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Thread: PM1250 Micro Dust AFS

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
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    Springfield, OR
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    PM1250 Micro Dust AFS

    Anyone have any experience with this item? Just saw it looking at a Woodcraft ad. Seems to me to be really limited with a low rated fan and single electrostatic filter. Could not find any independent testing of the technology either. Not to mention quite expensive, $629 on sale. Coincidentally looking at items to improve the ambient air in my shop for small particles (< 1 micron). Other suggestions?
    Ed

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by Ed Weiser View Post
    Anyone have any experience with this item? Just saw it looking at a Woodcraft ad. Seems to me to be really limited with a low rated fan and single electrostatic filter. Could not find any independent testing of the technology either. Not to mention quite expensive, $629 on sale. Coincidentally looking at items to improve the ambient air in my shop for small particles (< 1 micron). Other suggestions?
    I have the PM1250, a Jet overhead air filter, and a Dylos air quality monitor to keep track of everything. One of the criticisms of the Jet filter is that it just tends to kick up the finer dust particles and put them back into the air. That is a valid criticism. But the PM1250 takes care of that problem very nicely, according to the Dylos. They work in tandem. (This in a 3-car garage shop where I can kick up enormous amounts of dust at will and quickly.) It moves a lot of air, with surprisingly low energy consumption.

    People complain about the price of the PM1250; it was on sale for $599 a few months ago. It might be again at some point. My health is worth at least that. I don't regret it for an instant. I would eat ramen for a month if I had to. I'm thinking of getting another one. My air sacs have never felt so good. ;^)
    Last edited by Doug Dawson; 02-07-2019 at 3:03 PM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Canonsburg PA
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    71
    I try to get most of the dust at the source but my shop was always dusty. You could see it in the air an it would settle on every surface, super frustrating when trying to put on a nice finish. After a year or so of trying to figure out how to get one of those overhead air filters in my shop I gave up and built one. It is pretty simple, 2 16×25 merv 8 filters, a 750 cfm duct fan, 8 inch metal duct and a Wynn nano filter. All in about $300 and an hours work. I've since added a remote switch so I can turn it on before I go in the shop and leave it run a while after leaving. I went with the large Wynn nano because small filters would need much more static pressure to operate efficiently. With the merv 8 "pre-filter it should last a long time. I have a wc guage to monitor the filters.

    The overhead would've just taken up too much valuable space near the ceiling and I didn't think it would let the air flow the way I wanted. My set does that perfectly. It move the air away from where I am working toward the filter. The shop is amazingly dust free. Honestly, we getsignificantly more dust in the living room than my woodshop

  4. #4
    Would you post a picture of your air cleaner Rege?

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Canonsburg PA
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    71
    I'd be happy too but for the life of me can't seem to post a picture from my phone here. I did put this on WoodworkingTalk.com with a couple pics.

  6. #6
    With my iPhone I just go to the bottom of the page and select full site. Then reply to the thread and Go Advanced. Below the reply box in Manage Attachments you can chose the pictures you want and upload them. Maybe it’ll work for you too.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Canonsburg PA
    Posts
    71
    20190210_143128.jpg20190210_143245.jpg

    Thanks for the suggestion. I was able to attach 2 photos but after two trys they are still oriented wrong. I must be doing something wrong... seemed really difficult and took a long time for just two pictures.

  8. #8
    Thanks. It is a touch of a pain but phone designers aren't thinking about our needs when they make them. One thing you can try to ensure the pics come out right is to open them in the phone's Photos and then in Edit rotate them and then rotate them back. It may save them so that when you export it they won't lay over. The other is take the pics with the phone horizontal, the button to the right. Downloading the pics to your desktop or laptop and editing there works too and is easier to use the forum and post pics.

    Your air cleaner is one of the better that I've seen. Still believe it is better to capture as the dust is made at source though.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    central tx
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    589
    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Dawson View Post
    I have the PM1250, a Jet overhead air filter, and a Dylos air quality monitor to keep track of everything. One of the criticisms of the Jet filter is that it just tends to kick up the finer dust particles and put them back into the air. That is a valid criticism. But the PM1250 takes care of that problem very nicely, according to the Dylos. They work in tandem. (This in a 3-car garage shop where I can kick up enormous amounts of dust at will and quickly.) It moves a lot of air, with surprisingly low energy consumption.

    People complain about the price of the PM1250; it was on sale for $599 a few months ago. It might be again at some point. My health is worth at least that. I don't regret it for an instant. I would eat ramen for a month if I had to. I'm thinking of getting another one. My air sacs have never felt so good. ;^)
    Hi Doug - What exactly is the Dylos measuring? Wondering how close to "HEPA" quality the PM1250 is.

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Thomas Crawford View Post
    Hi Doug - What exactly is the Dylos measuring? Wondering how close to "HEPA" quality the PM1250 is.
    It gives a simultaneous output in two particle sizes, let's describe it as n|N, where n is associated with 0.5 micron particles, and N is associated with 2.5 micron particles. It's not an exact measurement, although Dylos can provide you with all kinds of formulas to make that connection, but it's a relative quantity, for comparison purposes. The Dylos is on a shelf over my left shoulder when I'm standing at my workbench.

