Position of blower in relation to filter and laser

[Matt Etheridge]

Hi guys,

Newbie here! I'm looking at getting a laser, but first I'm trying to figure out all the setup. One thing I'm not sure about is where does the blower go in relation to the filter (DIY filter I'll build) and the laser?

Is it something like:

Laser -> Blower -> Filter

or

Laser -> Filter -> Blower

My current plan is to have laser and blower inside and filter outside, but of course ,that depends on which order everything goes. The filter will just be a DIY filter (whose plans i've seen on here by Dan), and this will just vent outside after the filtration.

Apologies for the ignorance! :)

Cheers

Matt.

[Rich Harman]

Best thing is to place the blower outside, the last thing in the line. That way all the piping has negative pressure on it - if any leaks develop it will draw clean air into it rather than push dirty air out the leaks.

It also makes for the quietest setup, with the major noise producer as far away as possible.

[Gary Hair]

Definitely laser - filter - blower. As Rich mentioned, you want negative pressure on as much of the run as possible, and most importantly, you want to draw the air through the filter instead of pushing it. The filter will always have resistance so pushing air into it will create a lot of pressure between the blower and the filter, even more so as the filter gets clogged with debris. Most blowers run freely with no airflow (restricting the input) and they are under the most strain with a restriction on the output (a clogged filter). You will not only lose effectiveness of the filter but you will tax the motor enough to cause it to fail much sooner.

[Kev Williams]

my garage blowers are lasers-blowers-filters. But then, my filters are ultra low-tech: One 20 gallon heavy duty storage container for each blower, with a 4" hole on each end, 1/2" screen over the holes on the inside, and filled to the brim with dirt cheap charcoal briquettes. They're at the very end of the run because (1) I need to exhaust the flow beyond the front of the house, and (2) at the end of the run they muffle the inherent howl the ductwork creates. Where the air exits the filters there's zero noise at all (which is the most important to me, due to a neighbor), and the $12 worth of charcoal in each container cuts back about 1/3 the smoke, about 1/2 the smell, and collects a LOT of guck from the smoke...

[Bert Kemp]

Just curious if your exhausting to the outside why use a filter at all.filters are expensive to build and to maintain. Unless you have to have a filter for some reason why not just go with out?

[Rob Luter]

Pulling through an air filter is the best way. Some will argue. They don’t have a background in industrial ventilation systems. Just saying.

[Matt Etheridge]

Thanks heaps for all the input guys. I'm guessing I'll go with the blower at the end of the line :)

Cheers,

Matt.