Metal trash can or 30 gal drum for Dust Bin?

[Patrick Irish]

I'm excited! Got my dad to help installing my cyclone dust collection. It's the metal cyclone from Ebay. Pretty good size. I have a 2hp motor already. We measured and I'm 100" of height. The motor and cyclone are about 60" of space. I don't think that gives me enough for a 55 gal drum.

Would a metal trash can work for a dust bin, if so, how do you seal it?

I can get a plastic 30 gal drums with metal spring clasp closure for $10 and about 90 min of driving. Like this but 30 gal. I'm currently using a single stage and a plastic bag and empty it maybe every 3 months.

https://www.wrightimage.com/uploads/3/4/4/3/34439261/7301512_orig.jpg

[Mike Henderson]

I used a 30 gallon fiberboard can for my dust collector. I have a Dust Deputy XXL (The big one) bolted to the top of the can. Works like a champ but I have to monitor it and dump it fairly often when I'm doing a lot of work.

Mike

[ChrisA Edwards]

I have a similar plastic drum, works well.

I use 39 gallon Home Depot Contractor bags to collect the sawdust and shavings. The only negative, the sloped/tapered top makes it a little hard to get the bags out. I tie the top of the bags, lay the blue drum on it's side and shuffle the bags out.

I just did this 9 times yesterday while I was cutting Plantation Shutter Louvers.

https://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i452/cedwards874/Woodworking/Jet%20Dust%20Collector/JetDC1100_1_zpsdajmcscs.jpg

https://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i452/cedwards874/Woodworking/Shutters/LouverWaste_zpsdxsanu5k.jpg

[sean meltvedt]

Don’t get one that the opening is smaller than the drum center if you are using bags and a Sander. Ask me how I know!
cheers
Sean

[John K Jordan]

I'm excited! Got my dad to help installing my cyclone dust collection. It's the metal cyclone from Ebay. Pretty good size. I have a 2hp motor already. We measured and I'm 100" of height. The motor and cyclone are about 60" of space. I don't think that gives me enough for a 55 gal drum.

Would a metal trash can work for a dust bin, if so, how do you seal it?


Patrick,

Congratulations on getting your cyclone installed.

I use a 30 gal metal trash can for my cyclone. The bottom of my ClearVue cyclone cone is 6" in diameter so I cut a 6" diameter hole in the lid and made a flange from glued up section of PVC pipe and fittings, secured and sealed with silicone caulk, connected to the cyclone with a short piece of 6" flex.

To seal the lid I fastened a thick, 1" wide gasket around the inside of the lid so it pressed directly into the smooth, rolled metal lip of the trash can. I used fairly dense foam rubber gasket instead of the less dense and more squishy stuff. The suction from the cyclone pulls the lid down tightly and seals perfectly.

A few things. My cyclone has a 5hp motor and a lot of suction. I have no idea if a 2hp cyclone will provide sufficient sealing. I know some people use a mechanical means such as latches to hold the lid tight. Others throw away the trashcan lid and make a flat lid from MDF with a routed groove to fit the can, a gasket in the groove.

One bigger issue I had with the first metal trash can I tried was the suction from the 5hp ClearVue is so strong the first time I turned it on the side of the galvanized steel can collapsed! I have a dozen or so of these cans around the shop so I substituted an older can with a slightly thicker and stronger gauge of steel and have been using that since. The cans were all the same brand but the manufacturer evidently switched to thinner steel to reduce costs on the newer cans. This may not be a problem with a 2hp cyclone - I have no idea of the relative suction or the type of can you have.

I do like the 30 gal metal can for two reasons, first, it is wider and shorter than some drums I have and the long cone of the ClearVue makes it quite tall - the whole thing barely fits under my 9' ceiling. Second, the two steel handles on the sides make it a easier to drag the can out from under the cyclone and out of the sound-reducing closet and muscle onto a dolly to empty. My bin is typically full of fine sawdust from the bandsaw and very fine sawdust from the drum sander and lathe which is well packed and a LOT heavier than a bin full of jointer or planer chips. I should weigh it sometime. There is no way I could move a 55 gal drum by myself with the contents packed this tightly.

JKJ

[Jim Becker]

A plastic or fiber barrel with a sealing clamp setup is about the best solution for the dust/chip bin under the cyclone body because there cannot be even the smallest air leak in that chain. If you can only fit a 30 gallon, that's what you'll need to do. It will just fill up more quickly and I can tell you that I easily can fill my 55 gallon drum in about 10-15 minutes of lumber processing, depending on the species, size/width and nature of the cutting.

[Jeffrey Hood]

How do you keep the plastic bags from being sucked up...?

[ChrisA Edwards]

How do you keep the plastic bags from being sucked up...?

