I've been reading some posts on fine wood dust collection and the issue of which dust collector to buy. While I'm sure that everyone who responds is well-intentioned, we have to remember that not everyone is an expert. Just because someone says they bought a certain system and it works great doesn't mean the system is effective. In fact, my question is, who IS an expert?
If the most hazardous dust is invisible, how do we know what's escaping into the shop's air? From what I gather, there are a lot of places where things can go wrong, from inadequate collection at the tool site, to poor duct design or connections, to inadequate features in the DC itself, etc. I understand the vagaries of predicting exactly what health effects dust will have on a given person, but building a fault-proof DC system itself ought to be easy enough for engineers to figure out.
I've been leaning towards buying a Clear Vue cyclone, but dragging my feet somewhat because I'm afraid of investing it it, plus all the ducting, only to end up with a false sense of security that my shop environment is virtually free of fine dust. Probably more of us would be willing to sink money into a good system if we felt certain it would do what we want it to.
Is there a way to test the air once your system is in place (that isn't prohibitively expensive)?
Sorry about the rant! This is a very frustrating topic!
Debbie