Indoor range lead smelting question

[atom73]

I have been harvesting range lead from the indoor range I belong to. I am getting quite a bit out and there are hundreds of pounds more in the near future. The bottom of the bullet trap is sand and when I shovel out the lead into the bucket I get paper and wood scrap from the targets but also a little sand. When I smelt, the paper and wood do a nice job of fluxing the melt but I get a lot of sand on the top that has to be scraped off. My question is this; does anyone see a problem with cooling that sand and returning it to the trap from whence it came? I have noticed that there are tiny droplets of lead that just wont come out of the sand and I didnt really like dumping it because of that. If all of the wood and paper are burned off then the sand could go right back into the trap right? Even if it still has trace lead in it, the sand in the trap is full of lead already. Thoughts?
Mike

[WILCO]

I'd just dump it back in the trap.

[bigdog454]

I have done a lot of range lead by .
1st. getting a 5 gal. bucket and filling it with water then filling it with lead. the paper and other light stuff will float off.

2nd I built a trough with a flat bottom, about 10 inches wide with a hole cut in the upper end and a 3/16 hardware cloth covering the hole. I place the trough on an incline with the bottom ending in a container with holes drilled in it.
As I pour the range lead in the top end I turn on the hose and wash the lead down the trough the sand and fines fall through the screen and the lead is washed on to the container below.

I am sure that there are other ways, but this is what works for me, and it is fairly fast.

[mold maker]

Since the sand on top of a smelt, also contains the dross, (lead oxide) I seal it in a full container, and dispose of it in the trash.
If separated dry, the dust from screening will be filled with the fine oxides, that will be airborne for you to breathe. If done with water there is much less danger, but the water used, then become a liability.
If you intend to continue salvaging the traps, putting it (the sand/fine lead and oxides) back in the trap will only decrease your future yield.
Your local trash collector may have rules about accepting it. In many places it will be considered HAZZARDOUS waste.
Consider your safety and liability first, and try to make the trash, someone else's problem, without leaving a trail through your hands.
We walk a fine line when smelting any kind of lead. It always involves getting rid of a questionable secondary product.

[atom73]

I do wear a respirator when "mining" the traps and smelting. I had a materials instructor one time tell me "distrust dust" and I have taken that to be good advice. Thanks for the input, something to chew on.
Mike