Dust collector back to its old self

[bobs64ford352]

I'm not in the shop as much as I'd like lately, but I really noticed my DC having a hard time, especially when planing some pine recently. It also wasn't doing great with the new drum sander. The recent thread on the DC cone add on got me thinking so I checked my filter out.

This is what you get after at least 4 or 5 years of owning a DC and only changing the bottom bags.





Bob

[packerguy®]

I got like four 5 gallon buckets out of mine a few weeks back. Shocked the hell out of me.

[bobs64ford352]

Wow, how big is your unit and filter, mine is the delta 1hp unit. I probably have at least a couple buckets here, the piles don't look as big in the pictures. Hopefully it won't look like this again.

Bob

[Dave Diaman]

How often do you spin the flappers on yours? I have 4 units ranging from 1 hp to 3 hp. I spin my flappers every day and after I run anything that makes really fine dust and I have very little build up on them. I will admit I'm a little neurotic about it though and pay really close attention to the amount of suction I have. The big 3hp Powermatic unit I use is around 8 years old and still on the original filters with no problems. You may want to think about adding a pre-seperator. I have an Oneida super dust deputy on my my unit that services my jointer, planer and bandsaws and it makes a HUGE difference. I only clean the flappers on it every time I empty the drum and that is more than enough. Honestly the reason I added the cyclone was because I hate changing bags but it is a huge help. I change the bag about once every 6 months and wouldn't have to do it that often if I was more careful about emptying the drum when it was full. I use my dust collector every day so that adds up to thousands of gallons of sawdust without changing the bag.

[bobs64ford352]

I used to do it all the time then shop time became sporadic and I can be a bit spacey and I began forgetting to. Recently though I started doing it and noticed resistance when the suctioned seemed low and it still took another week for me to pull the filter.

I started making a separator out of a 30 gallon drum awhile back I think it's about time I finished it.

Bob

[Dave Diaman]

The seperator will make a big difference. If you are like me you detest changing bags. If I used the bags I would end up emptying them 3 or 4 times a day which would eat up a ton of my time doing something I hate to do anyway. If you just give the flappers a few spins until dust stops falling every time you empty your drum I'm guessing you will not have a problem again.

[bobs64ford352]

I finished my half started separator yesterday and had so so results on suction, due to the restriction created by the fittings I used (4" pvc closet flanges). After almost breaking my arm a couple times and stripping out and welding a cheap hole saw (the only 3 1/2" one I had) I now have a minimum restriction of 3 1/2" in the lines and the suction is improved and is not overly noticeable over straight off the DC. I also used some of my rockler dust right fitting so I can swap from using the separator to not using it very quickly. I think I might try to find one of those 50 gallon cardboard drums though, to have something a little bigger, but still light for emptying.

I am anxious to see any improvements in filter build up and what makes it to the bag. I may also add a acrylic sight glass, to keep from over filling it. I've been thinking of do an internal separator, too, would anyone recommend that or is the external one enough?


Bob

[kurt18947]

I did an internal Thien baffle. Bottom of the metal funnel just above the clear bottom bag. It makes a HUGE difference. I'm not a heavy user and find it easier to empty the lower bag into a contractor's bag when it gets about half full. I have a washable cartridge filter and hose it out once a year when i know I won't be using the D.C. for a few days so it has time to dry.

[Dave Diaman]

Bob. For a long time I had a 2 hp cyclone with a 55 gallon drum. I liked the capacity but dumping it was a little tough. Not due to the weight. The issue was the size of the bags available. I used drum liners available at Home Depot which I believe are 60 gallon. The drum was so close to the capacity of the bags it was hard to dump into the bags without spilling some. When I moved my shop I went with a big single stage DC and an Oneida seperator. I did this for several reasons which are not important for this discussion. I have since went to a 42 gallon Runbbermaid trash can. I had to make a wooden support ring that fits half way down the can inside. My DC was so powerful it crushed the can but unless you have a really large DC that probably isn't an issue. The 42 gallon drum is much much easier to empty. I still use the drum liners because they are cheap but they work perfect because they are oversized. I really can't say enough about the Oneida Dust Deputy. It catches almost everything. The one I have has the 6" inlet and outlet but they make a little smaller version which you can get from Woodcraft for about $170. Of course you will still need a container. I have used one of the trash can separators in the past and they work okay but the Oneida works much better. I think in the end any type of pre-seperator is going to be a huge upgrade for you though. What size DC are you using? My guess is the velocity of the air in the cyclone probably has some bearing on how well the separation works but I could be wrong since this is way outside my area of expertise.

[bobs64ford352]

I'm running a 1HP delta in the shop. I have a 2HP Jet, outside the shop, that I need to get plumbed through the wall. My plans for the 2 HP are to hook it up to a 6" header. Dragging my feet on that project too. Mostly because I haven't quite figured out my shop layout yet and I'd like to expand it.

Bob