Dust removal advice :Sound deadening.

[Bill Jobe]

Waiting on my Amish workshop.... Still have my mind set on nothing but the best dust removal system. Decided not to play games with that anymore. Almost wound up in the hospital ignoring good advice.
But, how do you quiet down a 5 hp unit?
I'd love to hear from you guys what you found that made your DC tolerable. I bought a 12x20 garage.

[David Delo]

Bill,
Just google muffler for dust collector. There's commercially units and make your own instructions. I have my unit in a separate room with a remote on/off.

[John K Jordan]

Bill, I built a closet for my 5hp ClearVue and 5hp air compressor. Both fit well in a 4'x8' space (minus some for the wall thickness). I added a 5' wide double steel door for easy access - the door is also insulated but not nearly as well as the walls so I built it so the door is not on the shop side but opens into another room.

I used a staggered-stud wall construction: 6" walls but with 2x4 studs fastened alternating between the inside and outside walls. Many people use special insulation for sound (check the ClearVue forum) but I simply wove fiberglass insulation between the studs.

staggered_studs_IMG_2013071.jpg

Will you be venting outside or returning the filtered air to the shop? If returning the air, a muffler on the exhaust should make a big difference. I didn't make one but return the air through a baffled duct "threaded" through the trusses above the ceiling. I coated the inside with spray-on rubber and packed insulation all around.

Dust_collector_baffle_small.jpg

This installation is so quiet I can carry on normal conversation in the shop and actually hear a whisper just outside the closet. The loudest thing about it is not the cyclone but the huge amount of air being pulled into the collection ports and nozzles. The one at the lathe is so loud that I sometimes crack open the blast gate at the bandsaw to reduce the airflow a bit at the lathe! It still pulls an amazing amount of air in at the lathe for sanding. It's a good problem to have. On the rare occasions I power sand I use ear protection.

JKJ

[Bill Jobe]

So then most of the noise is the exhaust after isolating the unit, David?

Yes, John, I'm venting to the outside.
How much efficiency would I lose if I ran an 8" duct of some kind several feet beyond the shop to disperse more sound, or are the mufflers effective enough?
I was at one time considering venting into a drywell of some sort with some kind of waterproof media to deaden sound. That sound crazy?
I have a neighbor who has city hall on speed dial.

[Reed Gray]

The air flowing is most of the noise. With the new filters, 1 to 0.5 micron, you don't have to be concerned with venting back into the shop. I have my 3 hp Oneida in a closet of sorts, framed walls, and 5/8 sheet rock. A bit loud with the door open, but with the door closed, you can talk without yelling. Your neighbor may be a problem if you vent outside.
I recently cleaned out my pleated paper filter. This time, to keep the dust down, I used the hose with a pressure type nozzel to get every thing out of the inside. Worked well, kept the dust down, and no problems with the paper falling apart.
robo hippy

[Dominik Dudkiewicz]

Hi Bill,

I also have a Clearvue that I vent directly outside. I used about 15 ft of 8" R2.5 acoustic HVAC ducting from the Clearvue up to a Chinaman's hat on the roof. I also wrapped the HVAC ducting in a layer of tape (which really helped - not sure why) and then a layer of regular R3 wool insulation batts covered with silver wall-wrap insulation. The last two layers didn't do a great deal and even with just the HVAC ducting and tape the noise levels inside the shop were greatly reduced (approx 15-20 dBA drop). With regard to the actual exhaust noise at the chinaman's hat on the roof; it's very quiet and is quieter than a normal conversation level right next to it, with no tonal component just rushing air.

I also applied some bitumen tape to the perspex near/on the exhaust part of the Clearvue as there was some high-frequency buzz here and then wrapped a layer of insulation around the clear impeller housing which helped quite a bit too. I didn't want to have to build a cabinet for it. Overall the noise level dropped from over 100 dBA initially to between 75-80 dBA depending on location in the shop; still noisy but does not require hearing protection. I would still like to reduce it further inside the shop tho and am going to also add some acoustic wall and ceiling panels to absorb some of the reverberating / reflected sound in the near future.

Cheers,

Dom

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[Bill Jobe]

I should in the near future have in my possession about 400sq.ft. of carpeting and pad. The wife wants hardwood floors. And there's a posibility she may replace another 320sq.ft. with hardwood. I can think of several ways to use it to lower the noise level in the shop.

But I will fight to the last moment returning the air to the shop. I'll think of some way to prevent sound from reaching the neighbor's patio just 25 feet or so from my shop. They live in that patio. It has a roof so they are out there most of the time. Right now the only thing in between is my 6' privacy fence.