More annoying DC questions

[Doug Shepard]

I started asking DC questions back in the fall with plans of trying to get something purchased and installed around Christmas. Well it's now April and it's time to get off the fence and make some decisions. I had looked at the ClearVue cyclones earlier as they looked like they might be the most alterable setup for where I want to put it, plus the weight would be less. I want to shove as much of the unit as possible above the rafters in my open-rafter garage shop. Anyway I emailed Ed @ ClearVue yesterday evening and surprisingly got replies back from him today (Saturday). I'm planning on rolling the collector bin under the cyclone and connecting with flex hose & quick connect fittings and using flex hose and quick connects for the intake hose as well. I've got to do some measuring again to see if I've got the space to do this as it's currently drawn but I'm encouraged that this just might work. I'd described to Ed what I was wanting to try - type of machines, space limitations, & numerous other questions. Here's his reply back with the diagram. I'm planning on calling them next week to get a bit more into the details. Any thoughts on this arrangement or suggestions about points to bring up when I talk to them?

Ed's reply to my email:
We have been playing with a new idea recently and your application might be perfect for it. A cyclone will work vertically and horizontally and on an angle. I've attached a drawing showing putting the cyclone in at a 45 deg angle.....mounting the blower at the peak of your roof and shows the filters right in front of the blower. The discharge of the blower would be comming out horizontally tward you and then turning down into the filters. As to the sound, you can surround the blower housing and filters with sound proofing material without completely sealing the area off. The sound deadening materail can be pink insulation, carpet etc. The important thing is to surround most of the unit with material that will absorb the noise. Let me know what you think.

35442

Thanks for looking.

[Jim Becker]

If you use the quick-connects for the bin, you must be sure you get an ABSOLUTE seal every time. But why do it? Extra cost. Use a bin that has a band clamp for the lid, such as a fiber barrel. (mine is 55 gallons) Release the lid and pull the bin out from under it. The lid stays attached to the flex between it and the cone.

[Doug Shepard]

If you use the quick-connects for the bin, you must be sure you get an ABSOLUTE seal every time. But why do it? Extra cost. Use a bin that has a band clamp for the lid, such as a fiber barrel. (mine is 55 gallons) Release the lid and pull the bin out from under it. The lid stays attached to the flex between it and the cone.

Unfortunately if I dont remove the hose from the cone, I'll have hose hanging down from the rafters right in the way of where a car gets parked. My space problems aren't leaving me with a whole bunch of options. I was planning on leaving the hose pretty much attached to the bin end all the time and rolling the bin and hose together out of the way when not using the DC.
As far as the intake hose goes, I was planning on putting some sort of flange at the underside of the rafters where I could attach a quick connect fitting to join up the hose running from the machine to the one continuing up to the DC. It's not an ideal situation, but I can't have a permanent hose run for that either for the same reasons.

[Jim Becker]

Doug...bottom line is that there can be zero leakage between the cone and the bin. Even the slightest leak will cause blow-by into your filters. The method doesn't matter as long as you can meet that requirement.

[Doug Shepard]

Doug...bottom line is that there can be zero leakage between the cone and the bin. Even the slightest leak will cause blow-by into your filters. The method doesn't matter as long as you can meet that requirement.

Good to know. Thanks.
I started web searching around last night looking for DC parts to get some ideas for how to rig up the hose and fittings. I'm not seeing something I was hoping to find - some sort of tool-less hose clamps or even twistlock fittings for mating up hose with duct pieces. I'm guessing I'd need to put a short pigtail of metal or plastic duct at the bottom of the cone for a place to attach the flex hose, but are there any tool-less quick connect schemes you've seen that would give me a good tight seal?

[Jim Becker]

but are there any tool-less quick connect schemes you've seen that would give me a good tight seal?

Nordfab, I believe will do what you want. Oneida carries it. "Ching...ching..." but they seal as it's a clamp system. But ask them if it will seal good enough for this particular application as it's tougher than for quick connecting drops to a combo or something...

[Cameron Reddy]

I have Norfab stuff and I like it very much. But, I'd be very careful about a perfect seal. I think Norfab makes Gortex-lined clamps that might ensure the perfect seal that you need.

BTW, my supplier is Exfil and a guy named Fred Marsh. I think his prices are a bit better. FMarsh8956@aol.com

[Jake Helmboldt]

I was thinking of doing something similar in terms of putting a cyclone in the upstairs of my garage. But my question (and it would apply here too), is what effect would this have on the static pressure and reduced performance. Obviously, ducting running vertically and that much higher will impact performance. Anyone else doing something like this?

