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Thread: Help needed with shop made-dust collection

  1. #1

    Help needed with shop made-dust collection

    Forum members,

    I need help.

    I recently purchased the Hammer N4400 band saw and the Hammer A3-31 12 inch jointer planer combination machine - they are great!

    I was using a 1 hp Grizzly portable dust collector - that was no longer sufficient.

    So, I built a box, took off the inlet cover, mounted the motor on the box and mounted a 4 inch inlet on the side of the box.

    Here's my problem: when the grizzly dust bag is off (just to check suction) the power seems very strong. When I attach the bag, which captures only big particles, suction falls in half.

    Would buying a cyclone help? What type of filter would be better for cleaning the exhaust and maintaining the highest CFM?



    Thanks,

    Chris

  2. #2
    Since the suction dropped significantly I assume you have the bag on the inlet side of the fan. You could install on the outlet side to reduce the effect of the bag. Of course that means your fan wheel would be exposed to the dust. I don't see this as problem. You may periodically need to clean the fan wheel. I have my fan wheel on the dirty side of my cyclone and haven't had to clean it for 3 years. If you are considering a cyclone, I suggest you build your own. Check Bill Pentz web site.
    http://www.billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/index.cfm
    He gives step by step instructions for building your own cyclone. I built my and it works great. I spent $40 on sheet metal, bought the fan wheel from Jet per Bill's recommendation for like $100, picked up a motor from a friend, built my own fan housing per Bill's instruction, and bought a couple of nice .5 micro filters to go at the end discharge. Follow Bill's advice and you won't go wrong. Plus if you have any questions, he will respond to your e-mails quickly and free. He gives you several options for sealing the seams so most people can make one. I soldiered mine, some weld, some use rivots and windshield glass epoxy. I probably have $200 invested in mine and will stack it up against any $1500 to $2000 cyclone on the market. It took a little while to build, but I found it fun. Checkout the link. It's costs nothing and is worth the read.

  3. #3
    Not enough bag, plain and simple.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Palmer View Post
    Since the suction dropped significantly I assume you have the bag on the inlet side of the fan. You could install on the outlet side to reduce the effect of the bag. Of course that means your fan wheel would be exposed to the dust. I don't see this as problem. You may periodically need to clean the fan wheel. I have my fan wheel on the dirty side of my cyclone and haven't had to clean it for 3 years.

    Say what???????


    It doesn't matter where you put a filter or anything (pipe, fittings, etc.) on a DC blower, front end or back end- it still provides the same amount of static pressure resistance!!!! I can't see any easy way of putting a bag on the intake side of a blower anyway!

    To the Op, as Bruce says, not enough bag, also heavily caked bag. Filters are a lose-lose situation from a suction standpoint- they pass fine dust until caked, once caked they filter much better, but the CFM is greatly reduced. A cyclone reduces this considerably, discharging outside or through a cyclone to the outside with no filter eliminates the problem completely.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Palmer View Post
    Since the suction dropped significantly I assume you have the bag on the inlet side of the fan.
    How on Earth do you put a bag on the inlet side of a dust collector?!
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  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Hintz View Post
    How on Earth do you put a bag on the inlet side of a dust collector?!
    Thats exactly what I was wondering? Maybe its a reverse osmosis DC system?

  7. #7
    Well I guess I was thinking about the bag filters I typically see everyday at work. All dust collectors in an industrial setting are on the suction side. Guess in practice you don't see it in the woodshop, so I understand the confusion. It's really not that complicated though. And it does matter about a pressure drop. You do need a cage around the bag to keep it from collapsing.

  8. #8
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    Search for Thien filter baffle. Also consider using a Wynn Environmental filter. More surface area than a bag and when combined with the Thien baffle clogging is not much of a problem.

    I installed the Thien baffle and Wynn filter on a HF DC. I do not use it as a central DC solution, rather I hook it up to whatever machine I am using. I use a five inch hose and keep it as short as possible. I have no complaints about the performance of this configuration. I am less thrilled about the lack of convenience, having to roll the DC around and hook it up each time is a bit of a buzz kill, but space and budget dictate I must tolerate the choreography that is me, working in the shop.
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