Birchwood

I had been using a small "Hang Up" model Shop Vac but this morning it just quit. Took it apart and cleaned everything but it simply is dead. Soooo....looks like I gotta do something else. Damn thing was only two years old!
I guess I could just go with a BIG Shop Vac and some hoses. I would really LIKE some sort of dust control system but that is not going to happen for a while.
Anybody know whether the "new and improved" quiet Shop Vacs are actually any quieter?
Any thoughts other than a Shop Vac? My little shop is 15' X 15' and I have a JET table saw, router table, drill press, miter saw and scroll saw in there along with a barrel stove etc. Roomy it ain't!!
Thanks gang.

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Routerbit

Suggest you get a bit serious and look at a DC. What you want to do most
is keep as much of the fine dust out of your lungs as possible. For your size
shop and indication of not spending too much, suggest you consider Harbor Freight's
DC,which is often on sale for $150-160. Add to that a Wynn's filter, a .5 or .2 micron,
and see the big change in your shop.

kp91

I use a shop vac (sears 20 gal) with high filtration drywall bags in it for router table work, Drill press, Pocket hole jig, and Miter saw. The bags in the vacuum capture all the dust, make it easier to clean out the vacuum, and keep the filter clean longer.

I use a Grizzly 1.5 HP dust collector with the trashcan lid separator for the table saw and the band saw. It only handles one machine at a time, goal is to eventually get a cyclone and mount it outside the workspace.

I also run a ceiling mounted filter, sized perfect for my last garage, a little small for the one I'm in now, but it does a good job of getting the fine stuff out of the air. I've got plans for a larger one made from an old house furnace air handler that I may build soon.

If you are saving up for a DC, save a couple of extra dollars more and spring for a bigger one than you think you need. It is always better to have extra capacity, especially when you start running your ducting. You may have more losses than you have calculated.

__________________
Doug
1 John 1:9

Birchwood

Are the dust control systems noisy? I admit I have never been aroound one, and the nice ones seem to be too expensive for my amateur needs. Does the unit sit inside or outside the shop. My little shop is a walled off corner in a 30'X36 metal shed. Regular stud wall around a corner of the shed, with two windows and a door out back and another into the main part of the building.
I'll try to look up more information. Thanks again fellas.

Woodnut65

Hi, Birchwood: Some years ago I had a similar problem. I looked around for a DC system, with the most bang for the buck. I bought one from Penn State Ind. I guess it is about 1.5 hp, at the time littler info was available on how to run the ducts etc. so I did the best I could. It worked out pretty well, I hade to make a few "tweaks" to the system over time. The problem is that the smaller Shop Vac type units work with a universal motor, that has speed but less power than an induction type motor in a larger dc. I use th main system on one machine at a time by opening and closing gates to each machine. I have a 6hp shop vac hat I use for the router table and the pocket hole jig, and the dove tail unit, because they are mostly porable and i can set them anywhere I have room at the time. I would advise you to try to get a unit that
has more than you need right now, that allows for growth, as things change to your shop. Hope this helps out...Woodnut65

Glenmore

Good advise Woodnut65 been looking for a while at different dust collection models. I'm going to do what you suggested go for a little bigger then I need. Birchwood I've been leaning towards the grizzly or penn state industrial I only run one tool a time but I am looking at a 1 1/2 hp or bigger but I have to watch out I can't run 220 where I live and the best prices I've found is at Amazon.com you find lots models there and shipping is not as much as shipping from the dealers warehouses.

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Glenmore

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Birchwood

I have found a Delta unit locally at $145 with a 1hp motor. I have also found the Delta 50-850 online at $274. The large Shop Vac is $100 and the little Hang Up model like the one I had is $75!!! I am tempted to go with the local Delta. I'm still trying to learn more about installation, noise, filter bags, operation etc. I GOTTA do something!! HA!

GoonMan

Hello Birchwood,

I guess I am behind the times, I use a Large Ridgid Wet Dry vac and a Cyclone lid seperator on a 35 gallon trash can for my TS, Router tables, and my Planer. The only dust collection I have for my Compound miter saw is the bag that came with it and it does not do a good job of that. I may build a back cover for it so it will quit scattering a majority of the saw dust around the room. I have a shop vac with a bag that I use to vacuum the floor with and to pick up what my planer throws out around it.

I guess one day I will break down and buy a DC but so far the vacuums works for me.

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Randy

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Birchwood

Can somebody help me understand what the deal is with the trash can lid separator? I see it advertised but I don't understand how you rig it up. I have looked around but can't seem to find a site that discusses dc to any detail that is useful.
This morning I took our BIG 6.5 HP ShopVac down and cleaned up my little shop but Good Grief I don't want that damn thing running when I'm trying to work I can tell ya that!!
I want something that has enough power to suck the shoes off a horse but is as quiet and efficient as a toilet paper. Ha!

nymphaeles

I find a ShopVac may be as expensive as a DC such as a Delta AP400, and most certainly a ShopVac is noisier than a DC. Delta AP400, capable of doing 650 cfm, costs around $150, provides suprisingly strong vacuum suction for any one machine whether it is a table saw, planer, or jointer. The DC is on a wheeled platform, so it is easy to move it around the shop, or to put it away in a corner when you done using it. A more decent dust collector is a Delta 50-760 provides 1200 cfm with 1-micron bag. The machine is powerful enough to do dust collection for 2 machine at the same time and is a long term fit for a home shop. Right now it is on sale with $30 rebate makes it a much better deal over model 50-580. Both DCs use induction motor convertable to 240V, and has 2 year warranty. Both DCs should outlast any ShopVac models, and just in case that you want to resale them, they have decent resale values. I don't have experience on other DC makes, but if they are using induction motor, they should outlast any ShopVac.