What a laser does to wood
A laser engraver focuses a beam of light to a small spot that heats the wood until it chars and vaporizes. Moved quickly at modest power, it browns the surface — wood laser engraving. Slower, or at more power, or in more passes, it burns through — cutting. The machine moves the beam along a path from a file, much as a CNC router moves a bit, but nothing touches the wood, so there is no bit to break and no clamping force; there is smoke and a fire risk instead. Engraving with a V-bit on a CNC router is a different process, covered on the router page.
Diode and CO2 lasers
The kind of laser sets its wavelength, and the wavelength sets which goggles protect against it. xTool's own documents show two kinds. Its F1 carries a blue diode laser at 445 nm (10 W maximum) and an infrared laser at 1064 nm (2 W maximum). Its P2S is a CO2 machine with a working wavelength of 10.6 µm. Power, speed and passes for wood come from each machine's own material settings.
| Machine | Working laser | Class as xTool states it | Goggles xTool specifies |
|---|---|---|---|
| xTool F1 | 445 nm ± 15 nm (10 W max) and 1064 nm ± 5 nm (2 W max) | Class 4 product; two Class 4 working lasers | Shield against both 445 nm and 1064 nm |
| xTool P2S | 10.6 µm CO2 | One Class 1 model, one Class 4 model; the working laser Class 4 in both | For 10.6 µm, on Class 4 models |
From xTool's safety pages for each machine. Other machines' figures are in their own manuals.
Laser classes
Laser products are labelled by hazard class. The FDA uses Roman numerals, with the International Electrotechnical Commission's classes as rough equivalents, and requires products in Classes II to IV to carry a warning label stating the class and the output power.
| FDA class | IEC class | Hazard as the FDA describes it |
|---|---|---|
| I | 1, 1M | Considered non-hazardous; hazard increases with optical aids |
| IIa, II | 2, 2M | Hazard increases when viewed directly for long periods |
| IIIa | 3R | Can be momentarily hazardous when viewed directly |
| IIIb | 3B | Immediate skin hazard from the direct beam; immediate eye hazard when viewed directly |
| IV | 4 | Immediate skin and eye hazard from the direct or reflected beam; may also be a fire hazard |
From the FDA's Laser Products and Instruments page.
The working laser in a wood engraver is Class 4 in both of xTool's machines. What makes a whole machine Class 1 is an enclosure that keeps the beam in — on xTool's Class 1 P2S, interlock switches on the lid and baseplate stop the machine if either is opened. An open-frame machine has no such barrier: xTool classifies its F1 as a Class 4 product. Read the class on the machine's own label and manual, and wear the goggles its maker specifies for its wavelengths whenever the beam can reach the room; goggles rated for one wavelength may not protect against another.
Fire
- Never leave it running. Both xTool documents say not to leave the machine unattended; the F1's warns that setting errors or faults can start a fire.
- Flames. Flammable material cut or engraved slowly at high power can catch fire. xTool says to stop processing at once if it does.
- An extinguisher at hand, kept and inspected, as xTool's P2S document requires.
- Nothing near it. Wood is fuel; keep the area round the machine clear.
Fumes and what never to cut
Laser cutting turns material into smoke, so the workspace must be ventilated well enough to carry it away, as both xTool documents say. Some materials give off smoke that harms people and machines:
- PVC and vinyl, and anything containing chlorine or chloride — xTool forbids them; they give off corrosive vapour.
- Polycarbonate, which xTool names as releasing harmful smoke.
- Unknown materials — if you cannot say what it is, it does not go in.
- Preservative-treated wood — the EPA says not to burn it in a home, because of the chemicals in the smoke and ash; a laser burns it.
Safety— The manual sets the rules
Class, goggles, interlocks, ventilation and settings are each machine's own. Read its safety pages before the first job; the general shop rules are in woodworking safety rules.
A first engraving
Running a first engraving safely
Place the machine
On a stable, non-flammable surface, with its exhaust run to the outside or its maker's filter fitted, and nothing flammable nearby.
Check the protection
Enclosure closed and its interlock enabled; on an open frame, the maker's goggles for its wavelengths on everyone in the room.
Load known wood
Untreated, unfinished wood you can identify, flat and held still on the bed.
Use the maker's settings
Start from the machine's own material settings for that wood, and run a small test on scrap first.
Stay with it
Watch the whole job, extinguisher at hand, and stop at once if a flame starts.
Project ideas for the machine are on CNC router projects, which are cut with a router but share the same workflow of drawing, preparing and running a file.
Before every laser job
- Class and goggle rating checked on the machine's own label and manual
- Exhaust running; room ventilated
- Material identified: no PVC, vinyl, chlorine, polycarbonate, treated or unknown material
- Extinguisher within reach
- Someone at the machine until the job ends
Sources
Laser classes and their hazards are the FDA's; wavelengths, classes and safety rules for particular machines are xTool's for its own F1 and P2S. No other maker's machines were reviewed, and nothing here is presented as applying to them: each machine's class, wavelengths and goggle rating are in its own manual. No power, speed or pass settings are given; they come from each machine's material settings. The treated-wood warning is the EPA's.
- 1.
Laser Products and Instruments. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2024.
Used for: The FDA's hazard classes with their IEC equivalents: Class I (IEC 1, 1M) considered non-hazardous; IIa and II (IEC 2, 2M); IIIa (IEC 3R), momentarily hazardous when viewed directly; IIIb (IEC 3B), an immediate skin and eye hazard from the direct beam; IV (IEC 4), an immediate skin and eye hazard from the direct or reflected beam and possibly a fire hazard; labels on Classes II–IV stating the class and output power.
- 2.
xTool F1 Safety First (Important). xTool.
Used for: The F1: a 445 nm ± 15 nm laser of 10 W maximum and a 1064 nm ± 5 nm laser of 2 W maximum, a Class 4 laser machine with two Class 4 working lasers; never unattended, settings errors or faults able to start a fire; materials igniting at low speed and high power, with processing stopped at once; ventilation; no PVC, vinyl, chlorine or chloride-containing or unknown materials, including polycarbonate; goggles shielding both wavelengths; the enclosure interlock enabled in its software; hands out of the processing area.
- 3.
xTool P2S Safety First (Important). xTool.
Used for: The P2S: a 10.6 µm CO2 working laser (Class 4) in a Class 1 model with lid and baseplate interlocks and in a Class 4 model; laser operation prohibited with the lid lifted; never unattended; most materials flammable; a fire extinguisher kept and inspected; ventilation; no PVC, vinyl, chlorine or chloride-containing or unknown materials; goggles for 10.6 µm on Class 4 models.
- 4.
Chromated Arsenicals (CCA). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2025.
Used for: CCA or other preservative-treated wood not to be burned in a residential setting, because of toxic chemicals in the smoke and ash.
About this guide
Written by BenchRoot Editorial. How BenchRoot sources, checks and corrects its pages is set out in the Editorial Policy. If something here is wrong or unclear, the contact page explains how to tell us.