Exhaust Systems

[Ricky Gore]

Now I lknow I'm being cheap here but:

Doesn't this look a lot like this?

Suggestions on exhaust systems would be appreciated, we are on a tight budget and need to get this to work as cheaply as possible.

Thanks,
Ricky

[Barbara Buhse]

We bought our blower from Harbor freight for about 1/4 of the price the Epilog rep was going to charge us.

[Mike Mackenzie]

Ricky,

You can also get a good quality blower from sears.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...seBVCookie=Yes

[Joe Pelonio]

Mine was sort of in between those prices, but it's an 10" reduced down to 4" and has plenty of power but is a lot quieter than a typical dust collection system. I got it from Grainger. I see it's gone way up in price since I got mine nearly 4 years ago.

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/items/4YM41

[John Keeton]

Not even owning a laser yet, I probably shouldn't weigh in on this one. No doubt the more expensive one is probably overpriced. But, there are (claimed) differences in amperage, horsepower and weight, and those factors probably say something about the quality differences. Can't explain the CFM differences?? Again, not knowing the actual power need the cheaper one may do just fine.

[Ricky Gore]

Ok, say I buy a blower. Do I need some type of filter to keep the debris from going into the yard? Or is there a filter/screen in the machine before the debris exits?

[Frank Tralongo]

Eh Ricky,
Here is my 2 cents...
Got my laser about 6 weeks ago and was using my Penn unit without the sack. Kind of an overkill so I got the cheepee unit from Harbor Freight and am very happy with it. Has good suction power and is not too noisy when ruuning. I routed my hose thru the wall and have the exhaust unit outside thru 5 feet of hose. The other good thing is its small and only weighs about 20 pounds so I bring it out as needed. I run it straight without any filters etc and have not had any problems with waste materials even though I was cutting and burning some none treated wood scrapes

[Joe Pelonio]

Ok, say I buy a blower. Do I need some type of filter to keep the debris from going into the yard? Or is there a filter/screen in the machine before the debris exits?

There's really no debris. Sometimes cutting light card stock or paper pieces will fly out, but otherwise just a dark dusty film inside the exhaust plumbing that has to be cleaned every 2 years or so.

[Bill Cunningham]

Just don't 'suck' through that plastic flex vent hose stuff. It's OK to 'blow' through but when sucking, the inner lining will eventually collapse, and block the air flow, overheating your laser.. I 'almost' made that mistake, but spotted it in time..

[Dwayne Cook]

Bill
what kind of hose did you have problem with??? I use that Black Plastic hose from penn and have been for about two years

[Dwayne Cook]

Hi Rick
I went straight to Penn In Philly and they sold me same blower as i got from Epilog for about $250... Sorry i didnt catch the thread on what you were paying....

Dwayne Cook
Epilog 24TT & 24Mini Corel X3 and what ever works

[Richard Rumancik]

Mine was sort of in between those prices, but it's an 10" reduced down to 4" and has plenty of power but is a lot quieter than a typical dust collection system. I got it from Grainger. I see it's gone way up in price since I got mine nearly 4 years ago.

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/items/4YM41

Joe, I'm sure you are satisfied with the Grainger unit but it is not quite what I was told was needed for a laser. The difference between a fan and a blower is how much pressure it can generate. Fans have very high cfm but very low pressure, where a blower generally has lower cfm and increased pressure. I was told I needed six or seven hundred cfm at 6" water pressure (I don't have my manual handy for the exact numbers). The Sign Warehouse unit exceeds mine. The fan you are using cannot generate anything near that pressure (it is spec'd at much less than an inch of water static pressure.)

There seems to be a pretty big range in what people are using - I don't know what is really needed - but I am just pointing out that the Grainger fan cannot pump the same amount of air that the Sign Warehouse unit can.

The Harbor Freight unit does not specify how much pressure it can generate, but it is probably around several inches.

Also, fans and blowers are spec'd as to what they can deliver at a specific pressure, but where they actually operate on the curve depends on the system they are installed into. A transition from 10" to 4" could affect the cfm greatly - it is hard to guess what the real cfm is in the installed system. The length of ducting, elbows, transitions, smoothness of tubing, etc all affect the delivered cfm/pressure.

I am not saying your unit is inadequate but it would probably not meet the specs of the major laser manufacturers. Are they asking for too much?

Lower cfm is good in that it reduces energy losses, as long as it is properly venting the fumes.

[Joe Pelonio]

This more than met the specs of my manufacturer, which was specified as CFM only. Any more pressure and it would blow all the parts out.

[Ed Maloney]

Rick - I have the same Harbor Freight blower that you posted. A little loud, but I've had no problems with it and nothing (with the exception of the one cat) fly out.

[Zvi Grinberg]

Just don't 'suck' through that plastic flex vent hose stuff. It's OK to 'blow' through but when sucking, the inner lining will eventually collapse, and block the air flow, overheating your laser.. I 'almost' made that mistake, but spotted it in time..

Bill,
The danger in 'blowing' (pushing) is that anything that blocks the line, would cause backward pressure. Blowers cannot overcome pressure, and it would all go back to the laser. This is also possible when the line is not straight and has several corners of 90 degrees.

'Sucking' (pulling) is peferable, especally for those who care to filter the line (eliminate fumes). We use airconditioner's duct pipes which seem to be flexible but persistent to air sucking.