Product safety and care

Our pieces are sculptural, but they are also furniture, lamps and objects you live with. Most are heavy, and all are made of a mineral material with its own character. Please read the information for your piece before you install or use it, keep it, and pass it on with the piece if you give or sell it to someone else. The same information comes with your piece, and the key warnings are on each product page. To report a safety problem, see section 14 or call us on +34 614 412 917.

1. Who makes your piece

Sand Store and Bespoke pieces, and our material sample packs, are placed on the market under the Blacksand name by their manufacturer:

• Manufacturer: Bryant Creative Industries, S.L.U., trading as Blacksand Lab

• Postal address: Carrer de Fray Francisco Cabezas 13, Bajo C, 46019 València, Spain

• Email: info@blacksandlab.com

• Phone: +34 614 412 917

We design our pieces with the designers of the Blacksand Collective. They are printed by our specialist production partners, then finished, checked, assembled and shipped from our studio in València.

Each piece carries its model reference and a serial or batch number, usually on its underside. Where that is not possible, they are on the packaging or on the document that comes with the piece. The product page shows the piece's name, pictures and model reference, which also appear on your quote or order confirmation. Please keep them: they identify your piece if we ever need to contact you about it.

Production pieces. Pieces we print from your own files are made to your design. If you sell them under your own name, you are their manufacturer and responsible for their safety information (see our Service terms). The information on this page about the material still applies to them.

2. The material

Our pieces are 3D printed in black quartz sand by binder jetting, then infiltrated with an acrylic resin that hardens them. The surface is left natural, with no paint or coating. Some pieces combine the sand with one other material, such as glass, metal, wood or a light fitting.

• Heavy. Our pieces weigh from about 1 kg to 300 kg. The weight of each piece is on its product page and its packaging.

• Strong in normal use, but it can chip, crack or break if it is knocked or dropped.

• Mineral surface. The surface and edges can be abrasive: they can scratch delicate surfaces and fabrics, and a sharp edge or a chip can graze skin.

• Not watertight, unless the product page says so.

• Heat-sensitive resin. Heat, and long exposure to strong direct sun, can soften, mark or discolour the resin.

• Indoor use in dry places, unless the product page says otherwise.

• Contains quartz (crystalline silica). It is safe in normal use. See section 12 before anyone cuts, drills or sands a piece.

3. All pieces

• Read the instructions and warnings before you install or use your piece, and keep them.

• Use each piece only for the purpose described on its product page.

• Place pieces on a stable, level surface that can carry their weight, away from the edges of tables and shelves.

• Lift and carry heavy pieces with enough people, holding them as the instructions show, never by a top, a glass part, a cable or a part that sticks out. Wear gloves and closed shoes when you move heavy pieces.

• Keep pieces away from heat sources (radiators, fireplaces, stoves, heaters) and out of strong direct sun.

• Stop using a piece that is cracked or has a loose part, and contact us.

• Our pieces are not toys.

4. Objects and vessels

• Decorative objects. Not for food or drink.

• Not watertight unless the product page says so. Vessels are for dried flowers only: never add water or fresh flowers. Water can seep through and damage the piece, furniture and floors.

• Dried flowers burn easily: keep them away from candles, fireplaces, heaters and hot bulbs.

• Place tall or narrow pieces where they cannot be knocked over.

5. Bowls and trays

• Decorative objects. Not for food or drink: do not use them to serve, store or prepare food, or to hold drinks.

• Nothing hot: no hot dishes, pans, candles or ash.

• Not watertight: do not fill them with liquids.

6. Candleholders

• Use only with candles in a metal or glass cup or insert, for example a tealight in its metal cup, or a glass insert if one comes with your candleholder. Never place a candle directly on the sand.

• Never leave burning candles unattended. Put them out before you leave the room or go to sleep.

• Keep burning candles out of reach of children and pets.

• Keep them away from draughts and from anything that can catch fire, such as curtains, dried flowers, paper, books and shelves above.

• Keep at least 10 cm between burning candles.

• Place the candleholder on a stable, heat-resistant surface.

• The holder can get hot. Do not move it while a candle is burning or the wax is liquid, and let it cool before you touch or move it.

• Put the candle out before it burns all the way down.

7. Cigar tray

• For resting unlit cigars only, unless your tray comes with a non-combustible insert (metal, glass or ceramic) for ash and lit cigars.

• Never rest a lit cigar or ash on the sand surface. The heat can scorch and damage the resin and is a fire risk.

• If your tray has an insert, put lit cigars and ash only in the insert. Never leave a lit cigar unattended. The tray can get hot: place it on a stable, heat-resistant surface, away from anything that can catch fire, and empty the insert only when it is completely cold, into a non-combustible container.

• Not for food.

8. Lighting

All lamps

• Our lamps carry the CE marking and are made for 220-240 V ~ 50/60 Hz mains supply.

• Indoor use in dry places only (IP20, unless the lamp says otherwise). Not for outdoor use, wet areas or anywhere the lamp may get wet. In bathrooms, install lamps only outside the zones where local wiring rules require a higher protection rating.

• Use only the type of light source and the maximum wattage shown on the lamp and on the product page: LED only, unless the product page says otherwise.

• Switch off the power at the mains (the circuit breaker) before installing, cleaning or maintaining a lamp or changing its light source, and let it cool first.

