A DIY anaerobic chamber is meant to keep oxygen away from sensitive materials; an ordinary sealed box does not automatically create or maintain an oxygen-free atmosphere. The Make: title refers to Nelson Ramon’s project shown at World Maker Faire 2012, but the available account does not establish its parts list or construction steps. A later, separately published design offers a documented example of the systems involved—not a recipe or performance guarantee for other builds.
What an anaerobic chamber is—and is not
An anaerobic chamber provides a work area with little or no oxygen for tasks involving oxygen-sensitive organisms or chemicals. The enclosure is only one part of that function. A working system also has to manage how samples enter and leave, control the atmosphere, and verify oxygen levels.
It is not inherently a biosafety cabinet or containment system. In the 2012 Make: article, author Sean Michael Ragan made the distinction explicitly: the purpose is “not to keep dangerous stuff inside from getting out, but to keep corrosive stuff outside from getting in.” Do not treat a DIY oxygen-exclusion box as protection against biological or chemical material escaping.
What is known about the 2012 Maker Faire project
Make: published Sean Michael Ragan’s article about Nelson Ramon’s DIY anaerobic chamber project on September 18, 2012, in connection with World Maker Faire 2012. The article identifies the project and links to project imagery, but its exact bill of materials, dimensions, seals, transfer-lock arrangement, and build sequence are not established in the available account. Those details should not be inferred from the title or borrowed from another chamber design.
#1 Best Overall
- VERSATILE ACCESS: Features 10-inch equipment sleeve for easy insertion of laboratory equipment
- EFFICIENT SETUP: Quick inflation design establishes high-purity working atmosphere within minutes
- PRACTICAL DIMENSIONS: Spacious 17 x 11 x 17-inch chamber accommodates various experiment needs
- DURABLE MATERIAL: 2.5 mil thick polyethylene construction ensures reliable performance
- GAS COMPATIBLE: 3/8-inch ID tubing port enables connection to various gas supply systems
What a documented DIY design can teach
A separate 2021 open-access HardwareX paper, “A low-cost automized anaerobic chamber for long-term growth experiments and sample handling”, describes an Arduino-based workstation for sample handling and microbial cultivation. It uses a PMMA enclosure and discusses features including airlock purging, environmental data logging, and control of humidity and hydrogen. The paper includes build instructions and files; its design is a later, distinct project, not a reconstruction of Ramon’s 2012 chamber.
The paper reports that oxygen during continuous growth of oxygen-producing cyanobacteria “stayed under 0.03 % for 21 days without needing user intervention.” That is a result for that specific system and test. It is not a general DIY performance figure, nor evidence that an arbitrary acrylic enclosure or improvised seal and gas arrangement will reach the same level.
Rank #2
- Excellent alternative to standard glove boxes
- Effectively get-rid-of oxygen and moisture during material manipulation operations
- Establish high-purity working atmosphere in minutes
- Disposable chambers simplify cleanup
- Glove bags are not autoclaveable, nor are they autoclave
Design questions to answer before building
A box that looks sealed is not proof of anaerobic conditions. Treat enclosure integrity, transfers, atmosphere management, and measurement as separate design problems.
- Enclosure: What materials, joints, and seals are used, and how will their integrity be assessed over time?
- Transfers: How will tools and samples enter or leave without replacing the chamber atmosphere with room air?
- Atmosphere: How is oxygen displaced or controlled, and what role do gas handling, a catalyst, humidity, and temperature play in the intended application?
- Verification: How will oxygen be measured rather than assumed? A sealed enclosure alone does not establish an oxygen concentration.
- Use and repeatability: What chamber volume and work area are needed, and what maintenance, records, and repeatability does the work require?
The HardwareX paper is useful for seeing how these functions can fit into a designed workstation. Its results do not establish that copying one feature or component guarantees anaerobic conditions in a different build.
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Rank #3
- Allows protected access without the use of long sleeve gloves to any glove box with ≈ 8 inch O.D. openings
- 30 points of pliant material afford easy access and withdrawal while maintaining an excellent seal around the arm
- Best for unconstrained use of delicate instruments inside the Glove Box where operations with gloves can be awkward
- Fabricated of ten layers of silicone latex rubber
- Does not disturb isolation conditions
DIY versus a commercial chamber
Commercial specifications can show the kinds of systems and performance claims available, but they are not generic DIY requirements. Coy Laboratory Products’ page for its gloveless anaerobic chamber describes polycarbonate-and-aluminum construction, a palladium catalyst, automatic gas injection, and an automatic airlock. Coy states an oxygen level of 0–5 ppm for the cited chamber family and lists background gas, usually nitrogen, plus an anaerobic gas mixture containing 5% hydrogen. These are vendor specifications for that product, not a DIY recipe or universal target.
| Decision point | DIY design | Commercial example cited |
|---|---|---|
| Oxygen target and verification | Must be specified and measured for the particular build; no general DIY target is established here. | Coy states 0–5 ppm oxygen for its cited gloveless chamber family. |
| Gas and atmosphere management | Must be designed for the intended work; the HardwareX paper describes a separate system with hydrogen regulation. | Coy lists background gas, usually nitrogen, and an anaerobic gas mixture containing 5% hydrogen, with a palladium catalyst. |
| Sample transfer | Needs a method that limits air entering during transfers. | Coy lists an automatic airlock. |
| Construction and performance evidence | Depends on the specific design and validation; no universal cost or performance figure is established. | The listed features and oxygen figure are manufacturer descriptions, not an independent comparison. |
For a suitable project, a DIY build may be a way to explore chamber design or meet a clearly bounded research need. If the work depends on repeatable, verified conditions, assess whether an unvalidated build can meet that requirement before relying on it. Compare oxygen measurement, transfer handling, usable work area, gas management, environmental control, maintenance, documentation, and the risks of the planned work.
Rank #4
- Overall dimensions : 46" x 24" x 25"
- Work area dimensions : 35" x 24" x 25"
- No. of glove port : 2. Port size : 8" diameter
- 1/4" Clear Acrylic. Airlock Chamber right hand inside w/door opening 10" x 10" & outside w/door opening 9" x 8"
- 304 Stainless steel frame left w/door 7 3/4"×10" Stainless steel door hinges Chrome Plated latches
Safety, food use, and regulatory limits
Biological and chemical work
A chamber does not make hazardous work safe or compliant. Assess the actual organism or chemical, the institution and location, and the applicable safety requirements independently of the chamber. In New York City, the Health Department says non-clinical research laboratories operating at BSL-3 or BSL-4 must register when they meet specified criteria; that does not mean every DIY biology activity requires this registration. A box’s design alone cannot determine a work’s biosafety level.
Food packaging and preservation
An oxygen-exclusion chamber is not a food-safety intervention. New York State Agriculture and Markets warns that reduced-oxygen packaging can create concern about Clostridium botulinum, which can produce a deadly neurotoxin if food is mishandled, and describes process-review and approval conditions. The state Department of Health also says food establishments need an approved plan before practicing reduced-oxygen packaging and identifies Listeria monocytogenes as a relevant hazard. Do not use a DIY chamber as a substitute for an approved food process.
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Public demonstrations
For a current, event-specific example, the 2026 Coney Island Maker Faire call for makers asks for safety plans for relevant activities and makes makers responsible for safe operation and appropriate controls. That is guidance for that event, not evidence of the requirements at the historical 2012 fair.
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