Oneida Sound Filter on Clear Vue Cyclone

[Steven Wayne]

My CV is next to my CNC router and it's loud. I wear hearing protection when I'm on that side of the shop. It's just loud. Building a closet isn't in the cards.
I had recently cut some rubber gaskets for my filter stack components based on a forum post I saw where a guy used bolted piping flange gaskets. When I put my filter stack back together I realized it had some air leaks and my aluminum tape wasn't a good fix. Then,
I noticed Oneida has a 13" Stacking Sound Filter (https://www.oneida-air.com/13-inch-stacking-sound-filter) on their website. It arrived last week and today I set to get it all sorted out..

The silencer:
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I cut an upper and lower flange out of 1" Baltic birch (it's what I had on hand).

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I cut gaskets out of 1/4" cross linked polyethylene closed cell foam.
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All stacked up:
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Upper flange has a pocket on the top to make alignment easier. Upper flange in place:
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All together:
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The "sound filter" (silencer) did make a noticeable reduction in noise coming out of the blower/filter stack. I'll still wear hearing protection. I also gained a much more secure sealing of the filter stack, which I really wanted. The small box on the bottom has 1/8 mdf shims on top to support the weight of the filter stack.

[John K Jordan]

Looks good. Is that allthread rod holding it together?

Before I built my shop I read some on the ClearVue forums say that installing a muffler on the output made a huge difference in sound. I think these were mostly just sections of pipe, the longer the better, wrapped with insulation.

I ended up not doing that and building a closet for the cyclone and air compressor. Maybe you can make an insulated closet some day. (I can hear a whisper in the shop when operating.)

[Steven Wayne]

Yes, it is 3/8 threaded rod (from the home center's electrical section). The small box on the floor is there to help support the weight. For this project my time was worth enough to warrant the purchase. It is an improvement. Longer term, I'll most likely rework that area an enclose the cyclone.

[Ed Mazuronis]

I’m putting together my CV1800 this weekend. I was thinking of adding the muffler since my shop is in the basement. You say you still need to wear hearing protection. Given that’s the case, do you think the money and effort spent on the muffler was worthwhile? Trying to make a decision on if I should order one tomorrow. Thanks.

[Steven Wayne]

It add some height to the filter stack, so you want to think about overall height. My opinion is enclosing the cyclone in a small closet/enclosure is a much better plan.

[Ed Mazuronis]

It’s going in a corner, so two of the walls have already been built. I’ll throw up a couple more and save the muffler money for more tooling.

On a related topic, I’m shopping for collection drums. Thinking of going with a 55 gallon fiber drum. I figured it would be easier to haul out of the basement when full. I’m guessing that it won’t collapse if all the gates are shut, but was curious on your opinion. Do you use bags in your drum? I’ve heard they don’t really work well.

[Steven Wayne]

I bought my drum from a farm supply store for $20ish. The drum is not heavy at all. I don't use bags.

[sean meltvedt]

Ed-I started with a 55 gallon drum. I changed to a 30 gal because the 55 gal bags were expensive and darn heavy if they were full of sanding dust. The 30 gal drum fits the cheaper 42 gallon contractor bags available at the borg.
YMMV
cheers
Sean


It’s going in a corner, so two of the walls have already been built. I’ll throw up a couple more and save the muffler money for more tooling.

On a related topic, I’m shopping for collection drums. Thinking of going with a 55 gallon fiber drum. I figured it would be easier to haul out of the basement when full. I’m guessing that it won’t collapse if all the gates are shut, but was curious on your opinion. Do you use bags in your drum? I’ve heard they don’t really work well.

[John K Jordan]

I’m putting together my CV1800 this weekend. I was thinking of adding the muffler since my shop is in the basement. You say you still need to wear hearing protection. Given that’s the case, do you think the money and effort spent on the muffler was worthwhile? Trying to make a decision on if I should order one tomorrow. Thanks.

Ed, from my reading I knew my CV1800 was going to be loud so I built a closet from the start. Inside the closet the thing is even louder than I imagined! Sounds like standing 2' from a freight train blasting. Outside the closet I can carry on normal conversation with someone.

There is a lot of information available about building a good sound-insulated enclosure. I used a staggered stud wall, a 6" thick wall made with 2x4 studs positioned so no sound is transmitted directly from the inside walls to the shop. With this design you can wind insulation between the studs.

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I also mounted the cyclone on an outside wall, insulated the ceiling, and installed a double insulated door that opened on a wall away from the wood shop (in my case, into another room in my shop). The door can be a weak point in the sound insulation. If filtering the air and returning it to the shop (instead of venting outside) it might also be important to consider how to minimized noise through the air return path. I built a baffled return duct from plywood, extended up into the trusses, made several 90-deg turns, and coated the inside with spray-on rubber. I can't detect any sound coming through the return duct. This is my construction drawing:

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Some people are also concerned about temperature inside the closet elevating enough to affect the motor. To combat that, they put the intake to the return duct near the top of the closet so it will pull some of the heated air out. I thought this was unnecessary so I instead put the intake low in the closet. I found the closet and the motor itself did not get unreasonably warm, certainly far below the working specs for the motor. The cyclone is constantly pulling cooler air in through the ducts and there is evidently enough air circulation in the closet. Maybe the extra size of my closet helps too - I made it 4'x8' to have room for 5hp air compressor too. That thing is also loud!

PS, I use a 30-gal metal trash can for a bin. It has handles and I can easily slide it out and either lift it onto the truck bed or use a hand truck to get it to the woods to dump. I'd probably need help to handle a 55-gal drum. The first trash can I tried did collapse but I had an older one made from thicker metal which works fine. If I didn't have that I would probably use a 30-gal drum or cut down a 55-gal drum. I don't use any kind of bag - since I move the drum to empty it there is no need. Besides, I can't imagine trying to pull out a heavy bag packed with fine sanding dust.

JKJ

[Ed Mazuronis]

Thanks for the detailed information on your sound enclosure. Much of what you said is similar to what I’ve read and is considered best practice. Glad to hear it worked so well.

I’m likely just going to mount it in the open for now and build an enclosure later. I’m not exactly sure I’m satisfied with the location and would also like to frame and spray foam the outside wall before blocking it with a closet. I ended up buying a 55 gallon steel drum. The fiber drums they carried seemed way too thin to hold up over time. It shouldn’t be too heavy if mainly filled with planer shavings, but would be a back breaker if filled with sawdust. I’ll be sure to empty it before the half way mark.