# DIY/ HomeMade Flash



## jameshanson88 (Apr 13, 2007)

*Thread note:* this is one user's experiment. Please do not try this at home. T-ShirtForums does not endorse or recommend this project. Working with electrical experiments like this could be dangerous.​

This is my home made flash that I made for around $50.

Depending on what you have handy, it can either be more expensive or cheaper.

I used a broiler heating element from an stove an apartment building was throwing out. The element itself is probably equal to about a 14 x 14 dryer, but for what I do its plenty big.

Alot of what I used to make this came from Menards, you could probably find everthing at Homedepot or Lowes as well.

If you have a Menards, this is what I bought (including a rough price list):

1 - 1" x 36" galvanized pipe ($7.49)
2 - 1/2" x 18" galvanized pipe ($2.50 each)
1 - 1/2" galvanized 90 degree elbow ($.77)
1 - 1" galvanized floor flange
1 - 7/8" shaft collar ($3)
1 - 5/16" thumb screw ($.50) (you'll need whatever size fits to replace the set screw of the shaft collar)
1 - 10pk 1/2" ips galvanized pipe straps
1 - 100pk #8 x 3/4" sheet metal screws

I also bought a pair of aviation tin snips for about $4 and 2 pieces of tin galvanized sheet metal used for heating ducts (they said something like stack on them or something like that, they come in halves to make a full duct, about $5 for the pair)

I started by placing the 2 pieces overlapping and sizing them for the heating element. cut the corners so you can bend them up so that all of the sides came up about 2 inches all around and cut a notch out for where the element ends lead out. You should be able to see kind of what I did in the pics.










For the stand I just screwed each of the 1/2" pieces into the elbow, screwed the 1" flange to a fairly large piece of plywood and then screwed the 1" pipe into the flange. I used the 1/2" straps to screw the element housing one of the 1/2" pipes. I replaced the set screw in the 7/8" collar with a 5/16" thumb screw so its easy to change the hight. slide it all together and wire it up. I used a 220v dryer plug and dryer outlet with a 220v extension cord. I just set the height to help manage the temp and it works pretty well. I've probably done over 200 shirts with it within the past 2 months

I also screwed casters on the bottom of the plywood so it can roll.

Here's a few more pictures:


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## printandprint (Sep 24, 2007)

Not too bad for a budget project. 

A few other things you may consider in the relative near future for added safety:

As per national electric code, any wire connections must be made inside a box. That tape will do for a while, but enclosing it is a good idea. If it were me, I think I would connect up that ground wire too.


A thermal switch in the top that cuts out around 300-400 degrees (fire prevention in case it acts up). 

Honeywell - Thermal Switch

You would need to incorporate this switch into the coil of a contactor whose contacts are rated for the voltage and current draw of that element. A decent definite purpose contactor can be had for about $40 or salvaged out of old industrial equipment. It should throw both poles.


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## RickB (Jun 15, 2007)

Hey, very cool! I've been thinking about doing something very close to that. I was not sure if I wanted to go with an oven element or try a couple of quartz elements. I've been curb watching for about a month now for free oven elements and switches. Does the unit heat evenly enough for you?


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## tpope (Oct 3, 2007)

That is truly frugal!

I was going to make the same remarks about the wiring.


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## mpls_t (Aug 13, 2007)

Pretty damn cool.. I assume it reaches 300+ degrees easily.. since you mentioned you have had success...


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## recrisp (Oct 25, 2007)

I really like what you came up with, and for what it is, it's done really well, and with what has already been said, it's a nice project if safety is taken.

Like they said already, I'd do what was mentioned, (I didn't know about what was said either...) and you probably will start a bunch of people using this method.

I'd also think about a good way to go about making it insulated.
If it were double-walled, that would decrease the chances of someone getting burned.
Since you already have that one made, you may consider making a simple box over this with insulation inside, that way if touched, nobody fries. heh
(It may make it cooler too, this will put out a lot of heat anyway, like I have to tell you) heh

Another thing I see if that the collar at the bottom that is attached to the plywood will probably wiggle loose soon.
If you have a plate underneath that to help stabilize it, that would help the collar from wiggling against the softer wood.
In other words a re-enforcement of some kind.

The only thing I can see as a potential problem is the leaving it on all of the time when working, getting to temperature, etc.
I don't really know about that stuff, I just recently read about it on the forum, so hopefully that makes sense to you. 

Thanks for this, you convinced me to try something along these lines, it's definitely doable, and I think it's a good thing that people do try out their ideas.

Randy

Just to show that it's not that expensive to buy new, people may consider searching online to see what's out there.
I found this on my fist click, so surely there are parts out there, maybe locally that one could buy new.
Oven / Range / Cooktop Parts - Oven Elements


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## tman07 (Nov 14, 2007)

Good job!! I put a couple old brake rotors over the post to add some weight and keep it from accidently tipping over.


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## d33rts (Oct 4, 2007)

What concerns me the most with the design is shown in the 4th pic where the ground wire has been cut off. I have fabricated a lot of things and good grounding has proved valuable in several instances.


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## Ken Styles (Mar 16, 2006)

Hey, if it's working for you and helping you make money then keep up the good work.

Just be safe, I wouldn't want you to get injured just to save a couple hundred dollars.

Once this project pays for itself a dozen times over, then just upgrade to a professional flash unit.

Hey, with all the money that you've save you can even spring for the flash that swings side to side with the press of a foot pedal.


