how much height for cyclone

[Bob Cooper]

i'm looking at cyclone heights. Looks like the 2.5 HP Oneida system is 91" and the clear vue is 96". How much taller do they get with the 55 gal drum.

just trying to figure out how much height to plan for in a new shop basement (the DC will go below the shop and i have a little flexibility on floor location/height).

[Jim Becker]

I have my 2hp Onieda Commercial cyclone in an 8' space with the 55 gallon drum (I wouldn't be able to handle a smaller bin...the 55 gallon fills up fast as it is), but the motor is stuck up between the ceiling joists for additional clearance.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Bob, the 35 gallon drum is 22.5" high, the 55 gallon drum is 35.5" high according to the Oneida website.

Regards, Rod.

[Bob Cooper]

Rod...thanks. I did actually look but just didn't see it.

Jim...also thanks. Is that 8' from floor to the bottom of the joists (i'm guessing so). Looks like from the info Rod passed me, it's about 8.5' high so the motor would extend up into the joists.

You guys have any concern with mounting one of these in the basement and drawing all the dust collection through the floor? I think many of the machines will work out well this way though the table saw might be a little tougher if i get a shark guard (one of many things on the list).

[Jim Becker]

If you mean having all your duct work under the floor, it's absolutely not a problem. "Vertical" doesn't matter as the air you are moving is effectively weightless. The only downside is that once you bring up a "drop", you're somewhat committed to its location, and changes later are more difficult and destructive (to the floor) than an overhead system would have.

[Doug Shepard]

The ClearVue CV1400 will fit in 84" if you're tight for space. I've got a 35 gal dfrum under mine but think I could have fitted a 55 (just barely).

[Sonny Edmonds]

... so everything was an overhead plane to begin with.
But sub floor, I think, would be really ideal if you lay out a plan and stick to it.
Remember that poop rolls downhill. So saw dust does as well. :p

[Jim Becker]

... rolls downhill. So saw dust does as well.

Gravity actually has nearly zero effect on dust collection since dust collection is based on moving large volumes of air at a certain speed and at a low static pressure. (CFM) Air is essentially weightless and with the way the dust and chips get distributed in the air stream, they also effectively are "weightless". Gravity only applies when the air stops moving... :)

[Sonny Edmonds]

But I disagree. Based on my experience with developing my dust collector systems.
I have had debris suspend in vertical piping, especially thin strips, and the occasional piece of a knot. They will reach a point of weighlessness where they won't go up any higher to clear the rise. :rolleyes:
To the point of disassembly because to aggravated me so much to hear it rattling when I'd run that section. :mad:
And if the dust wasn't affected by gravity, a cyclone separator would never work. ;)

[Jim Becker]

Thin strips and knots are not dust and chips, but I do understand your point, Sonny. I have a rattle from a small cutoff right above the slider "as we speak"... ;) That said, I still have to stand by my previous assertion that vertical rise is relatively immaterial in a dust collection system (for dust and chips) if you have adequate air flow to do the job.

[Sonny Edmonds]

"Gravity actually has nearly zero effect on dust collection " (You wrote)

Opinions differ.
Anything that travels into the waste section is... waste.
Whether it is saw dust, planer chips, router cuttings, shaper cuttings, a thin cut off that gets dragged down, or a knot that breaks out while being sawn. (I've delt with all of those)
It needs to be conveyed and contained. When I make the waste, it's my responsibility to clean it up.
Sawmills used to use people with shovels, wheelbarrows, and conveyors. You started "In the pit" below the sawworks. (Friends of mine used to be on the handles of those shovels back when.) :(
Now they use huge collection systems and chippers to reclaim what used to end up in the burner. That is where MDF, OSB, and Masonite Brand hardboard originated.
(I used to live near the Masonite mill in Ukiah, CA. And burned waste from the debarking operation at a local mill for heat.)
I'm not going to BS you (nor anybody else), nor split hairs about what is waste or not.
Grab a handful of saw dust and then open your hand. Does it fall down, or up? :p

Given the options, I'd much rather help it fall into my system, than suck it up into my system. :D
I don't have that option. But I'd sure use it if I did. :rolleyes:
So instead I use power and two blowers in series to accomplish the job. Then it falls down in the cyclone and into the collection drum.
Because as it slows spinning in the cyclone Gravity pulls it down. ;)

[Jim Becker]

I guess the operative word is "effective" or "effectively". Gravity obviously does play a role even with the smallest particles. My point is that if you have optimal air flow, you don't need to worry about up or down...except for those occasional nasty sounding knots, stringy long cutoffs and perhaps, a screw picked up in the floor sweep. ;) :)

BTW, in your cyclone, friction is what slows the material down so that gravity can do its job.