Actually, I've used a couple for a few years now, with 2+" hose coupled
to Hitachi tablesaw or smaller hose to router-table. Sometimes two
connected to router-table. Works great. On occasion with router-table,
I've managed to fill nominal 12-gal bucket on ShopVac in an hour and
change, besides.
Not much dust escapes, and extreme little gets throuth Gore-Tex filter.
Never seen a HEPA filter for one. Note that most "dust collectors"
don't do well with multi-micron-size dust particles, much worse than
Gore-Tex.
J
>Is there a good shop vac recommended for this sort of dual use as dust extraction and shop vac?
I don't know if there's one that would be any better than others in the
"homeowner class" shopvacs (If you can afford to pay $$$ for a Fein or
Festool, do it - quiet and great quality from what I've heard). I
currently use a Ridgid 9gal shopvac with HEPA filter for dust
collection, and it's pretty good - not as good as a dedicated dust
collector, but a heckuva lot better than nothing. I use it for my
plunge router, router table, 10" bandsaw, ROS, and general cleanup.
The HEPA filter makes a big difference - definitely look for that. If
I were buying it again, I'd probably get the 12 gallon one - it's
supposed to be quieter (the 9gal has quite a whine, even with the
"muffler"). Capacity isn't a problem with the 9 gal - the filter
usually gets caked with dust before the tank fills up with
chips/shavings. I might also look for one that can take bags -
emptying an extremely dusty tank can be very messy, and it seems like a
bag would extend filter life also. I don't think any of the Ridgids
take bags.
Hope this helps,
Andy
noxpurt wrote:
> I have my table and miter saw plumbed so that I just move my shop vac hose
> to either one. Is there a good shop vac recommended for this sort of dual
> use as dust extraction and shop vac?
While it's better than nothing, a shop vac really doesn't move enough
air to be effective at dust extraction.
Look for something with a 2" hose or bigger. If you can get a HEPA
filter for it, so much the better.
Chris
[email protected] wrote:
> Not much dust escapes, and extreme little gets throuth Gore-Tex filter.
> Never seen a HEPA filter for one.
At least some of the GoreTex filters are HEPA filters.
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=46449&cat=1,42401&ap=1
Chris
Andy Dingley wrote:
> A Shop-vac is fine for a router or a saw, so long as your shrouding is
> efficient enough that you're not wasting airflow. It's only the
> thicknesser that really needs those 4" hoses.
I've got a shopvac, and while it does pretty well at the router table, I
won't say that it gets absolutely everything.
On the saw it gets most of the stuff under the table, but there's still
a lot of stuff coming off the top of the blade, even with a guard on it.
A really good dust collection system will collect all the fine dust as
well as the chips, so that your lungs are protected and you don't need
to wear a respirator. This level of airflow is almost impossible with
4" ducts on a standard dust collector--they just don't have the velocity
when using such narrow ducts. On a table saw you really want upper and
lower dust collection, so a 4" hose for each is about right.
Someday I'll get a proper cyclone. Until then I wear a respirator.
Chris
On Wed, 17 May 2006 20:22:01 GMT, "noxpurt" <[email protected]> wrote:
>OK...good tips. Seems like the cyclone would help keep the filter from
>cloggin so fast and provide a bigger container. What investing in a cyclone
>too or just put the money in a better shop vac?
My Shop-vac only cost me $50, and that's the one I bought new. When it
comes to fine dust (rather than chips) you want the high velocity of a
Shop-vac and the catching ability of a cyclone.
I built these
http://codesmiths.com/shed/workshop/techniques/cyclones/
I also regard the Lee Valley design as more of a drop box than a
cyclone.
If money is no object, build somethign with a couple of HP, 4" pipes,
and mounted externally. Then you can do everything and keep the noise
down too. Otherwise join the rest of us, spend tuppence and wear ear
defenders.
OK...good tips. Seems like the cyclone would help keep the filter from
cloggin so fast and provide a bigger container. What investing in a cyclone
too or just put the money in a better shop vac?
is it worthwile adding a cyclone collector like this for $150:
http://www.clearvuecyclones.com/Order_Page.htm
or build something like this:
http://www.woodcraft.com/articles.aspx?articleid=408
"Andy Dingley" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Tue, 16 May 2006 13:37:51 -0600, Chris Friesen <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>>While it's better than nothing, a shop vac really doesn't move enough
>>air to be effective at dust extraction.
