Here's my situation:

I will be installing my laser cutter in a basement workshop and there are no windows down there, just glass "blocks". So, I have few options for fume extraction without knocking out one of those blocks and limiting where I can install the laser.

Anyway, I bought an ash shop vac to give a whirl. It has an all metal enclosure, airtight canister, carbon filter, and a metal hose. I found it on clearance, so it only set me back $40. The idea would be to just suck the smoke up. I hated the idea of how loud this will be and questioned whether it would really remove the odors. And of course, seems like overkill to me.

But then, an idea occurred to me. I have some experience working with negative Ion generators and ozone generators. These clear up smoke rather well. My thought is to design up a little unit that mounts right at the laser head with a fan that sucks in the smoke, then hits it with a negative ion generator, passes it along a few inches, then hits it with an ozone generator before sending that air down a lightweight corrugated tube to a carbon filter. The whole thing would be contained inside the laser.

The negative ions should dissipate the smoke and the ozone generator should remove the odors. And the carbon filter would catch anything else missed.

I have the laser cutter (it is a "Cheap Chinese 40W cutter") broken down for major upgrades at the moment and haven't actually operated it yet. So my question is - how much smoke does this really generate? I wouldn't think it would be so much that a powerful 12V server fan or blower couldn't suck it up quickly enough, but I don't know. Looking for some input there.

If the idea works, it would be great for those that need to install their cutter in an enclosed space. It should be quieter, and the fact that it is mounted on the head, it should actually be more efficient at removing the smoke. I have the parts lying around, but it should be less than $60 or so in parts to build one.

Oh, there will be an air assist as well that will blow the smoke away from the lens right into the path of the sucker. I have already designed up and 3D printed a little module that I will be able to mount on the head. I already had the parts lying around, so lacking input, I will just give it a try anyway.

Thoughts?