Entry level dust collector

[Nick Decker]

You would need an air compressor of some kind to periodically hit the outside of the filter to blow off fine dust inside. I only have a small one, but Wynn recommends no more than 50-60 psi so it works fine. The cyclone gets probably 99% of the spoil, so I only have to empty super fine dust out of the bucket under the filter a couple times a year. Pretty sure most of that is from the drum sander.

[Jon Singer]

Thanks for the responses. I have a 12x20 shed workshop. I'm running bench top level tools and looking to run a length of 4" pipe with drops to table saw, jointer/planer, and miter saw. I was eyeing the HF unit and the Grizzly one HP unit with the upper and lower bag. Didn't know if it made any difference compared to the wall hanging units. I don't think I'll get anything bigger than that. I'm trying to keep it under $250 ish

You have two choices: use what you have and keep saving for something better or DIY something. I never had allergies in my life --until I bought a HF dust spreader on Craigslist. Since then I've started seeing an ENT and (I think it's total BS, just the wood dust) getting allergy shots. Either way, when that HF dust spreader was turned on, I'd wake up the next morning hacking up a lung and feeling like crap on my daily run with the dogs.

The only thing "two stage" does is separate out the big chips from the fine dust. So really a 2-stage 5-micron isn't going to be any different (for your lungs) than the single stage HF dust spreader single stage with a bag. With a 12x20 shop I'd think getting a better quality shop vac or maybe keeping same vac but upgrading filters would be most economical. Or open the doors/windows and wear a respirator.

I bought a HF on CL for $60 with the Rikon impeller upgrade. My new setup (in 25x25 insulated, semi-heated but very finished garage) is going to cost me about $550-$600. I've got a little over $100 in truck filters, we have solar so free but I meter power usage, I'm up to about $78 in power use from welding and metal work, I think I paid $25 for the metal at the scrap yard (like 3 years ago), nails, screws, paint, other consumables, etc. ($25) plus making the blast gates and buying the wired window alarm sensors & on/off DC relay contraption --I told my wife that was about $100 but probably closer to $200. When I'm done I'd bet that my setup would compete with a $3,000 system, but I've also got about a month's worth of time into it.


If I had to do it all over again, I would have bought like 15 shop vacs on Craigslist for free/$10/each and then put decent filters on them and hooked them to each machine in my shop. All that HF bag thing was put dust into the air to the point that I had to go to an ENT/allergist.