Dust Collector Questions

[melogic]

I am planning on getting a new dust collector after the first of the year for my new house. I have been looking at the one from Harbor Freight. Are there any dust collectors better than the other or will the one's from harbor freight do the job? What type do most of you have and do they work for you?

 

[pete00]

i just got one from HF based on the reccomendations here, works good so far,,,,

 

[Dario]

Mark,

It is same as lathe purchase...why buy Oneway if HF will do?

Yes, it will work but not as great. Cyclone type DC are better. Ones with canister filter are great...so it boils down to your budget. Having a cheap one is much better than not having one at all.

I personally bought a ShopFox DC very similar to the ones HF sells and it works great. Just make sure you get a good filter bag (<5 micron if possible). I replaced mine because the one that came with it is 30 micron (I think) which is ridiculous.

Good luck!

 

[ctEaglesc]

On most woodworkingsites the two bag HF model that sells for $179.00 gets a rating that is the most bang for the buck.
Up grades for bags or canisters can always be made.
If you can vent to the outside the upgrade isn't necessary.
This time of the year that is not always possible.
I have my units in the "attic" so the micron bag rating isn't that important.
IMHO Cylones are not worth the extra bucks unless you are making it yourself.
Yse if they are made properly they are fantastic.For the most psrt after the screwing the DC boys have given the consumer I wouldn't trust any of their numbers as far as I could throw them.
Do your homework and take a look at Bill Pentz'z site.

 

[Dario]

Originally posted by ctEaglesc
<br />
I have my units in the "attic" so the micron bag rating isn't that important.

Be careful Eagles...those dusts are highly flameable, if they escape the bag and accumulate on your attic...I don't even want to think what can happen.

PLEASE review your position on this.

 

[ctEaglesc]

Originally posted by Dario
<br />

Originally posted by ctEaglesc
<br />
I have my units in the "attic" so the micron bag rating isn't that important.

Be careful Eagles...those dusts are highly flameable, if they escape the bag and accumulate on your attic...I don't even want to think what can happen.

PLEASE review your position on this.

Attic of shop.
It vents the same as most fart fans in a bathroom...in the attic.
no rethinking necessary.
Besides the bags remain untouched, the "cake" in the bag acts as a filter.

 

[Ron in Drums PA]

Ditto Dario, upgrade the bags ASAP. Your health is worth it.

 

[Daniel]

Be careful about venting your dust collector outdoors. it can cause fumes from your heater, waterheater or any other gas devise to be drawn into the house. I mention that here because of the need for one in a house. Not completely sure your shop is inside the house but better safe than sorry.
as far as the venting to the attic. if the filter is doing it's job there would not be an issue. but the number of so called filters out there would make me worry. some places have laws forbidding the venting of dust collectors to the outside air. Gratefully Reno is not one of them, be shur to check your area though.
I just ried to go to bills page but my puter says it cannot be found. maybe he finally made good on the comments about shutting it down. I used to have a bench of his info stored on a disk though. I'll see if I can find it

 

[ctEaglesc]

Originally posted by Daniel
<br />Be careful about venting your dust collector outdoors. it can cause fumes from your heater, waterheater or any other gas devise to be drawn into the house. I mention that here because of the need for one in a house. Not completely sure your shop is inside the house but better safe than sorry.
as far as the venting to the attic. if the filter is doing it's job there would not be an issue. but the number of so called filters out there would make me worry. some places have laws forbidding the venting of dust collectors to the outside air. Gratefully Reno is not one of them, be shur to check your area though.
I just ried to go to bills page but my puter says it cannot be found. maybe he finally made good on the comments about shutting it down. I used to have a bench of his info stored on a disk though. I'll see if I can find it

I have a detached shop and heat witha propane heater.USing the DC keeps the Make-up air moving.The shop is by nomeans tight but even withthe DC going and the heater ecentually I need to take of my insulated vest and on some days can work in shirt sleeves.
A bonus.If I keept the heater"up wind of the DC I can still use acetone ,lacquer thinner and alcohol.
The fumes are vented fresh & air is pulled into the shop.

 

[beamer]

Bill Pentz' Site (insofar as dust collection, anyway):

http://billpentz.com/Woodworking/Cyclone/Index.cfm

 

[TellicoTurning]

Hey Marc,
The HF DC is a great machine...it's a good bargain for the price... 2 HP motor, 1600 CFM... but like Dario said if the Dc sits where you are working, you made need to upgrade bags... I use mine in a stand along shop, but but the Dc in an outside closet and piped it through the wall so no dust in the shop... I didn't upgrade bags because it's outside the shop.... would recommend you put a trash can in the line before the DC to catch the big stuff.. will save your impeller.

 

[woodwish]

My DC is in the shop so I can recycle the cold air-condtioning here in the summer, winter is not the issue. Since mine was going inside I found the more you pay generally the quieter it is. Effeciency was my biggest concern for my health, but my hearing is also important so I opted to get the quietiest one I could find with canisters. I also use a large can upstream to catch the chips, saves a lot of emptying. Looking back I wish I had spent a few more bucks and bought a cyclone unit, maybe an upgrade in the future. I have a large shop and use it for a lot in addition to turning so I need a bigger unit than I would for just turning. My two cents worth anyway!

 

[wdcav1952]

Good point on quiet operation, Ray. Any opinions as to decent, quiet running units?

 

[Daniel]

The problem with DC noise is that it is low frequency sound. think of the kid driving by with his trunk full of bass speakers. it is very hard to stop it cause it travels through everything. starting with a quiet unit is your best weapon. otherwise think along the lines of preventing the vibration from being transfered to walls, floor, etc. including through the pipes. shock absorbing mounts and at least a short section of flexable pipe between the collector and the rest of the pipes helps. I hand my pipes form a wire to minimize the mass that can transfer vibration. the dust collector can become irritating to even the shop owner that sets in machine noises all the time already. not to mention the damage to your hearing. anouther good answer for noise is a muffler for the exhaust side of the collector. those can be home made with instructions available by doing a bit of searching on the net.

 

[woodwish]

William, mine is a Jet with "dust dog" canister. Still loud but not as bad as most. After the first of the year my plan is to build a short closet around it with vents in the top. I'll put several layers of AC filters in the vents to further filter the exhaust air and muffle the sound. Been thinking about doing it for years but something else always seems to come up.

 

[Dario]

Originally posted by woodwish
<br />Been thinking about doing it for years but something else always seems to come up.

You and me both...I have tons of ideas and planned project but can't seem to get them started...let alone done.

 

[Fred]

If we are serious about the status of our health and we should be, then we all should read the information over at Bill's excellent site concerning the VERY REAL DANGERS associated with fine dust and our lungs. I have found that all the information about dust and cyclone pre-filters to be excellent and extremely useful. I recommend that we all read about the medical dangers found in breathing exotic wood dust at the lathe/bandsaw/sanders, etc. We just cannot be careful enough when it comes to our health and it is the "FINE dust [V]" that gets us and causes almost all of the problems.

The MAIN SITE URL: http://billpentz.com/Woodworking/Cyclone/Index.cfm
MEDICAL RISKS URL: http://billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/DocsOrders.cfm#MedicalRisks

You may not be reacting to the dust right now, but you can/will become "sensitized" to it and that is devestating since being "sensitized is far worse than being allergic. Becomming sensitized to something only means that it will get worse. Being allergic means that you react a bit to the cause and then recover. READ UP on the difference and my bet is you will be alarmed and take all the precautions you can afford to use ... and then some. Be safe and use the most expensive filteration you can afford. Study up and learn! []