air filter/scrubber

[Bo McCorkle]

anyone here built or thought of building an air filter/scrubber??? I have a small basement shop and was thinking maybe a couple of small units outfitted with maybe bathroom vent fans or such but then again they might not move quite enough air volume. Any ideas???

[Marty Paulus]

using bathroom vent fans may be expensive. From my experience the ones that move any kind of volume of air get expensive in a hurry. Why not use the box fan and furnace filter solution? Moves enough air and is inexpensive.

[Jeffrey Makiel]

I have a small basement shop too. It has a low ceiling (7 ft). I was considering building something that fits between the overhead ceiling joists since the ceiling is exposed. I considered buying a factory unit and using its components to custom fit my situation, but the large filters bags are a problem. I also noticed that Grainger, McMaster-Carr, and a few other internet suppliers sell squirrel cage fans that would meet my needs, but I would still need to figure out the filters.

Another option is the small Jet AF400. It's smaller than the typical 12X24x32 box that most vendors sell (like Jet AF1000, Grizzly, JDS, etc.). The AF400 is small enough that it would not be obtrusive. The only issue I've read is that the filters on the AF400 can only be ordered via Jet and are expensive. Also, they do not sell a washable pre filter.

I've looked at other options including a triangular model sold by Delta (not sure if it's still available), a small tubular model by an unknown manufacturer, or the wall mounted Shop Fox model by Grizzly. However, I'm concerned that their capacity may not be adequate thus requiring more than one, and again, their unusual filter sizes.

Perhaps the best option is to keep venting my shop via basement window fan when I'm done working in it. This will give me the best particle removal but is the most uncomfortable in the late fall, winter and early spring as I would be cooling the house off.

I would welcome comment from anyone that has a unique solution to this situation.

Jeff

[Noah Katz]

I plan on making one using a used furnace fan, and a filter from Wynn for much better filtration.

Way cheaper too.

[Neil Brooks]

Though I found a great deal on a used, higher-line JDS unit, my previous air cleaner (now my dedicated sanding air filter) was the 20" box fan, plus the last furnace filter and "whole house HEPA filter" pulled out of my home's HVAC system.

For the money ... the setup is darned hard to beat.

But ... I do like my JDS ... particularly for the .... I think .... $250 I paid for a unit in mint condition that had likely seen very little use.