Oneida V-3000 Installation and Initial run

[Cameron Handyside]

The following is a series of pictures of my Oneida V-3000 (resin body) installation. My shop is a 24x24 free standing shop. with a seperate "bump out" I call the mechanical room where the compressor and dust collector reside. I use 6" S&D pipe for ducting and to-date, I have not grounded it but am withholding any final conclusions until after I logged a few more hours.

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The V-3000 arrives in multiple boxes, all are relatively light except the motor-fan assembly which really needs two people to safely move. Installation was relatively easy and quality was very good IMHO.

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I hung the cyclone as high as possibly in the mech room to save any floor space for storage. I mounted an eye bolt in the ceiling and temporarily installed 3 more in the fan housing to help hoist everything aloft. I had extra hands on deck and it went smoothly. In a pinch, I could take it down alone for service. Note the mech room is covered in peg board that I hope would help with sound dampening. Framing is 6" with fiberglass insulation all around.

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I had to complete my first electrical work w/o professional oversight. The wires were run during construction but I had to install the circuit breaker and outlet. I dutifully tested everything while my wife stood by with her finger on 911:-) BTW, I'm a mechanical engineer so I was very proud when the cyclone fired right up for a brief test run before running the duct.

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The V-3000 has a 7" inlet. I tried some metal ducting reducers but nothing worked elegantly. So I broke down and researched the Fernco fittings. Turns out that a 6" Clay Pipe to 6" S&D Fitting works absolutely perfectly. Ducting is next.

[Cameron Handyside]

Next is running duct to all my existing machines while also preparing for a few new ones (hope springs eternal). My first step was to figure out how to cleanly cut the PVC pipe. I tried my sawsall and finally concluded that tool is strictly for demolition (at least in my hands). I finally purchased a Lennox Pipe Saw and built a couple miter jigs that worked just fine. The trick was to mark the cut all the way around the circumference of the pipe, make small cuts, rotate and repeat.

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There is an irrigation supply house nearby, so I was able to purchase the pipe and most fittings easily. I had to order a few items but all in all it was less than 1/2 the quote for sprial pipe from Oneida. And I do like the flexibility I have with changing the system and I found the PVC easy to work (other than the mess shavings make that are impossible to simply brush up because of the static electricity).

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Duct coming through the penetration between the mech room and shop. The shop ceiling is 10'

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I wanted to run the pipe along the wall with most of my power tools. I use heavy duty zip ties (175lb rating) attached to the ceiling with tie mounts that are screwed into the plywood and joist. I was worried about this system but using the cable tie tool snugged them up nicely and it is very rigid. I place a zip tie about every 12" or at a change in direction.

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I had to route a branch into the room to access the future table saw but also to run a branch to my miter station, which is on the seperate wall.
Next, getting down to the tools.

[Cameron Handyside]

Getting the duct down to the tools was leading to consternation and I hadn't even started thinking about all the adapters, reducers and flex pipe needed to make the final connections. My goal was to keep the 6" pipe for as long as feasible.

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I use double 45 degree elbows for all 90 degree turns. I use 1/2" sheet metal screws to secure vertical joints and that has worked fine.

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I ordered the 6" blast gates from ClearVue. They are sized to slip over 6" S&D pipe. I briefly considered building my own gates but these work well and I did not need many (4 to-date).

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I also splurged and purchased a ClearVue 6" to (2x) 4" transition. This was a bit expensive but again, it is designed to work with S&D pipe.
Next, trying to figure out that "last mile" of actually hooking up machines to the dust collector.

[Cameron Handyside]

Actually hooking up all the machines is still a work in progress. But here is what I have to-date:

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I managed to keep 6" pipe all the way to my Grizzly Jointer. To connect the 6" flex to the 6" S&D. I used a metal 6" connector. It was like wrestling a python but it fit. I made my own transition on the jointer to go from an 8"x4" rectangular port to a 6" round. I forgot to take pictures of it but it's 3 pieces of 3/4" ply with my best impression of going from squarish to roundish. Results are pending...

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I used the existing 4" port on the bandsaw with a 2-1/2" wye I piped underneath the table and hold in place with rare earth magnets. The inside of the saw cabinet now stays spotless but the under-table port needs additional work. A box that encloses the lower guides will be necessary. I'm also testing whether the single 4" port works best or is it better to leave the other 4" port open for more flow. Results are pending...

[Cameron Handyside]

Once I was comfortable with the tool connections, I wanted to shore up the vertical pipes. They were in no danger of falling but I was worried what might happen if I hit the pipe with a tool or tugged on the flex hose too hard. Previously, I mounted a french cleat system around my entire shop at 4' & 6'. I could now use that to build and mount brackets for the vertical runs.

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I built simple plywood brackets that could also use the zip ties to draw the pipe in snug.

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I've been very happy with the brackets. The vertical pipes do not move.

[Cameron Handyside]

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Because I raised the cyclone, I had to build a platform on which the barrel could sit. I like this solution because now I have some much treasured storage space under the barrel and I can duck under the filter when getting into the room.

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Just trying to tidy up the penetrations.