JH

[tod evans]

jake, i don`t have a cyclone but my pump is in the attic, mounted so that the main trunk is a straight in shot. the main is 60ft long and 12" in diameter, some of my branches are 20+ feet.....so this configuration is doable....02 tod

[Doug Shepard]

Jim/Cameron Thanks. I briefly looked at the Nordfab stuff. Is that something where you buy just the clamp and use any ducting? I got the impression from my brief look that the clamp may be integral to their ducting. That's OK too. I'm just trying to sort all this out.

I also spotted these yesterday too. Don't know if these guys sell to the general public or whether they have a distributor I can buy from, but a couple of items in their catalog look promising too. I have no idea yet what these things cost, but take a look at their PDF catalog at these:
QUICKIE” ASSEMBLIES pg 6
CAM AND GROOVE COUPLINGS pg 7
http://www.morriscoupling.com/pdfs/Capabilities%20Brochure%202002.pdf
Do those look like something that might work for this application?

Thanks again.

[Jim Becker]

Jim/Cameron Thanks. I briefly looked at the Nordfab stuff. Is that something where you buy just the clamp and use any ducting? I got the impression from my brief look that the clamp may be integral to their ducting.

Their duct. But check with Oneida to see if they feel it seals well enough for this application before you lay out the big bucks with them or others for the Nordfab. The seal is the deal!

[Jim O'Dell]

Doug, my Clear Vue came with about 6" of clear flex hose attached to the cone. I'm betting your's will also. If you need something longer for your application, talk to Ed and I bet you can purchase a longer piece, or you can replace it with some after you get it. I'm going to affix my flex from the cone to a wooden top that I can secure to the top of the plastic 55 gallon barrel and have the seal on the top of the barrell and/or the bottom of the wooden lid. I'm just not sure how to attach them together, yet. Some sort of spring latch would be the quickest to use.
Good luck with your searching. Are you going to use metal duct, or go with the PVC? If you locate a reasonably priced quick connect in 6", let me know!!!
Have I mentioned to you yet that I have a list I canPM or email to you that might help you have all the things you will need before you get started?? :rolleyes: Let me know if you are interested in it. Jim.

[Doug Shepard]

Doug, my Clear Vue came with about 6" of clear flex hose attached to the cone. I'm betting your's will also. If you need something longer for your application, talk to Ed and I bet you can purchase a longer piece, or you can replace it with some after you get it. I'm going to affix my flex from the cone to a wooden top that I can secure to the top of the plastic 55 gallon barrel and have the seal on the top of the barrell and/or the bottom of the wooden lid. I'm just not sure how to attach them together, yet. Some sort of spring latch would be the quickest to use.
Good luck with your searching. Are you going to use metal duct, or go with the PVC? If you locate a reasonably priced quick connect in 6", let me know!!!
Have I mentioned to you yet that I have a list I canPM or email to you that might help you have all the things you will need before you get started?? :rolleyes: Let me know if you are interested in it. Jim.

Absolutely - PM away. I can use all the pointers I can get on this. As far as the ducting, I was hoping/planning to use flex hose from the rafters down and I-dunno from the rafters up. Is this unrealistic? I'm thinking the flex is going to take up the least amount of room for storage (or at least give me more options) when I unplug everything from the quick connects at the rafters and turn the shop back into a garage. I'm having 2nd thoughts on flex from the collector bin to the rafters though. That pc would be short enough that storage shouldn't be a big deal. Going with metal might end up working better for that, depending on what I can come up with for the quick-connect issue.

[Ed Lang]

My Clear Vue is working without any detectable blow by getting to the filters by having a 3/4" ply top connected to a longer 6" flex hose from the bottom of the cone to the 55 gal plastic drum. I used the black foam split pipe insulation around the top of my drum and the ply just sits on it. Believe me, when you turn on the cyclone you will not be able to pull the ply top off of the drum! I tried a heavy duty Rubber Maid trash can for the chip bin but the cyclone sucked it flat in seconds. This can was a real heavy duty one, not a thin one.

When I need to dump the drum I pick up the ply top and slide the drum out. I let the ply hang till I get back. I have not had any trouble dumping the drum and messing up the gasket around the top.

I find that a 55 gal drum has to be dumped twice a day when I run the planer just a little.