Note to self: Don't do routing indoors anymore.

[Sasquatch!]

So it's a cold Chicago winter today (although it's a LOT nicer than it has been for the past few days), and I think to myself, "Hey, I don't want to go outside to route this plexiglas!  I'll just do it in the basement!"

My basement is now COVERED in little plastic shards.  It's gonna take me hours to clean all of this up.

Moral of the story: Throw on a sweatshirt and brave the cold!

[NoOne=NBA=]

Option 2 is to use dropcloths and staples (or wide masking tape) to create a "workbooth" that will trap all of the chips.
(I would recommend using duct tape to reinforce the plastic before stapling it, btw).
I've done this in my garage to keep from getting sawdust and spray paint all over my wife's stuff out there.
When you are finally all done, you can just pull the staples out of the ceiling, roll it all into a ball, and stuff it in a yard/leaf size garbage sack.

You will probably still make a little mess outside the booth, but not anywhere near what you do without it.
Another big help is to rig up a shop vac to your router to suck out as many chips before they get all over as possible.
I would put the vacuum part outside the booth, and just run the hose in.

And be sure to wear eye protection and a dust mask while working in a space that small.

[AlanS17]

I did most of my routing the MDF indoors. For those of you who have routed MDF, you know it turns to fine powder on contact. It drifted all the way across the room (up to 20 ft) and settled over EVERYTHING! I also learned I will never route without a mask ever again, but that's besides the point.

[crashwg]

When we got a christmas tree this year, I hadn't thought about the fact that we didn't have a saw to cut off the bottom of the tree until we got home so I decided to use the router (becuase it's the closest thing I have to a saw of course...) and you guessed it, didn't go outside either.

Well, it sure did smell good in there.  

[Sasquatch!]

Option 2 is to use dropcloths and staples (or wide masking tape) to create a "workbooth" that will trap all of the chips.

Hey, that ain't a bad idea!  Thanks!

And be sure to wear eye protection and a dust mask while working in a space that small.

Are you kidding me?  I wear eye protection ALL the time.

[NoOne=NBA=]

I wear eye protection ALL the time.

So do I.
I had to get new ones for Christmas, as a matter of fact.
There is a reason I can't see through my last pair, and that is because they were protecting my eyes.

I also always wear two sets of hearing protection.
I've got alot of friends in metal fab who have major hearing problems way too young in life.