I’ve been itching to do an Altoid tin project at some point, and at yesterday’s #HackSunday I finally had the chance!  My buddy @danborghoff walked me through making an Altoid Tin Fume Extractor, a project from Make Magazine.  This nifty little gadget uses a computer fan and a carbon filter to extract fumes while working on small soldering projects.

Supplies

The first part was the most fun for me – I got to practice soldering while assembling all of the electronic components for the project.  I needed to connect two battery connectors to a switch and to a voltage regulator.

Setting up the soldering station

The electronics are done!

Once everything was ready, it was time to put the parts inside the tin to make sure they all fit, and to mark out where we needed to drill out for the switch and for the vents on either side.

Hopefully it all fits!

Drilling out the switch hole.

Dremels are awesome!

Once the switch hole was done, we measured and marked out where the fan lay so we could cut the vents on either side.

Don’t forget your safety glasses, kids!

With the vents finished, we added a wire mesh to cover the openings.

Finally, it was time to assemble it.

Setting the switch.

Adding the fan and batteries.

It all fits!

Last, we cut a piece of carbon aquarium filter and placed it over the fan.

Finished! It works great.

I was thrilled with the finished project.  It works perfectly, and I’ll be able to use it the next time I have a soldering project.