Blew 400 pounds of sand through our reclaim system last Tuesday and the filter bag still smells like burnt shellac

I was running a heavy brass pour and the old-timer said we needed to keep the mold temp up, so I cranked the torch way higher than usual, and now the whole shop smells like we melted a circuit board, has anyone else had their reclaim system hold onto weird smells after a hot pour?

3 comments

3 Comments

charlie_allen19d ago

Take that silica trick and run with it, it works. But honestly, this whole thing reminds me of how stuff in everyday life hangs onto smells way longer than you'd expect. Like, have you ever left a plastic container in the fridge with leftover spaghetti for a week? That thing will smell like garlic and tomato no matter how many times you wash it. Same with your reclaim system - the sand and bag are just porous enough to trap those burnt oils and zinc fumes deep inside. The heat from the pour basically bakes those smells into the material, same way a hot car interior soaks up cigarette smoke way worse than a cold one. You gotta break that chemical bond with something clean and fresh, like that silica run or even just letting the system sit open with a fan on it for a day. It's annoying but once you get that first clean pass through, the smell should fade after a couple more runs.

abby_robinson582mo ago

Burnt shellac smell usually means you got some zinc or other low-temp crap burning off in the reclaim. Try running a cycle with just clean silica sand and a little bit of borax through it, that should help clear the odor. Might take a couple passes.

piperr582mo agoTop Commenter

Oh absolutely, @abby_robinson58 nailed it. I had the exact same issue and that silica trick cleared it right up.

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