Initial results are amazing! I had been using my shop vac and the systems do not compare when it comes to clearing dust and chips. I still have some "tweaking" to do at the machines and I have not even leak-checked the pvc fittings but the system really pulls. The remote is very convenient, there is absolutely no vibration from the motor anywhere and the system is surprisingly quiet. Based on the decibel meter app on my phone, here are the results:

In the shop, one blast gate open: 80 decibels (reasonable but still need hearing protection)
In the mech room, door closed: 95 decibels (painfully loud)
Outside the mech room, door closed: 60 decibels (very important in my neighborhood w/ the convenant police).

I'd like to think my peg board walls helped but the insulation and brick veneer probably didn't hurt either...

I know I relied on a lot of information available on SMC for my dust collector research, purchase and installation. I'm just posting here to add another data point.

[Ole Anderson]

Cameron, I love extended write-ups like this with lots of pictures. Very nice system you have there. How did you secure/seal the pipe joints?

[Jim Andrew]

What are you doing for monitoring your drum?

[Cameron Handyside]

Ole, I have not seriously leak tested the joints yet. While running, I've been moving my hand over joints, feeling for drafts and have not found any yet. I bought all the pipe and fittings from the same company/mfg and they dry fit extremely tight. However, I know it's not perfect and I purchased a couple rolls of X-Treme Tape, which is silicon self-adhesive tape. It is similar to tape we use on sailboat rigging. It's nice because it does not leave behind any glue residue if I have to remove it to modify the system.

Jim, I do not have a monitoring system yet. I plan to live with it for awhile to see how well I monitor it. I am in the habit of draining and checking my compressor every time I work in the shop and hope that will also include checking the barrel. Again, I know that may not work and have already researched the alarms sold by Oneida and Clear Vue.

I'm at that phase of the installation where I need to build something "in the shop" instead of "as part of the shop". It's certainly not complete but up and running with a few caveats. I do have one immediate item, I have to cut a Return Air hole between the shop and mech room, otherwise pressure builds up in the mech room and any (future) conditioned air needs to be returned to the shop. During one test run, I did not close the mech room door firmly and the pressure built up until it popped the door open w/ a bang. I just knew I had done something horribly wrong.

Thanks for looking and commenting!

[Jebediah Eckert]

THanks for taking the time, great post. Very helpful to anyone intending on doing a similar set up.

I have read a bunch of threads on doing this without the filter and venting outside. I know there are pros and cons, I was just curious why you personally chose not to vent outside?

You could have skipped mentioning you were an engineer. The electrical outlets all being labeled in block letters with a label maker was a dead give away. Haha

great shop

[Brian Hale]

Hey Cameron, thanks for the great writeup!

At the risk of being to bold, you should make a bin sensor a high priority. I purchased one with my Clearvue but didn't get it fully installed right away because i had a small project that needed to get done. Needless to say my bin filled up and a bunch of planer shavings got shoved into the filters and i didn't notice till the planer was just starting clog. I spent an entire day cleaning those 2 filters, you'll be surprised how much is forced into them.

It's something you'll only do one time.

[Jim Andrew]

I did not see a planer in your connections, so maybe you will get by with checking it once a day. I plane rough lumber, and have a 50 gallon drum, it fills in about 15 to 20 minutes. I got tired of running mine over, and bought a small window and installed it where I can see the hose going into the drum, put a trouble light on the drum lid so it lights up the hose, and I can watch it fill as I plane. Only takes a few seconds for the hose to fill up, when the level gets up there.

[Cameron Handyside]

Thanks for all the comments.

Jebediah, first that Label Maker was a gift to my wife (who has her PhD in Mech Engineering) and it was a great investment! I did consider venting outside but I live in a neighborhood and was conserned about the noise reverberating outside. Right now, the decibel meter is reading about 60 right outside the door and that is quieter than the cars passing by. The other, main reason is I'm hoping to get a mini split installed eventually to heat/cool the shop. We live in North Alabama and it gets really muggy hot in the summer and surprisingly cold in the winter (we have a few single digit days).

Right now, I have a DeWalt 735 Planer and a Grizzly 8" jointer. And I joined/planed about 200 bdf of Black Locust I turned into a floor. That was hooked up to my Dust Deput/Shop Vac and was amazed how quickly that 5 gal bucket filled up. So I agree and do need to seriously consider a bin sensor. It is in a seperate room so monitoring it will be more of a challenge. I have been working on this installation since October and just want to step back a bit and then tackle the "Punch List".

[Randy Red Bemont]

I'm in NC so I understand the hot muggy summers and cold winters. I have a mini-split in my workshop and it is awesome! I couldn't imagine not having heat or A/C in the workshop.

Red

[Brian Hale]

I installed a Caribou mini split 5 weeks ago and it's amazing. 18,000 btu (220volt) $1800 delivered. Heat, AC, dehumidifying. It's a DIY system, no HVAC tech needed. My shop is 30x40 with 12' ceilings and the unit is supposed to heat/cool 1500 sq ft but the ceilings are pushing that limit. However, even with the weeks of zero degrees of night time temps it kept my shop at 50. Now the wife keeps very detailed information on all things money and has for the past 30+ years and she said it cost us between $10 and $12 a week to run it. That's day and night Monday through Friday , I burn the woodstove on the weekends.