>
> A Shop-vac is fine for a router or a saw, so long as your shrouding is
> efficient enough that you're not wasting airflow. It's only the
> thicknesser that really needs those 4" hoses.
>
> A Shop-vac also has higher air velocity than a 4" chip collector, unless
> you have multi-hp power behind it, so it's better for working a simple
> small-scale dust cyclone.
>Actually, I've used a couple for a few years now, with 2+" hose coupled
>to Hitachi tablesaw or smaller hose to router-table.
When I had my old Ryobi BT-3000 (the saw everybody loves to hate), I
just plugged my shop vac into it and it collected 99% of the dust.
The secret is that the blade was closely shrouded underneath the
table.
Now I've got a Unisaw and a "real" dust collector, and I have dust all
over the place. What a mess. I did 100 times better with the old
setup.
On Wed, 17 May 2006 20:22:01 GMT, "noxpurt" <[email protected]> wrote:
>OK...good tips. Seems like the cyclone would help keep the filter from
>cloggin so fast and provide a bigger container. What investing in a cyclone
>too or just put the money in a better shop vac?
>
>is it worthwile adding a cyclone collector like this for $150:
>http://www.clearvuecyclones.com/Order_Page.htm
For my money no, but Lee Valley has some nice cyclone lids which I did
spend my money on for one.
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=30282&cat=1,42401&ap=1
Mark
(sixoneeight) = 618
Nice links. That clearview is interesting.
What to do? Depends on what you want to accomplish.
As others have said, a shop-vac works fine for smaller tools. If you want
to separate out some of the larger chips to slow the filling of your vacuum,
one of the cyclones would do it. Most woodworking stores have those
modified trash can lids which should work well enough with a vacuum system.
Just be sure the lid seals tight, you won't have the airflow to spare.
For larger tools like a cabinet saw or a planer, cfm usually needs to be
around 800 to minimize dust settling in the tool and tubing. You will not
find a shop-vac that will come close to that. I currently have a 5 "hp" 12
gallon shop vac that I use for all my tools, including a hybrid TS. It
works ok, but dust mostly settles in the bottom of the TS rather that being
extracted by the vacuum. Even the otherwise nice Fein and Fesstool vacuums
top out at 126 and 135 cfm for their best units. My vacuum is rated at 176
cfm, so I considered getting a bigger one. The highest cfm I could find is
only 185 cfm and it is getting close to the cost of a real dust collector,
so I have given up on that idea. Overall I am satisfied with what I have
now. It cuts down on dust and is reasonably quiet. A dust collector is
usually noisy and not really fit in my limited space. YMMV
The nicer vacuums do have some handy auto run features, if you think that is
something you need.
-Steve
"noxpurt" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> OK...good tips. Seems like the cyclone would help keep the filter from
> cloggin so fast and provide a bigger container. What investing in a
> cyclone too or just put the money in a better shop vac?
>
> is it worthwile adding a cyclone collector like this for $150:
> http://www.clearvuecyclones.com/Order_Page.htm
>
> or build something like this:
> http://www.woodcraft.com/articles.aspx?articleid=408
> "Andy Dingley" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> On Tue, 16 May 2006 13:37:51 -0600, Chris Friesen <[email protected]>
>> wrote:
>>
>>>While it's better than nothing, a shop vac really doesn't move enough
>>>air to be effective at dust extraction.
>>
>> A Shop-vac is fine for a router or a saw, so long as your shrouding is
>> efficient enough that you're not wasting airflow. It's only the
>> thicknesser that really needs those 4" hoses.
>>
>> A Shop-vac also has higher air velocity than a 4" chip collector, unless
>> you have multi-hp power behind it, so it's better for working a simple
>> small-scale dust cyclone.
>
>
On Tue, 16 May 2006 13:37:51 -0600, Chris Friesen <[email protected]>
wrote:
>While it's better than nothing, a shop vac really doesn't move enough
>air to be effective at dust extraction.
A Shop-vac is fine for a router or a saw, so long as your shrouding is
efficient enough that you're not wasting airflow. It's only the
thicknesser that really needs those 4" hoses.
A Shop-vac also has higher air velocity than a 4" chip collector, unless
you have multi-hp power behind it, so it's better for working a simple
small-scale dust cyclone.