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Thread: First dust collector

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Odessa, Tx
    Posts
    163

    First dust collector

    I use hand tools more often than powered ones but I would like to make a single use dust collector that I can just move from machine to machine. Router, benchtop sander, and a 10 inch bandsaw.

    I use them a little more often now and a shop vac doesn't really cut it. I'm not familiar with what I need or what to look for.

    Hose sizes,

    Hose types

    Size of shop vac/ cfm needed.

    I'm looking at the dust deputy I can mount to a 5 gallon bucket. Thoughts or opinions on it?

    https://www.woodcraft.com/products/o...y-cyclone-only

    Will I need to have a vent of any kind? Like out the window?

    Your advice is greatly appreciated, internet search brings up A LOT of different stuff.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Clarks Summit PA
    Posts
    1,733
    Blake, I started out all hand tools but added a bandsaw and Dewalt bench top planer a few years ago. I went with the Oneida Mini-Gorilla. Expensive, and some small negatives, but it works for me. It has a true HEPA filter.

  3. #3
    I have the Oneide Mini Gorilla for my shop as well. It might be more than you need for the tools you mentioned, but I really like mine and it would certainly give you room to grow, particularly if you ever got a table saw or planer. The HEPA filter means I don't need outside air discharge and it captures almost all of the fine particulate generated. I have a 5" flexible hose connected to it, 15-20 feet long, with a 5" x 4" reducer on the end to connect to the various tools. I move the hose from tool to tool as I use them which is not as convenient as opening and closing a few blast gates, but I did not have to go the expense or commit to the pre-defined routing of fixed ductwork when I didn't really know how I'd eventually want my shop laid out.

    Your CFM needs are really driven by the tools you'll use with it. Hose/duct size is largely driven by CFM and the run you'll need. Too large of a hose and the air velocity isn't high enough to carry wood chips. Too small and the pressure loss from friction is too great.

    The band saw likely has the highest CFM needs of the tools you mentioned but it will generate the least dust of those three. I suspect most people use a router without any dust collection, though Oneida makes a router base plate with a dust collection port on it. Does your benchtop sander have a dust collection port on it? If not, you're limited to building a hood that will help capture some, though certainly not all of the dust.

    There are plenty of guidelines online for estimating CFM needs per tool. Search the woodworking magazine sites for tips. Oneida has a basic primer on dust collection here that isn't a bad starting point.

    https://www.oneida-air.com/blog/4-th...ollector-needs

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2013
    Location
    Black Oak Ark.
    Posts
    253
    What is the budget ? Do you want to use a shop vac or move to a small DC w/ 4" hoses ? I'd get on you tube , watch a few video's on both options and see what you learn from that . As a " hand tool guy " you may not need alot , but your future needs may change . Learn all you can .

  5. #5
    Depends on the tools you're using and how far they are.

    Tablesaw, jointer, planer require a 4". You'll do best with a 2 stage (Thien or Super Dust Deputy). The table saw generates fine dust that will clog a single stage filter. The jointer and planer generate a high volume of chips that will fill a single stage bag easily, so a convenient pre-separator drum is a plus here.

    Sander, router, biscuit/domino - most hand held tools - work well with a shop vac and a dust deputy.

    4" tools have very standard port sizes.

    Hand tools on the other hand: every one has a different hose diameter. It's confounding!

  6. #6
    There is no "single dust collector" other than the Oneida Supercell, which is $2500. If you want cheaper than that, you'll have to have a 2 stage solution.

    For smaller tools, anything with a 2" dust port such as sanders, hand held routers, circ/track saw, job site saw, etc. get the most powerful shop vac you can buy and add a separator. Either a dust deputy or the HD dust stopper or similar. I ended up using a Ridgid Pro Pack, because of the size of it along with the dust stopper. You only need the motor, a filter, and a small volume, as your wood chips are going into the container via separator. You only end up with a tiny bit of dust in your filter. I designed my work bench to fit this vac, but if I was doing it over again, I'd separate it out of the workbench and end up with something a bit more powerful, like the 12 gallon motor on bottom (https://www.ridgid.com/us/en/mob1200...on-wet-dry-vac). It's got like 50% more CFM, but it is quite a bit bigger.

    For bigger tools, anything with a 4" dust port, or 2, 2.5" dust ports, you're going to want a big induction motor based dust collector. Lots of options for building your own, if you're a DIY type of guy. Plans on Etsy for like $10 as well. You can basically build a slightly more powerful Mini Gorilla for about $800 vs the $1500 (shipped) that the retail product comes in at.

    The bigger dust collector doesn't have big suction power, but rather moves air volume, which is the opposite of the shop vac. That works for bigger ports, but it will be entirely useless when stopped down to 2" for a sander or a track saw.

  7. #7
    I don't know why a big shop vac won't handle the tools you describe. I think it's best to judge shop vacs by the amps they pull rather than the supposed cfm or inches of water or the size of the dust collection compartment. I got a small rigid, small storage capacity, with the biggest motor they put on that size, added a dust deputy, and their quasi HEPA filter. It works well for my circular saw, track saw, domino, and sanders. But it didn't so much for my PCS. So I got a 2 HP HF DC, ran some 5 inch snap lock piping and ducted it outside. Works well for my 14 inch bandsaw (13 inch resaw capacity), PCS, CMS, router table, planner and jointer.

    I had a 1 hp DC but I considered it, in the end, to be nearly useless. It came with bags that spewed the fine particles, the bad ones, out into the shop. A cartridge filter fixed that but by then the shop was covered. It did not move enough air to keep it from building up in my tools. I had it hooked to a 4 inch S&D system with a few blast gates. Rolled from tool to tool it would have probably worked better but I still think a 1 hp unit is just too small. But a DC is only going to help you if you have tools with at least 4 inch collection ports on them. Anything smaller and a shop vac will give you about the same air flow. Shop vacs pull well against resistance but DCs absolutely do not. If you don't give then a low restriction system they won't move much air.

    So for your use, I suggest a Rigid shop vac with a big motor, a dust deputy, an after market auto on switch, a Bosch 5 meter hose, and a long Rigid 2.5 inch hose. Also their best filter. It will make a lot of noise but should work pretty well. Even with my DC I still use a shop vac like this for all my small tools so it isn't wasted money even if you upgrade your tools later.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    SE PA - Central Bucks County
    Posts
    65,675
    For your application, I'd use a high quality extractor/vac rather than a typically woodworking dust collector because the tools you mention are small and all have small ports. These demand higher static pressure performance where a dust collector operates by moving large amounts of air. You can't do that in a small diameter hose. The higher quality units are quieter, typically have integral automatic power switching that's useful for any hand-held tools being used with extraction (sanders, etc) and often have sped controls that make certain applications like sanding with finer abrasives. The other reason to consider one of the higher quality products is...noise. Typical "shop vacs" have a pretty high noise level and many really need to be used with hearing protection. You'd be doing that normally with a router, but for the bandsaw and sander, that would be less likely. I happen to use Festool for this application, but there have been a few threads in GW&PT recently that have offered some alternatives, too.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

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