Help with emptying DC bags

[Dan Schocke]

I bought a Delta 50-760 a few months ago and it has performed really well, but I have a serious problem emptying the plastic bag... Instead of using an external clamp to mount the bags, this DC comes with felt-covered flexible rings that snap into a metal rim from the inside of the bag to hold it in place. It's super easy to put the bags on that way, but I can't seem to get the bags back off without spraying a cloud of dust all over the place. Is there a trick to removing the bags without spewing out all the fine dust that I was trying to keep out of the air in my shop in the first place?

The 50-760 does come with a metal band clamp that can be used to mount the lower bag from the outside, but I couldn't get it to clamp down tight enough to keep the bag from falling off. It's the first band clamp that I've seen that doesn't have an adjustment screw or a spring for removing the slack -- just a metal buckle with a few notches, none of which appear to fit. I'm sure I can find a replacement for that, but the felt bag on the top can only be mounted with that flexible snap ring system that makes it hard to close down the mouth of the bag to keep the dust inside until i can get outdoors to empty the thing... My previous dust collector was a single-bag 3/4 hp affair that was easy to empty, and I'm really starting to regret this purchase.

I guess I now know why everyone builds one of those trashcan separators for their filter bag DCs. Is that the secret?

--Dan

[Bob Rufener]

Dan, I recently upgraded my Grizzly with a canister on the top and plastic bags on the bottom. The canister came with foam adhesive tape to put on the ring where the bag slids onto. I'm not sure I am picturing your situation correctly but you may be able to add foam insulating tape to your band to lessen its diameter. I do have an adjustable band from my upgrade and, depending on the diameter, I would send it to you if it will help.

[Chris Barnett]

Yeah, how do you do it....have that model too and it needs emptying :D.

[Ryan Baker]

Start by not filling the bag too far up before you empty it so you have some empty space at the top to work with. (You need to do that anyway, since the performance will drop off a lot if the bag gets too full.) Then you pretty much just be careful. Don't go yanking the whole thing out really fast. Pop one edge out and rempve the ring slowly. You shouldn't get much dust in the air at all. Squeezing the bag closed above the dust level will help keep it in the bag too.

[george wilson]

Good idea,Ryan.He could just tie the bag shut above the sawdust before taking it loose. Another idea: Completely submerge the entire dust collector under water before taking the bag off!!!!

[John Bush]

It may be best to buy an Oneida Gorilla and use it to catch the dust when you remove the bag from your Delta!!

[Barry Vabeach]

Dan, I have the same model and have no problem emptying the bag, though I do it when it is about a quarter full. What you need is a separator so not very much goes into the plastic bag, otherwise, it would be hard to take it off without spewing dust everwhere ( though I like George's idea of tynig off the bag first )

This is the home page for Thien's separator http://www.cgallery.com/jpthien/cy.htm

and this is a page showing a separator on your dust collector.
http://www.cgallery.com/smf/index.php?topic=50.0

[Sonny Edmonds]

It may be best to buy an Oneida Gorilla and use it to catch the dust when you remove the bag from your Delta!!

Oh! That is just plain nasty. :D
__________________________________________________ ___________

Dan, you could remove the filter bag and use your shop vac to draw out the stuffing's in the plastic bag. ;)
Then you have the shop vac to empty, but it's easier.
Just put on a dust respirator.

My 50-850 had 1 micron bags on it. (After I upgraded it) I'd take them off out in the back yard and hose them clean and hang them on a ladder to dry out.
The flour would wash down into the grass and be gonzo.
Everybody said :eek:! You can't wash them!
Bah! Watch me! Worked fine for me. :cool:

Now I empty a 55 gallon drum and tap out a huge pleated filter when I have to clean up. Fun Stuff! :( Some scenes no seen in the ad's. (http://home.earthlink.net/%7Epie/dust_collection/cyclonic_filtering.htm)
(Click on the thumb nails to make them big.)

[frank shic]

i hate emptying the dust bag too. it's almost impossible without making some sort of a mess although it'd probably be easier if i didn't wait until the bag was nearly overflowing :eek:

[Bob Johnson2]

I have found no trick to it, it's a pita. I have to grab the plastic bag just before and after the ring (I leave a few inches overhang when installing them), then give it a quickpush/snap inward to get it to snap out, usually takes a few tries to get enough ummph.. I let them get maybe 75% full and bang the bag a few times to shake loose some of the flour. I find it worse installing them then removing them, good thing it's not very often. I've got the 2hp 2 bagger. Should probably try leaving a string of strip of cloth going from side to side when installing the bag, might give me something to tug on.

[Nate Folco]

I never let mine get more than 3/4 full. Leave 2-3" of bag hanging on the outside of the ring to give you something to grip.

Give the filter bag a shake and then give the dust a few minutes to settle. Push firmly inwards using the extra flap of bag to bend the ring, don't jerk it. Don't let the ring snap full banging on the housing causing a bunch of dust from the filter to fall out. Try not to disturb the filter bag above.

Move the dust bag off the platform. Place a large garbage bag over the dust bag slowly so the dust isn't blown around. Once the garbage bag is all the way over the dust bag slowly turn the bag upside down. Slowly pull the dust bag out, leaving the garbage bag full of dust.

There is no easy way to get the bag and ring back on without growing an extra arm. Make sure to leave a couple of inches to grab on to next time. If I'm having particular trouble I'll use a piece or two of tape to keep things in place.


Use your shopvac to clean up any dust that escaped.

[Charlie Schultz]

I try to slide one edge of the retaining ring straight upwards until it's loose, then pull out the bag.

[Dan Schocke]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Maybe I'll just get more used to this DC as time goes on. My previous DC had the external band clamp, and although it was a pain to get the bag back on, it was easy to get the bag off and tie up the end so that I didn't spew dust everywhere. The Delta bags are easier to install IMHO, but that snap ring thing holds the mouth of the bag open and makes it fairly imposible to close up the bag as you pull it off the machne.

I'm definitely going to build a separator for this thing. I never felt the need to do that with my old DC because emptying it wasn't such a chore. I'm also going to try harder to remove the bottom bag on this DC without removing the filter bag on top. The first time I emptied it, I couldn't make it happen without getting the top bag off first. I was stretching the plastic trying to get that snap ring to bend free, and I knew that was not going to end well.

I don't have nearly enough room in my shop to get a real cyclone (nor do i think my wife would tolerate the extra noise coming from the basement), so I'm stuck with the bags until I can convince my homeowner's association that out-buildings and woodshops are not evil.

--Dan