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## jameshanson88 (Apr 13, 2007)

hi evryone, Thanks for your support and also concerns. My main worry with the unit was actually the ground wire as well, but I couldn't figure out how to wire it in, the only thing I could think of would be to connect it directly to the stand, but after thinking about it, I didn't think that would really help. I read somewhere that insulation blanket material can be used both above and covering the element as well, does anyone know anything abou this material?

Also, In regards to Ken's post, I am already about 3/4 of the way to a nice Black Body flash unit!!


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## lost1 (May 12, 2007)

Do Not Try This At Home. 3 wire 220v does not have a seperate ground, if you check the voltage you are heating at 110v, with an uncapped live wire.
High temp insulation is needed, do not use wall or attic insulation. 
Good luck getting the insurance co to pay when it hits the fan.


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## printandprint (Sep 24, 2007)

To try and elaborate on what lost1 and ImageIt are saying...

It has been a while since I worked in commercial electrical, so corrections are welcome. 

The only fault protection offered with your existing wiring scheme is over current. If the circuit exceeds 30 amps (or whatever is your breaker) for too long, it would trip. It would also trip in in the event of a dead short (near infinite amps). 

Without any ground connection, there is the risk of a human becoming part of the circuit and therefore becoming a conductor (a wire made of flesh). These event may or may not (I think probably would not) trip the breaker. A human would get shocked with potentially a lot of current and either pull away (with luck) or in the event that the current seizes the human's muscles on and off at a rate of 60 hz, this human could not physically pull away because the electricity is screwing with their muscular nervous system and they could continue to get shocked until death (and then be shocked as a corpse) or until the current exceeded the trip setting of the breaker. It is easy to stop the heart of a human with only a little bit of current - if it takes the right path through the body.

The old school 3-wire recep for 220volts offers 2 hot wires, and 1 neutral wire. The voltage difference between the two hot wires is 220 volts. The difference between either hot wire and the neutral is 120 volts (I think). The two hots cycle exactly opposite of each other (180 degrees off). 

The role of the 3rd prong was traditionally to be the neutral of the appliance, but it was also shared conductor to the frame of the appliance. The frame of the appliance only plays a role in the circuit when something is wrong. We never expect this, but when it happens, we have to be ready. The third wire is making two connections inside the appliance. One to the frame and one to the electrical equipment.

Unfortunately there exist situations of malfunction where the frame of the device can still offer a difference (a voltage) between a human who is referenced to the earth and the equipment frame. Thereby a shock hazard. 

As I understand it, the reason for the 4-prong 220v recep is to eliminate this hazard. Now we have 2 hot wires, 1 neutral wire, and 1 ground wire. As a side note, if you were to follow the neutral and the ground back to the fuse box, you would learn that they connect to the exact same place (although perhaps not in the breaker boxes in recent days where the ground bar and neutral bar are separated). They key difference is that it is no longer a shared wire for two possible circuits, they have separated the wires and made them more specialized. 

In the event of a malfunction, the ground wire (referenced to earth) takes that shock instead of a human. Neutral does whatever it did before and the hots still play the same role. The human is a more resistant path than the wire, so the human is safe. Above and beyond that, in a fault when ground is drawing a ton of current, this should trip the breaker very quickly (within a few milliseconds). Therefore the human should never be a risk in the first place.

With all that in mind, in order to be sure it is all correct even if you do attach that ground wire to the bare metal of your unit, you have to double check that they way it is hooked up inside the panel is what you are expecting. You never want to assume that you'll find what you are expecting. I've seen some funky stuff done very wrong in panels and I am relatively inexperienced. 

Even if you want to make the connections yourself, it is wise to at least consult with an electrician (or someone who knows a lot about electric codes) or have one stop by and give it all a once over. Catch one after hours or something, I think they wouldn't necessarily charge you much for a consult like that, depending on what they are expecting to get into.

I say again that I am a bit rusty on the exact specifics, as time goes by, I tend to lose touch with electrons and forget some of their qwerks until I freshen up again. With that in mind, this is discussion and not advice.


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## lost1 (May 12, 2007)

The third wire is a dual purpose neutral. The way that is set up is a tragedy waiting for a victim. 
As for "Take a look at any 220 volt appliance and you will see the same thing."
is no longer true. NEC now requires appliances to have a separate 4th wire ground.


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## lost1 (May 12, 2007)

You described it yourself in post 12. It may not kill anyone, but it could. As you also mention, it can also lead to severe burns. Double wall, insulated construction can reduce that risk.


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## jameshanson88 (Apr 13, 2007)

I decided that with all the warnings going on, I'l better do something about it. So I checked into how exactly the range elements on a stove works and ended up going out an getting what's called an infinate switch. I built a little enclosure, attatched it to the side and now I can also controll the heat of the until as well. I also picked up some 1/2" microporus instulation material which seems to even out the heat of the entire unit.


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## recrisp (Oct 25, 2007)

jameshanson88 said:


> I decided that with all the warnings going on, I'l better do something about it. So I checked into how exactly the range elements on a stove works and ended up going out an getting what's called an infinate switch. I built a little enclosure, attatched it to the side and now I can also controll the heat of the until as well. I also picked up some 1/2" microporus instulation material which seems to even out the heat of the entire unit.



Will you be posting any pictures of this? 
(This has been one interesting thread to me)

Thanks!

Randy


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