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There have been several threads on the dangers of dust in the workshop.I have always worn a dust mask but realize now that that is not enough as fine dust settles around the workshop. I have recently purchased a 2HP dust collector which being on wheels I can move easily to hook up to my table saw, bandsaw and disc sander. An urgent project will be a dedicated sanding table which can also be hooked up to the collector. Rather than have a room air filter I am considering fitting an exhaust fan in a window to deal with the very fine dust that may still be circulating.
To save the dust collector filter from clogging quickly I have made a cyclone pre-stage. There are lots of different examples of cyclones on You Tube but no plans or dimensions.Because there are some many different designs it does not seem as though the exact shape is super critical.
Here are pictures of my experiment.
The top stage is a cheap bucket with the bottom cut out. The tapering middle section are two plastic wastepaper baskets from the $2 shop. Sold as a big one and a small one which just happen to fit nicely inside of each other. The black cone inside the lid of the rubbish bin is just a shape made to fit from light cardboard and then covered with multiple layers of strips of newspaper soaked in flour and water paste (just like at kindergarten) and when dry coated with several layers of polyurethane.
The whole thing looks pretty mickey mouse but works really well. Virtually nothing now ends up in the dust collector bag. Even the fine dust goes into the rubbish bin.
To save the dust collector filter from clogging quickly I have made a cyclone pre-stage. There are lots of different examples of cyclones on You Tube but no plans or dimensions.Because there are some many different designs it does not seem as though the exact shape is super critical.
Here are pictures of my experiment.
The top stage is a cheap bucket with the bottom cut out. The tapering middle section are two plastic wastepaper baskets from the $2 shop. Sold as a big one and a small one which just happen to fit nicely inside of each other. The black cone inside the lid of the rubbish bin is just a shape made to fit from light cardboard and then covered with multiple layers of strips of newspaper soaked in flour and water paste (just like at kindergarten) and when dry coated with several layers of polyurethane.
The whole thing looks pretty mickey mouse but works really well. Virtually nothing now ends up in the dust collector bag. Even the fine dust goes into the rubbish bin.
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