). If anyone wants details, write me
separately.

On power supply, I would suggest that all outlets be 20 amp with GFI
protection. I would also bring in at least one heavy duty 220 v line,
as you might want to use a bench saw at some point; also bring in 3-
phase power if it is available.

Another author covered the hoist question quite well. I would just say
that it is important to get that I-beam up as high as possible. Mine
is at 10 feet and that is marginal, when you consider you will lose at
least a foot from the chain hoist, another 8- 10 inches on the
trolley, and alwaysa couple of feet from excess sling on the stone. If
you want to get the stone into a truck or on a workbench, things can
get limited pretty quickly. I used four uprights set in reinforced
concrete at the studio corners, then set the beam on top of two cross
beams. From these crossbeams I also hang three rows of fluorescent
lights, then added two sets of high-intensity halogen (PAR-20) lights
when I found the fluorescents weren't enough. I installed a 3-ton
trolley in case I want to work big in the future, but for now use a 1-
ton chain hoist. For light, put in one or two north-facing windows up
high for even, pleasant, remarkably bright light.

For a work bench I use cross-stacked 4" x 6" dunnage boards cut to
about 4'. These can be stacked in various combinations to vary the
height for different stones. I recommend toenailing in long grabber
screws in the top couple of sets to keep them from tipping or moving
when using large stones. You can also screw down a plywood board on
top for working small stones. This whole affair is quite strong enough
to stand on if you need to get up there to drill for splitting. The
crossboards give you places to set tools or small stones. The
disadvantage is that the corners catch on air lines.

I would say the most important features of your new studio will be a
water supply and a floor drain with a sump about 2 feet diameter by 2
feet deep. Lay your concrete so the entire floor slopes ever so
slightly into the center. You won't notice the slope if it's done
well, but it will allow you to hose down the whole place periodically
(if you use 2-3 coats of high-quality semi-gloss or gloss paint
(white!)), and to do your roughout cutting wet with diamond saws. The
bigger chips and bulk of the dust settle to the bottom of the sump and
can periodically be scooped out, dried, and disposed of. The water
runs out the drain at the top of the sump.

I struggled for a long time with dry cutting. In the summer my
evaporative cooler vented dust fairly effectively, but then I was
blowing it around the neighborhood and the rest of the shop. In the
winter (when you and I get to keep right on carving, and the outdoor
carvers quit or suffer), it is not practical to ventilate large
amounts of air. I tried a 2-hp double-bag type woodworking dust
collector, with the hose near my work, and the exhaust going outside.
It was outrageously noisy (more so than the carving) even in an
insulated closet, and quite ineffective; you just can't move enough
air. Inevitably the entire studio filled with dust and precluded its
use for other purposes, and my glasses and face masked dusted up so
badly I had to just guess where I was cutting.

I considered installing a couple of recirculating filters with pleated
filters, but figured that even those would not be likely to move the
air fast enough to help visibility while actually cutting. In
particular, I don't believe they will remove the superfine particles
that are the most serious threats to the carvers health: silica and
asbestos, which you can never be sure aren't in your stone. My interim
solution was to continue cutting dry, but to stop periodically and use
a water spray to knock down the dust. I built a manifold pipe of three
garden spray nozzles hanging horizontally from one rail of the 9' x 9'
shower curtain enclosure that I carve in; just open a lever on a ball
valve and all three nozzles spray out across the carving area and
instantly clear the air.

But finally I came to the ultimate solution, which you will probably
come to eventually if you carve indoors: just give up and do all the
cutting wet. I resisted the idea for years, but now I relish going out
there, putting on my full rainsuit and steel-toed rubber boots and
nitrile rubber gloves and getting wet. The blades and grinders cut
better and last longer. The studio never fills with dust (a slurry
plasters itself all over the shower curtains of my enclosure, but goes
no farther). Most particularly, I don't get covered with dust--it's so
much more pleasant to work, and much less of a health hazard for when
I leave the studio. Visibility is much better, though fogging and
occasional spraying of my face plate remains a problem.

I had been at the point of considering buying new tools with center
water feed, but the difficulty is that the available tools don't run
at the proper rpm. A 4-5" blade should run around 12,000 rpm for
fastest cutting; a 7" blade around 8,000; and a 9" blade around 6,000.
But the fastest pneumatic waterfeed tools I've seen are 4,500 rpm for
a 4" Flex and 6,000 rpm for a heavy grinder from Granite City Tool
(although Braxton Bragg now sells a line of faster tools, but I've
heard they aren't very reliable). Flex now makes an 8,000 rpm electric
grinder, but it's only for a 4-5" blade. My solution has been to build
my own external water feeds on all of my pneumatic grinders and die
grinders for about $15 in plumbing parts per tool. I used a 1/4" lever
ball valve with hose nipples on each end, various bushed sizes of pvc
tubing, and--the crucial part--two tubes of 1/8" copper refrigerator
tubing: one sprays at 12 o'clock, one at 3'oclock. This has proven to
be incredibly effective. Fast and easy to turn on and off or control.
Each tool stays hooked fulltime to the water at a manifold. I would
say that for a blade there is no advantage to having a center water
feed (in fact, if your tool has the water coming straight out the
spindle, like most polishers, it won't do a thing for you). On a blade
this feed produces a fine spray and the cutting edge is always wet--no
dust! It is also plenty of water for electrolpated grinding burrs. On
a cup wheel a center water feed might be of a slight advantage, but
not significant in my opinion. This leaves me with my slow center
water feed polisher used only for polishing and core drilling.

One point: even though there is no dust thrown around, I still believe
in wearing my HEPA dust mask whenever in the studio, as dust drying on
the walls can become airborne through convection currents etc., and
can get on clothes. I'm particular about safety issues and
asbestos/silica/heavy metals hazards, and careful about what stones I
carve.

A final point on studio design: with all this water sloshing around
you can get cold in the winter if you don't have good heat. So, super
insulation and vapor barriers in the walls, ceiling, and under the
floor is in order, and seal up the cracks to keep out the wind. But
what I have found most useful is a radiant heated concrete floor--
having the heat come up to you through your feet, and surrounding you.
We heat the entire 800-sq. ft. 4-room multipurpose studio with just a
40-gallon domestic water heater. I set the thermostat at only 56-58
degrees, and it is cozy.

I hope this long dialogue has been of some help and will prompt
further discussion. Let me know if I can be of further help.

RandyJ