As long as there isn't a leak at the bin seal, the bag just sits there. I though about dropping a couple of pieces of solid waste wood to weight the bag, but I've never needed to do that.

[ChrisA Edwards]

How do you keep the plastic bags from being sucked up...?

Made this quick, crudely edited, video this morning while cutting some Louvers.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xDolZGtPpw&feature=youtu.be

[sean meltvedt]

430523
How do
you keep the plastic bags from being sucked up...?
I have a small aquarium pump that runs with the cyclone that pulls air from beneath the bag, and discharges to the inlet of the cyclone. This way I can deal with small leaks around the bin sensor or bag-drum interface.
cheers
Sean

[Mark Bolton]

I would echo the comments about the narrowed neck on the plastic drum. Depending on the work you do you have to remember that a cyclone will pack a drum so full of small chips you'd be shocked how densely packed and heavy it will be. We run 55 gallon fiber drums and if we are doing a lot of saw, sanding, fine chips, I can not physically lift a 55 gallon drum full and im 6'1" 245, old at 53, but I still have more power than most young kids that work in the shop. Light fluffy planer shavings are one thing but I could never pull a bag of fine chips out of the drum. On the CNC forget it, two people will have a hard time lifting a full drum its packed so tight with fine chips.

Sealing to a trash can may be tough but the tapered sides would help a lot and if your working alone I would never exceed 30 gallons.

Two Oneidas in the shop, just my $0.02

[Jim Andrew]

I use a 50 gallon plastic drum, use no bags, and probably could not lift the drum full, but I have a garage door right by the cyclone, and just open the door, dip sawdust out and into my wheel barrow, heap it up, take it to the burn pile, and then make another trip. Takes 2 wheel barrow fulls to empty the drum. During winter, I fill cardboard boxes my wife saves, and put them in the wood burning furnace. You can also use sawdust to mulch trees, but maybe not walnut.

[Patrick Irish]

Got the 30gal drums today. They’re really nice with and very very tight latching lid. $20 for the pair. They did have a little paint in them which I was worried. Turns out they were for tennis court surface paint that’s ware based. Cleaned them out and ready to go.

The openings are large and will be easy to silicone mount the flange Of the cyclone. I got two drums so I’ll always have any empty ready.

I’m a little worried about CFC and hp
but don’t have an option. I don’t think a 3hp will do much more. It’s a 2hp grizzly motor with a 12” or 13” impeller. I can try and find a 3hp that volts up but again not sure more hp is an issue.

I plan to run 6” line mainly because of my 5hp 16” older powermatic planer. Current 4” line and 2hp has been totally fine for my 5hp sawstop or 3hp joiner.

[Wayne Cannon]

430523
I have a small aquarium pump that runs with the cyclone that pulls air from beneath the bag, and discharges to the inlet of the cyclone. This way I can deal with small leaks around the bin sensor or bag-drum interface.
cheers
Sean

Ditto. Works like a champ!

[Jim Dwight]

I built a wooden box to collect the dust and chips that fall out of my super dust deputy - the shorter one. The space under the cyclone allowed a box that holds the equivalent to about 70 gallons. It is 18 inches square. I used a piece of left over clear plastic on one face at the top which works very well to let me see when it is full. The top and bottom are 3/4 plywood but the four sides are just 5mm luan plywood, underlayment plywood, with 3/4 softwood blocks in the corners. It is glued and stapled together. It is heavy when full but has wheels on the bottom. The cyclone has a 3/4 plywood base to it which bolts to the box with weather stripping inbetween. So emptying is unscrewing four bolts, wheeling it to the truck, sliding it into the bed, driving to the collection area, sliding it out and rolling it to the dumpster. The box is tall enough it is above the lip of the dumpster. So I get under it and slide it up to level. It does not dump real well so I have to drag the dust out with it horizontal and then turn it down to get the last bit out. I never have to lift the container, just tilt it up into the truck and into the dumpster.

[John K Jordan]

... So emptying is unscrewing four bolts, wheeling it to the truck, sliding it into the bed, driving to the collection area, sliding it out and rolling it to the dumpster. The box is tall enough it is above the lip of the dumpster. So I get under it and slide it up to level. It does not dump real well so I have to drag the dust out with it horizontal and then turn it down to get the last bit out. I never have to lift the container, just tilt it up into the truck and into the dumpster.

Yikes, I never thought about the effort some go through to empty the bins!

I'm spoiled rotten, I drag mine across the concrete to an overhead door, put it on a hand truck and dump it in the woods a short distance behind the shop. When it builds up a big enough pile I stir it with the tractor and it seems to decay OK. I have over 15 acres of woods. I do find an occasional piece of sandpaper in the pile...

JKJ