Well after reading this forum for a long time, I decided to finally make my first post:

I currently have a 2hp dust collector set up in my 2 car garage, with the Rockler Quick Connect system, so every time I want to use a machine I need to lug the hose from the dust collector and plug it in. I recently purchased a wireless remote, so turning on the DC is no longer a problem, and using the quick connect hose has served me well so far. But. . . I just purchased a Grizzly 15" Planer, and will probably invest in an 8" Jointer, 17" Bandsaw, and maybe even a drum sander sometime later this year (to replace existing machines), so I know that I need a more permanent DC setup.

So my question is, when I design an implement a dedicated DC setup in my shop (one DC hooked up to 5-6 machines), will I be running around opening and closing blast gates every time I want to use a particular machine? Because that just seems like only slightly less work than moving the hose around. All my machines will be concentrated on two perpendicular walls, so nothing will be more than 6-8 feet from the DC, but I am having a hard time imagining how the use of blast gates is implemented to control the suction to each machine.

Thanks in advance, and I look forward to many more posts in the future!