Filtration, know the facts
• There are numerous amount of ways in which filtration is branded, which makes understanding
difficult within our industry. The easiest and understandable method is used to define our
hazardous vacuums, namely type “H”. This method is used to determine the filtration level of the
vacuum, but would need to conform to EN 60335-2-69 and be certified. The vacuum would also
have other constructional obligations to fall within the standard and could not be granted to a
vacuum supplied with just “additional filtration”. Generally there are three separate categories of
dust class to choose from and these are as follows:
• Type “L” filtration, this will give a minimum filtration level of 99%
• Type “M” filtration, this will give a minimum filtration level of 99.9%
• Type “H” filtration, this will have a minimum filtration level of 99.995%
• Very few manufacturers provide details relating to particle size which can make classification even
harder to understand. To gain a better understanding of filtration requirements, we first need to
look at the workplace exposure limit (WEL) “HSE publication EH40” . This would normally be
carried out by the operator/company that needs to for fill a requirement for dust extraction, and
would be carried out as part of a risk assessment. The risk assessment is not the responsibility of
the vacuum manufacturer or distributor!
• Most Numatic dry vacuums conform to EN 60335-2-69 but do not carry the above branding, the
one exception being the “H” type vacuums which have the additional filtration certificate and B.S.I
approval. Other “nuisance” dusts could be regarded as explosive when subjected to the right
conditions, these would normally be covered by the ATEX directive (ATEX 137). The risk
assessor would also be subject to the Dangerous Substance and Explosive Atmospheres
Regulations 2002. Again it would be the responsibility of the risk assessor and not the
manufacturer or distributor to determine this.
Using an air driven turbo brush on your henry will make him pick up more dust, hair & fluff & will also reduce the strain on your back. The beating action not only helps to beat more out of your carpet but also prevents Henry's massive suction from clamping the tool to the carpet.
