advise to clear the air - filtration

[John Piwaron]

I'm considering an air cleaning system for my shop. I'd like to buy this week.

I've taken a look on the Woodcraft and Rockler sites and see the larger Jet & JDS units. I'm sure there's others like them. Too big for my microscopic shop. And heavy. They also seem that they'd turn the air over in my shop more than necessary.

So this leaves the Delta AP100 and the little tubular shaped Shop-Vac unit. I guess I like Delta equipment more, but am willing to consider the Shop-Vac. This also brings up the issue of replacement filters. With these two units, they're oddly shaped, so I'm wondering if Delta or SV loses interest in them, do other suppliers make something to fit?

The real concern is cleaning the air well enough that the furnace remains happy.

Right now, I use my shop vac to pull dust and chips from the planer and that's it. Dust and chip collection are now a priority, not so much for my heath but to keep the house clean. I may be missing other points, and if I am, please point that out.

[Matt Warfield]

John,

No help on the filtration unit as I built my own using a furnace blower.

There's really no filtration unit that will keep all the dust out of your heating ducts. However, if you have a return air register in your workshop, you can attach some good quality filters to keep the vast majority of the dust away from your furnace.

[Howard Acheson]

You may want to get the current issue of Wood Magazine (Oct 2006). They have an extensive article and comparison test data on air cleaners. The information should help you make a good decision.

Let me make this point though. It is always better to spend your money on acquiring or upgrading a dust collection system. Capturing dust before it gets into the general air is always more effective than dust cleaning of the dirty air. Once the dust is in the air, it's in your lungs and in your furnace intake.

[glenn bradley]

I built my own air scrubber as well. Gable fan (1035 cfm) on sale - $35, filters on the clearance rack $1 each, an old light switch and a power cord . . . presto. 20" x 20" x 16".

[Aaron Beaver]

Let me make this point though. It is always better to spend your money on acquiring or upgrading a dust collection system. Capturing dust before it gets into the general air is always more effective than dust cleaning of the dirty air. Once the dust is in the air, it's in your lungs and in your furnace intake.

I second this, I have always been told by the time the air filtration unit has it you have already breathed it in. Most of the time for the air to reach the filtration unit it has to pass by you first which means you will breath it in. I was seriously considering buying one but I ended up updating my DC system first.

[Al Willits]

Just a note to be careful of adding filtration to your furnace system, you can get to restrictive and cause problems with the operation of the furnace.
Cycling off the high limit in heating and icing of the evap coil in A/C are a couple major ones.

One of the nice things about a 90+ efficient furnace is, many take their combustion air from outside, this helps keep sawdust from getting into the furnace chamber, doesn't help the air you breathe, ductwork or evap coil, but its easier on the furnace.

Al

[John Piwaron]

Well, here's the deal. I'd like to have a big centralized dust collection system. But that's *never* going to happen in my existing shop. My shop is small and in my basement. With all that means. Low clearance and ductwork for heating/cooling the house. I already use my shop vac to pull the dust & chips from my planer. Which in my opinion is the biggest producer of airborne particles. I'm also getting one of those smaller size chip/dust collectors.

But I also plan on one of the small size air cleaners to get the rest.

And that's the heart and soul of my query. Are the two small units, the Shop-Vac tube shape or the triangle shaped Delta units any good. And then there's the matter of what are probably oddly shaped filters contained within. Does anyone foresee difficulty getting replacements for them? Or are they cleanable or otherwise replaceable with home made filters.

This is not an easy situation. I just don't have the room for a big system and that is exactly why I've dragged my feet on it in spite of a green light from SWMBO to spend the $ to get one. So the next best thing appears to be one of the small units that pull stuff from a machine and the aforementioned air cleaner.

I gotta keep the mess down to a low roar. I already vac and sweep a lot. Over the whole basement, not just the area I work in.

Fortunately I'm a hobbyist so there aren't really all that many projects getting made. At least not like a pro would do.

[Gary Breckenridge]

:) For a while I used a really cheap system in my shop. I had one of those cheap 24 by 24" window fans chained to the ceiling horizontally with a furnace filter on top of it and blew the air down. It worked slowly but it worked and it was quiet. Less that $15.:)

[Howard Acheson]

>> Are the two small units, the Shop-Vac tube shape or the triangle shaped Delta units any good.

John, the only way to answer that question is to read the article in the latest Wood Magazine. They test 8 or 9 units including a 20x20 window fan with taped on filters (works pretty good by the way). They also have some info about how to position it. I doubt that anyone here has any info other than for the unit they have. There were big differences between the units Wood Magazine tested.

[John Piwaron]

Sadly, the article in Wood doesn't address those two smaller units. :(

After searching this site for anything about the Delta AP100, there is a Sawmillcreeker that posted a message saying he likes his and and seems to be doing a good job.

I guess it'll come to that - buy one and try it out.

[David Rose]

John, I don't have the triangular unit, but I got the small Delta before that. I also have a little Delta 1 horse DC with ducting done about as well as is feasible with such a unit. The DC has a cyclone type preseparator that gets almost all that gets there. Sucking up after a bandsaw, planer, and miter saw, it does get a lot of junk. So does the Delta air filter to which I've added a third coarse filter. Well, so does the AC/heater filter... And so does the rest of the room. :(

I guess my point is that they do get a lot of stuff. But mine, which is setup about as well as can be as far as room location and position, also misses a whoooole lot. Oh, and I automatically turn mine on when I hit the shop and a timer shuts it down a couple of hours after I leave.

David


Sadly, the article in Wood doesn't address those two smaller units. :(

After searching this site for anything about the Delta AP100, there is a Sawmillcreeker that posted a message saying he likes his and and seems to be doing a good job.

I guess it'll come to that - buy one and try it out.