The Proper Bench Height for a High Shear Mixer

High Shear Mixers

• Literature on high shear mixers usually employs highly complex scientific terminology to describe what these machines do, despite the relative simplicity of their function. Basically, high shear mixers help change the state of a substance so it can mix with other substances. For instance, if you need to mix liquid paint with powder pigment in your home studio to create colored paint, you can use a shear mixer. Or, if you need to mix two liquids that won't ordinarily mix with one another to create a gum -- such as epoxy for plastic arts or home building -- you can use a high shear mixer to break these liquids down so they can mix to form a new substance.

Mixer Types

• High shear mixers come in variety of designs and types. Batch mixers, for instance, constitute independent units shaped like hand mixers you use in your kitchen. These high shear mixers either suspend above a mixing container or attach below the container to mix the contents. Laboratory batch mixers work in a similar way, though they attach to structures with a support column and a protruding arm that holds the mixer over a mixing container. Some manufacturers produce whole table units, which contain a mixer, mixing container and, in some cases, computerized controls for the mixer. An in-line mixer exists for factory production lines and therefore assumes horizontal orientation.

Bench Height

• You probably won't ever use an in-line mixer in home applications. Batch mixers suspend from a ceiling or some other overhead point to mix the contents of an independent bowl. The height of a bench for holding the mixing container for a batch mixer depends upon the length of the mixer, the height of its point of suspension and the depth of the mixing container. A batch mixer that mixes from below requires a high enough table to mount underneath and protrude through the surface of the table into the bottom of the mixing container. You can place a laboratory or tabletop high shear mixer on any height table you want because the former is adjustable and the latter self-contained.

Example

• Assume you own a 4-foot-long high shear batch mixer, and you suspend it from an 8-foot-high ceiling. The height of the bottom of the mixer is 4 feet in this instance. If you own a 2-foot-tall mixing container and you need the mixer to reach 1 foot into the container for proper use, the container must reach a height of 5 feet. For this, you need a 3-foot-tall table underneath the 2-foot-tall container.

Benches and Hanging

• A bench used with a tabletop or laboratory high shear mixer must exhibit adequate strength to support the full weight of the unit. Check the weight of your mixer in the product manual and compare it to the maximum load capacity of tables to ensure a proper fit. When it comes to batch high shear mixers, you can adjust the hanging height of a unit if you already own a table. For instance, if you own a table too short to work with your high shear mixer when suspended from the ceiling, construct an arm or small platform that allows you to suspend the mixer from the wall. Only batch mixers that mix from beneath absolutely require a set table height to fit properly.