Hi All,
I am sorry I accidentally doing a spray-painting job inside the powder coating booth. I am new and did not recall/click the instructions about “not” using the booth for spray painting. it was a light job and I tried to wipe out the paint as much as I can.
I got a warming and educated by Jason. It won’t happen again. Apologize about the screw up.
Sincerely,
David Chiu
We forgive you. Thanks for owning up to it.
For those not already aware, spray painting of any kind is not allowed anywhere in DMS. This is due to lots of reasons (mostly city/regulatory). It’s also a health risk for those exposed to the fumes. If you want to spray paint anything, please do it at home.
Where is the rule that says you can’t spray paint?
I searched Rules and Policies - Rules and Policies - DMS Source and the words “spray” and “paint” are not in the document. Are there other rules docs I am not aware of?
How is a reasonable person expected to know not to spray paint at DMS if it isn’t in the rules? Word of mouth is not an effective way to communicate rules.
Are there other word of mouth rules that not posted in the rules document?
Note: I am all for banning spray paint at DMS for a variety of reasons. I am advocating for the effective communication of rules, It makes it easier to follow rules if they are written down. I know, I know that just because they are written down doesn’t mean they will be followed, but most people will follow most of written rules.
Here is the older thread about it
Wow. That’s a nasty post. Seems like a lot of personal grievances being aired.
As far as the official DMS rules go, can we get this posted somewhere official? I agree a talk thread with a bunch of infighting and some old Board meeting minutes is not a good source for rules.
We need a warning sign that says aerosols are not allowed, especially in the powdercoat booth, the most obvious place to spray paint. Also a reminder that training is required, I know we cover the no aerosol rule in powdercoat training.
To anyone not familiar with powdercoating I can see how it would look like a well built aerosol spray booth with a nice light and filter and obvious overspray from all the other people who have used it.
The baked on powder on the cart looks like enamel overspray. And how much training would I need to flip on a light switch and fan switch?
For anyone trying to figure out how to spray at home and keep overspray contained and keep dust off their workpiece, this has worked well for me.
We should seek clarityon the aerosol vs aerosol paint issue as well. From what I’ve understood- Aerosol paint is a problem. The air freshener in the bathroom and wd-40 is not.
The TLDR is that technically any flammable/combustible spray is not allowed in work areas. There are a combination of reasons for different aerosols - spray paint and such because of the mess and city/epa ordinances, others because of fire marshals concerns, and so on.
Since we are all volunteers, it is one of those cases where we generally just say don’t do it.
That would work great for somebody that doesn’t have a truck, I just lay down cardboard in the bed of my truck, a little packaging tape and a split open lawn Leaf bag and spray in the bed of my truck then close the tailgate, LOL
But if I remember correctly, air-based painting is allowed, like the airbrush setup in creative arts, etc?
With acrylic paints. No enamel, or other oil/flammable solvent based paints.
I agree. This has been brought up before, and really does need @Board_of_Directors action. Placement into rules, public decree & placard, something more than tacit knowledge and an old Talk post.
Apparently the BOD voted on this in March of 2019. I guess we have to review all BOD Meeting Minutes to find out all the rules changes…
I found this in the rules:
“These rules and policies are subject to change. Changes will become effective immediately upon successful vote of adoption by the Board of Directors. The DMS Secretary shall maintain the documented version of the official DMS Rules and Bylaws. A summarized version of these rules will be posted in the space, with a link to the full rules.”
This implies the Secretary is responsible for updating the Rules document.
Here it the link & doesn’t look like it was “Voted”
https://dallasmakerspace.org/wiki/Board_of_Directors_Meeting_20190318
I am Richard Meyer @richmeyer. For all current members of the Makerspace, I’d like to provide a little background on the issue of spray painting. I moved away from Dallas over 3 years ago and currently live near Knoxville, TN. I am still a member, see my green dot above. If you search back in the many threads about paint booths, my name will still pop up.
I was instrumental in the development of the North Expansion Project and was the inhouse General Contractor that was appointed by the BOD. My services were all volunteer, I was not paid. When I started the expansion effort, the North end of the Makerspace complex was just an empty warehouse. My background, at the time, was as a Licensed Professional Engineer with the State of Texas and had vast experience working with the City of Carrollton’s Building Code Department, Fire Marshall, and Electrical Inspection Departments. I was the person that acquired all the original building permits for the North Expansion Project. I had countless vists with several City officials as our remodeling plans were written, re-written, and finally approved. It was built per plan and no issues with the City were found.
One thing I learned over the years, and I’ll paraphrase the lyrics to a song by Jim Croce back in 1972. “You don’t tug on Superman’s cape. You don’t spit into the wind. You don’t pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger, and you don’t mess around with Jim.” In my case… “You don’t mess around with the Fire Marshall”. The Fire Masrahll can single handedly close a business down and lock the doors shut. Fire is a serious business.
The City of Carrollton is divided up into smaller sections; residential, commercial, park land, etc. The Dallas Makerspace is located in the Freeway District, since we are close to the I-35 Interstate. Many car dealerships and car repair facilities are located in these areas. Car repair facilities have strictly controlled paint booths with lots of required paperwork. According to the Fire Marshall (from several years ago) the cost to install a qualified paint booth with a fire-rated ventilation system, large or small, would be cost prohibited for DMS. Besides the cost, the regulatory paperwork could not be maintained in a facility that is open 24/7, as there are no controls.
My comment is… Just do not pi$$ off the Fire Marshall. If he says no, then that means NO! If he says you will be fined, then Believe it! If he threatens to close the entire DMS facility down and throws away the key… Believe it!
Simple solution… Do your spray painting somewhere else.
Any chance we can discuss this again with the current Fire Marshal and see if their position has changed?
If they’re still adamant about keeping the status quo, then we should drop it.
I’m going to be honest that from a personal standpoint I have zero interest in seeing the topic revisited to potentially allow it anyways…
In general, we have a hard enough time having people clean up after themselves and be considerate of others, that adding spray paint/aerosols sounds really annoying.
There is no “discussion” with the current or any future Fire Marshal. This is a city ordnance which they enforce.
Time to move on folks.
It is simply the nature of the paperwork required that we know it can’t be met without really changing our organization.
