Hi! Help with DC position

[Pete Rowley]

Hi, I am a novice woodworker who recently joined SMC after "lurking" a while. After a couple of years busy with babies (2 in fast succession!) I am getting back on track for woodworking. Soon I am going to actually get a dedicated shop, 12 feet by 20 feet in a detached shed building that will be built as part of our backyard landscaping - for me this is an unexpected dream shop outcome after having been a nuisance tenant in our double garage, sharing space with washers and dryers and gas water tanks and such. In anticipation of that I have just ordered the Oneida Dust Gorilla to secure the introductory price after reading rave reviews on SMC - Thanks :)

I have attached a rough drawing of the planned layout for the shop (not to scale). The Table saw, drill press, jointer, and planar are machines I already own, the bandsaw is the planned next purchase down the road, and the workbench was my second project, the first was to build the saw horses so I could build the bench :) After playing with a to scale drawing with little machine cut outs I "think" I have a good layout for everything, I am just uncertain about where to put the DC. I have read Bill Pentz' web site and some tips I have read here (4 ft straight stretch from blower before any turns) and I guess I am realizing I am into compromises. I'd like to have a straight run up the middle of the shop at the roof apex and branch from it to the various machine areas (using 6" S&D pipe). I plan to see how much noise the DC generates and closet it in if its too loud for what I do and my personal noise tolerance.

I am a little unclear on how to achieve this without taking up lots of space for piping before it travels to the ceiling. I have marked two possible locations, A & B, for the DC. B is close to the dust making machines but has lots of potential to be in the way and limits cabinet/wall space, whereas B is a fair distance from those machines - Bill says that's a no-no. I am hoping someone can give me advice on this given the DC (Dust Gorilla), and the relatively modest size of the shop.

Of course I want to maximize space usage but the whole point here is to efficiently and _safely_ collect dust after all, so I worry about position A.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

Congrats on the new shop and plan....looks great...betcha can't wait to start construction!!!

[Norman Hitt]

Pete, considering the size of your Planned Shop, and with the performance of the Dust Gorrilla, you could even put it outside the shop in a "Lean to" shed at the far end of the shop from the shop double doors, and it would still pick up any dust you might produce. This would also keep all your room inside the shop for "Shop Use", as well as keep the noise level very low.

Congrats on both the new DC, AND the new shop.

[Bill Lewis]

You shop is very similar to mine. Long and narrow. You also did your layout in a very simiar fashion. The only difference is that I have the BS, and Planer on opposite sides. You may want to consider that change if it is possible. It would put the planer closer to the "A" position. Which I think will work better. "A" would also be the same position that I used. It's closer to the door and makes for easier collection-barrel removal/emptying.

Don't worry about the performance of the the DGDC. If it's anything close to the 2HP commercial unit, it is more than capable in handling the space you have. I'm still amazed by the suction I get at the end of the run.

Check out this thread (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=17408&page=1&pp=15&highlight=oneida) that I posted regarding the installation. Though there aren't any good overall shop pictures, you'll see that the first graphic is very similar to your shop.

[Tom Jones III]

If you have the room, what about putting the planer and jointer side by side near the top of the picture. The TS down from the planer and offset enough that you can rip boards and not hit the planer/jointer. The BS would then be down from the TS and offset so that it is inline with the planer/jointer. You would then have a straight shot out of the DC all the way to every tool with no branches.

You could even move the tools closer to the door and take advantage of the open doors when using long boards on whatever machine you put there. The workbench blocking the doors is not utilizing that space.

Can you move that lumber rack to the top of the left wall rather than the bottom of the left wall?

[Jim Becker]

Welcome to SMC, Pete!

Either postion is fine...and having your main duct at a diagonal from either postion will often be most efficient. One advantage to having it near the door comes when you are emptying the bin/bag. It also doesn't really interfer with your lumber rack in that position nor take up more usable space as it would in the other location. IMHO, of course.

Tom's suggestion to concentrate the power tools closer to the front is also a nice idea...kind of a logical separation between milling and assembly/finishing. Chris Gotchenour (who writes for Fine Woodworking) did that in his previous shop to great effect.