Anyone use a Dust Deputy?

[Herb G]

I cleaned out my Shop-Vac yesterday for the first time in over 2 years. It was so heavy I had to take it apart & scoop out the dirt by hand.
I could not lug it up the stairs to carry it outside & dump it. I have a 16 gallon model & it holds a ton of dirt.
Anyway, I filled up 2 large trash bags of dirt & carried it out to the trash.

I took the pleated filter off & beat the dirt out of it outside to get it cleaned while I was at it. It was caked on solid and not much air was getting thru it.
Now, I bought a new Dust Deputy a few years ago & never used it. I found it buried in my basement yesterday & I am going to set it up.
My questions are : Does it work as advertised?
How does your remain upright when in use?
How often do you have to dump it?

I do not have the floor space to make a trolley to put the DD on along with the Shop-Vac.

Thanks for any help.

[Huxleywood]

My questions are : Does it work as advertised?
How does your remain upright when in use?
How often do you have to dump it?

They do work within the limitations of such a small cyclone but the separation is actually pretty good.  

They have to remain more or less upright since gravity is part of the physics behind them, the father from vertical the lower the efficacy of the separation is.

You need to dump them before the bucket gets completely full, which based on the size of your shop vac about three times as often if you use a 5 gallon bucket.  In the end, this is completely dependant on your use.  


"The Wood Whisperer" did a video on them a few years ago.  Marc's video is on youtube on his channel.

[Cecil]

I use the dust deputy on a 15 gallon steel drum.  I find it works great.  I have not put a window into the drum yet, but as Herb said, I need to empty it, before stuff starts going directly to the vac.

[Herb G]

Thanks for the replies so far. I meant to add the link for what I bought.
Also, make sure you wear a dust mask when you empty your Shop-Vac.
I caught a lung full of nastiness when I emptied mine yesterday & I've been up
all night coughing up a lung because of it.
I bet I got 60 lbs of dirt out of my Shop-Vac.
With turnings, plastic chips from pen making & just plain shop dirt, it all added up.

LINKY

[barryvabeach]

Herb,  I don't  have the floor space either, and instead mounted it on the wall, with a 5 gallon bucket below it, and piping to run to the shop vac.  I find it works extremely well.  The few times I check the shop vac, it is nearly empty, at least 90% of the dust is caught by the DD.

[Bill Wilson]

My questions are : Does it work as advertised?  Yes

How does your remain upright when in use?  I attached mine to the shop vac, using the hardware included with the DD.  It is basically 2 long screws, through the DD and a foam form and into the canister of the shop vac.  Casters are attached to the bottom of the DD.

How often do you have to dump it?  Before it's full.  Easier to dump it more often than not enough.  If you wait too long, dust will begin to accumulate in your shop vac and the suction isn't as effective.  If you dump it prior to it getting full, it will keep the shop vac canister and filter much cleaner.

I do not have the floor space to make a trolley to put the DD on along with the Shop-Vac.  I have precious little floor space as well.  I park my shopvac and DD underneath the right side of my table saw.  I have a couple extension hoses that I use to reach tools in other parts of the shop.
Thanks for any help.

[BobW]

I got a DD along with a Fein Turbo I for Christmas and mounted the pair on a plywood base with 4" casters.  It moves smoothly around the shop and performs as advertised.  The 5 gallon bucket catches most of everything before it gets to the vac and is a whole lot easier to empty than the old 20 gal Ridgid it replaced (which now resides in a corner of the shop and is dedicated to semi-annual patio cleanups and emergency water pick up).

For your big vac, I've seen several applications with the DD placed on top of the vac.  Try googling it, and I think I even saw examples on the Oneida website.

[wjt]

I have two in my shop and use another one in a retirement community woodshop where I volunteer.

As echoed by others they work.

I use 5 gallon Ridgid shop vacs and they work fine since you get hardly any waste material in the vacuums. Downsizing your 16 gallon shop vac may be a way for you to save space.

The use of Gamma Seal Lids on a 5 gallon bucket is highly recommended. They are inexpensive and make emptying the buckets a much less frustrating activity. The Gamma Seal Lids thread on instead of instead of a snap fitting.

Bill

[DaveParkis]

I use one and it works quite well. I made a cart just big enough for the vac and mounted the DD directly over it. I also cut spots in the top of the cart for the vac attachments so I don't have to bend down to get them.

[iublue]

As a little different question to the OP, I have a old Porter Cable vac which still works great.  I have thought about getting a DD but my PC vac has an 1 1/4" hose.  Does the DD work as well with the smaller hose?