• Do not cover the lamp or place it against curtains, fabrics, paper, dried flowers or other materials that can catch fire.

• If the external cable is damaged, it must be replaced only by us or a similarly qualified person, to avoid a hazard. Do not use a lamp whose cable or body is damaged.

• Do not open, modify or rewire a lamp.

• Use a dimmer only if the product page says the lamp is dimmable, and only one suitable for its light source.

Pendants and other lamps wired into the mains

• Installation must be done by a qualified electrician, following the wiring rules of your country (in Spain, the Low Voltage Electrotechnical Regulation, REBT, through an authorised installation company).

• The ceiling or wall and the fixings must safely carry the weight of the lamp, shown on the product page and in the instructions. Use fixings suited to your ceiling or wall, and check for hidden cables and pipes before drilling.

• A pendant hangs from its own suspension, never from the electrical cable alone. Do not swing or pull a pendant or hang anything from it, and hang it high enough that no one can knock it.

Where we deliver lamps. Our lamps are made for European electrical rules. We currently deliver them to consumers in Spain (mainland and Balearic Islands) only. For other countries, ask us (see Shipping).

End of life. The crossed-out wheelie bin on our lamps means they must not be thrown away with household waste. Take them to a collection point for electrical equipment (in Spain, a punto limpio), where they can be reused or recycled and the substances they contain kept out of the environment. When you buy a new lamp from us for delivery in Spain, you can hand us an equivalent old lamp free of charge, at delivery or at our studio.

9. Tables

• Keep within the maximum load stated on the product page, and spread heavy loads evenly.

• Do not sit, stand or climb on a table.

• Tables are heavy. The weight is on the product page and the packaging. Move them with enough people, and use lifting equipment for the heaviest pieces. Lift, never slide or drag, and never lift a table by its top or by a glass part. If the top is removable, take it off first as the instructions show.

• For pieces over 150 kg, have a qualified professional check, before delivery, that the floor where the piece will stand can carry it, especially on upper, raised or timber floors.

• Tall or narrow pieces, such as console tables, must be fixed to the wall as the instructions show, with fixings suited to your wall.

• Keep the felt pads in place to protect your floor.

• Use mats and coasters: hot dishes, pans and drinks can mark or soften the surface, and liquids can stain it. Never put a candle directly on the surface.

• If your table has a glass or other top, follow its instructions too, and stop using the table if the top is chipped or cracked.

10. Seating

• For sitting only, within the maximum user weight stated on the product page.

• Do not stand, kneel or jump on a seat, sit on its edges, or tilt or rock it.

• Check that the seat stands stable on a level floor before use and after moving it.

• Children should use our seating only under supervision.

• The mineral surface can be abrasive on delicate fabrics.

• Stop using a seat if you see a crack, and contact us.

11. Children and pets

• Our pieces are not toys. Do not let children climb on, hang from or play with them: a heavy piece can cause serious injury if it falls.

• Place smaller and tall pieces out of reach of young children and pets.

• Keep packaging, especially plastic bags and foam, away from children.

• Keep burning candles and lamp cables out of reach of children and pets.

12. Cutting, drilling and sanding

Please do not cut, drill, sand, grind or polish a piece. It can weaken the piece, it is not covered by the legal guarantee, and it creates dust.

The material contains quartz (crystalline silica). It is safe in normal use, but cutting, drilling or sanding it creates fine dust that is harmful to breathe. If a professional ever needs to work on a piece, they should contact us first and work wet, with dust extraction and an FFP3 or P3 mask.

13. Care

• Dust with a soft, dry brush or a soft, dry cloth.

• For marks, use a cloth slightly dampened with water only, then dry the surface straight away.

• No solvents, abrasives, bleach, polishes or sprays, and never soak a piece.

• Keep felt pads under pieces to protect your surfaces.

• Keep pieces away from heat sources and out of strong direct sun, indoors and in dry places.

• Lamps: switch off and let them cool before cleaning, and keep moisture away from the electrical parts.

• Glass, metal or wood parts: follow the care instructions for that material that come with your piece.

14. Report a safety problem

If a piece cracks, breaks, tips over, comes loose, overheats, smells of burning, flickers or gives a shock, or if it has caused an accident or an injury:

1. Stop using it. For a lamp, switch it off at the mains. Do not touch a damaged lamp while it is connected. If someone is hurt, get medical help first.

2. Tell us straight away, with the form on this page, by email to info@blacksandlab.com or by phone on +34 614 412 917.

Please include:

• your name and contact details;

• your quote or order reference, if you have it;

• the piece: its name, model reference and serial or batch number (on the piece or its packaging);

• what happened, when and where;

• whether anyone was hurt or anything was damaged;

• photos or a short video, if you can.

What we do. We register every report and send you a reference number. We look at it straight away and reply as soon as possible, within 15 days at the latest and much sooner for anything urgent. We investigate, take any corrective action needed and, where the law requires it, inform the competent authorities through the EU Safety Business Gateway and contact other buyers whose pieces may be affected. We keep reports with our order and product records, as product safety law requires. Personal data in our register of safety complaints is kept for no longer than 5 years, unless we need it longer to deal with a claim.

15. Safety notices and recalls

There are no safety notices for Blacksand products.

If we ever need to issue a safety notice or a recall, we publish it on this page and contact every buyer affected directly, using the contact details from their order.