Layout of a 10 by 20 garage for assay / refining
If I were to make a small refinery with a capacity for fire assay and acid refining the following working plan would be my starting point.
Divided down the long wall into 2 rooms 10 by 10 each. Access to the rear room through a 30” door.
The acid hood is on the end with the garage door.
The acid room contains a 4 foot long 30 “ deep hood and a scrubber. This hood will do double duty both as a hood for acid refining and a hood for assay parting. (not at the same time)
A cabinet to store all chemicals. (Heated with a thermostat and light bulbs for cold winters)
A sturdy work table. Windows behind the work table can provide make up air in warmer weather and can be equipped with an exhaust fan to remove dust if you are performing disassembly of e-scrap. Storage beneath, for drums and buckets.
The rear room has a section divided off to house an analytical balance and a balance room work table with cabinets above. The main part of the rear room has a metal hood to house an assay furnace which can do double duty as a melting furnace to melt your fine gold. You could also do limited burnouts in a metal hood. One wall has a sink for lab use and to be shared with the acid room, and a lab table with cabinets above.
If you were a one man show you could push out some serious refining out of a small place like this. All you need is the scrap.
A few years after this thread was written I had a client set up a "container refinery" in a 20 foot shipping container. Very similar to this. He was a gold buyer and needed to do stone removal and assays, he kept the furnaces outside the container which was inside a 750 sq. ft. building with a garage door in the back. He could only get a 1 year lease so we built the refinery so he could move and reset up quickly as his leases expired.
If I were to make a small refinery with a capacity for fire assay and acid refining the following working plan would be my starting point.
Divided down the long wall into 2 rooms 10 by 10 each. Access to the rear room through a 30” door.
The acid hood is on the end with the garage door.
The acid room contains a 4 foot long 30 “ deep hood and a scrubber. This hood will do double duty both as a hood for acid refining and a hood for assay parting. (not at the same time)
A cabinet to store all chemicals. (Heated with a thermostat and light bulbs for cold winters)
A sturdy work table. Windows behind the work table can provide make up air in warmer weather and can be equipped with an exhaust fan to remove dust if you are performing disassembly of e-scrap. Storage beneath, for drums and buckets.
The rear room has a section divided off to house an analytical balance and a balance room work table with cabinets above. The main part of the rear room has a metal hood to house an assay furnace which can do double duty as a melting furnace to melt your fine gold. You could also do limited burnouts in a metal hood. One wall has a sink for lab use and to be shared with the acid room, and a lab table with cabinets above.
If you were a one man show you could push out some serious refining out of a small place like this. All you need is the scrap.
A few years after this thread was written I had a client set up a "container refinery" in a 20 foot shipping container. Very similar to this. He was a gold buyer and needed to do stone removal and assays, he kept the furnaces outside the container which was inside a 750 sq. ft. building with a garage door in the back. He could only get a 1 year lease so we built the refinery so he could move and reset up quickly as his leases expired.
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