Inshop Dust Collector Closet

[Bernie Kopfer]

Here is my situation. I have a V3000 siiting in a corner of my shop with a footprint of 40"x 36" and 7' tall. The noise is too much for my ears, particularly when running for a long period of time and wearing ear protection all the time is a pain.

I don't wish to build a "permanent" closet with framing etc. I am considering making a enclosure with 2" thick ridgid foam insulation sheets. I could tape it together and make it stable and air tight except for an opening above the motor for venting. One panel would swing out to allow acess to the dust bin.
My question is will the foam panels provide much sound absorption? Or do I need to use some other material. Has anybody used foam for this purpose. Thanks for the help.

[james glenn]

I actually did this exact thing for my neighbor, but it was for one of those two cylinder air compressors in his basement. Although he used it for auto painting, it worked fairly well to stiffle the noise. We used 2 layers of the 2" rigid poly. insul.

Obvisouly it's not soundproof, but it sure quited the noise enough for his SWMBO. And it was a fairly cheap option and easy to remove.

[Thom Sturgill]

I've wondered if adding the foam from one of those wavy mattress pads would not help adsorb sound. We use similar shaped foam in our sound editing rooms, but it is a stiffer material. Acoustic foam is available (http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?partnumber=260-516&source=googleps) - use spray glue to attach it to the insulation boards on the inside. Here (http://www.samash.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_Starter%20Roominator%20Acoustic%20Foam%20K it_-1_10052_10002_-49995159?cm_mmc=Froogle-_-Kits-_-Starter%20Roominator%20Acoustic%20Foam%20Kit-_-ASTARTERK) is a little bit more expensive version as a kit.

[Bernie Kopfer]

Thanks for the replies!! I would like to pursue this a bit further and ask if anyone has done this with a different material with good results. The idea of adding sound absorption material to the inside would probably work well and I think I'll leave room to add it at a later time if I need further noise reduction. But if I'm going to do that I should use cheap 5/8 chipboard for the frame rather than foam board. So that brings up the question of what is the best (read cheapest) sound absorption mareial in 4x8 sheets available etc.

[Philip Rodriquez]

:confused: Cheapest..? Build a box around your head :D!

I have a V-3000 and I do not have a problem with the noise (about as much as my old Jet 1100C)... but my wife yells a lot so my hearing isn't what it once was :(.

If it were me, I'd try the materials you are looking at. You should be able to tape something together, without cutting anything, as see if it will do the job. If it doesn't look like it is going to work... just return everything. The DB rating is not that bad, therefore, it shouldn't take much to make it better.

[Thom Sturgill]

They do make an acoustic drywall - two sheets with a metal layer in the middle. Spendy.

The main thing (and I would NOT use chipboard) is that anything rigid can vibrate and just pass the sound on. On the other hand you foam boards should work fairly well and would probably work better if the inside were textured to 'catch' the sound and not reflect it, hence my original suggestion. If you need more rigidity make a 1-by frame and attach the foam to that.

[Bill Melidones]

Recently I built a sound recording studio for a friend in his garage. For that we installed double stud walls using 2x8" material for top and bottom plates and studding opposite sides from opposite directions. I.e. the studs were staggered which left a dead space between the 2 walls. Inside was faced with 1/2" rock and the finger foam mentioned above. Outer was faced with sound proof sheet rock with shop made sound panels made from sound batting with plywood frames and faced with burlap.

I would get some 2"x3" studs from a home center and frame a 3 sided enclosure with 2x6 top and bottom plates. The sound barrier will work best if the sound absorbtion material was in 2 layers that do not touch each other or only touch each other minimally. As was stated above anything that is rigid like chip board will vibrate and pass sound. Since your not making a recording studio, I would put the foam in the inside, and thin layer of ply or chip on the outside, again joined only at the end studs. In between you'll have a dead space. You could make one of the panels swing for access. The walls can be attached only at the ceiling and baseboard. With a tight fit (wedge fit) between ceiling and floor you will not need to secure it to the floor if you don't want to. It should only cost about $25-30 (depending on size) for the studs and plate material. This structure will be easy to move or remove later, but not so flimsy it falls apart in a few months.

Hope this helps.

[Bernie Kopfer]

Lots of good ideas. Thank you. Think I will enclose the cyclone in ridgid foam and place 'eggcrate" sound absorber on the inside. That should cut the noise way down. One last question, is there any thing to cover the opening above the motor that will reduce the noise coming out of the hole?

[Bud Millis]

Get some sound deadening material from a AV supply store. You can use that in and around your DC or air compressor to deaden the sound. Works great.

[Norman Hitt]

Lots of good ideas. Thank you. Think I will enclose the cyclone in ridgid foam and place 'eggcrate" sound absorber on the inside. That should cut the noise way down. One last question, is there any thing to cover the opening above the motor that will reduce the noise coming out of the hole?

You will do better if you make BAFFLED opening, where the air has about three turns to escape, rather than just an open hole for direct airflow.