    I have a Festool CT48 shop vac, which I use to collect dust from my Festool sanders etc. When I'm sanding, which I may do for hours on end, I usually have the Jet overhead on low speed, which keeps the N numbers down. The n will tend to hover around 600 or so in the steady state. When I turn the PM1250 on, typically medium here, n will tend to hover in the 200's as a steady state. When I'm done sanding, n will get down to 60 or so within an hour, with the PM1250 on. The PM1250 mostly affects the n numbers, i.e. the 0.5 micron size particles (i.e. particles with size of that approximate magnitude.)

    I had to open the shop to roll a car in there yesterday, with the garage door open n|N was 160|30, IOW ambient here. After closing the garage door, with the Jet on low for 20 minutes, N dropped down to 6 or so, and with the PM1250 on low for about 3 or 4 hours afterwards, n|N stabilized at 12|0. This is in an active woodshop, with a dirty dusty car just rolled into it. n=75 or less is considered "excellent" by the Dylos people.

    YMMV. These are just my most recently observed numbers, in my own workspace.

    Is that HEPA enough for you? :^)
    Last edited by Doug Dawson; 02-13-2019 at 4:14 PM.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Canonsburg PA
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    71
    Thanks for the suggestions to post pictures correctly.

    I agree getting dust at the source is best but I have never been successful collecting the very fine stuff. Over time I would get a build up and when I was moving air in the shop you could see it in the sunlight. It would also show up in slower drying finishes. I tried the box fan and filter... actually seemed to be worse. I still make every effort to collect dust at the source as I indicated in my post above. This seems gets most of the really fine stuff and on the rare occasion when I can't effectively get it at the source it is amazingly effective getting it out of the air.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    central tx
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    589
    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Dawson View Post
    It gives a simultaneous output in two particle sizes, let's describe it as n|N, where n is associated with 0.5 micron particles, and N is associated with 2.5 micron particles. It's not an exact measurement, although Dylos can provide you with all kinds of formulas to make that connection, but it's a relative quantity, for comparison purposes. The Dylos is on a shelf over my left shoulder when I'm standing at my workbench.

    I have a Festool CT48 shop vac, which I use to collect dust from my Festool sanders etc. When I'm sanding, which I may do for hours on end, I usually have the Jet overhead on low speed, which keeps the N numbers down. The n will tend to hover around 600 or so in the steady state. When I turn the PM1250 on, typically medium here, n will tend to hover in the 200's as a steady state. When I'm done sanding, n will get down to 60 or so within an hour, with the PM1250 on. The PM1250 mostly affects the n numbers, i.e. the 0.5 micron size particles (i.e. particles with size of that approximate magnitude.)

    I had to open the shop to roll a car in there yesterday, with the garage door open n|N was 160|30, IOW ambient here. After closing the garage door, with the Jet on low for 20 minutes, N dropped down to 6 or so, and with the PM1250 on low for about 3 or 4 hours afterwards, n|N stabilized at 12|0. This is in an active woodshop, with a dirty dusty car just rolled into it. n=75 or less is considered "excellent" by the Dylos people.

    YMMV. These are just my most recently observed numbers, in my own workspace.

    Is that HEPA enough for you? :^)
    That's great, thanks for the details. I'll have to make this one of my next purchases.

  13. #13
    There is a less expensive alternative to the Dylos. They are available through other buying sites so shop around.

    https://www.ebay.ca/sch/i.html?_from...nitor&_sacat=0

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Houston, Texas area
    Posts
    1,308
    I installed a PM1250 last week, to supplement an overhead PM1200.

    The best feature of the PM1250 for me is I am willing to run it all the time, installed right next to my bench. It is very quiet, similar to the HEPA system in my bedroom.

    In contrast, the PM1200 which is 15 feet away from my bench is obnoxiously loud even at its slowest speed.

    The best camera is the one you are carrying. The best protective device is the one you use.
    Mark McFarlane

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Dawson View Post
    It gives a simultaneous output in two particle sizes, let's describe it as n|N, where n is associated with 0.5 micron particles, and N is associated with 2.5 micron particles. It's not an exact measurement, although Dylos can provide you with all kinds of formulas to make that connection, but it's a relative quantity, for comparison purposes. The Dylos is on a shelf over my left shoulder when I'm standing at my workbench.

    I have a Festool CT48 shop vac, which I use to collect dust from my Festool sanders etc. When I'm sanding, which I may do for hours on end, I usually have the Jet overhead on low speed, which keeps the N numbers down. The n will tend to hover around 600 or so in the steady state. When I turn the PM1250 on, typically medium here, n will tend to hover in the 200's as a steady state. When I'm done sanding, n will get down to 60 or so within an hour, with the PM1250 on. The PM1250 mostly affects the n numbers, i.e. the 0.5 micron size particles (i.e. particles with size of that approximate magnitude.)

    I had to open the shop to roll a car in there yesterday, with the garage door open n|N was 160|30, IOW ambient here. After closing the garage door, with the Jet on low for 20 minutes, N dropped down to 6 or so, and with the PM1250 on low for about 3 or 4 hours afterwards, n|N stabilized at 12|0. This is in an active woodshop, with a dirty dusty car just rolled into it. n=75 or less is considered "excellent" by the Dylos people.
    Just another data point:

    I was doing a bunch of power carving this afternoon, a Kutzall spherical burr in a Makita VS die grinder, probably removed about 3 pounds of wood over the course of an hour, with the Jet overhead and PM1250 both on medium, and the Dylos never registered above 225|30 (I also had the CT48 running with a 3" expander on an articulated arm nearby.) Within an hour afterwards it was at 9|1. FnA, man.

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