I am looking for a new shop vacuum as my vacuum died. I have a dust collection system and air filtration already in the shop. My question is: how much filtration does a vacuum need – 5 micron, 1 micron, 0.3 micron? Anyone know? Any brands to recommend?
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Replies
I like to use the HEPA cannister filters on both shop vacs (little one, big one). Don't know how far down they filter, but way further than the (stupid) bags or cloth covers. Fein seems to be the cat's meow for those who can afford it, but Craftsman has done me well over the decades. I keep wishing my big Craftsman vac would die so I could get a new one, much less unwieldy, on-board storage and such, but the darned thing is over 20 years old and simply keeps going and going and going.
Rigid vacs are supposed to be pretty good too.
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
How often do you have to change a HEPA filter? They are quite expensive!
I've had it for 2 or 3 years now, no change needed. One of them has a metal "overlay" to protect it -- gridded sort of thing. Before I got my dust collector, I'd take it out and tap it against a rock to clean it. Now I just suck it out with the DC hose. Gets it super-clean, and back into the vac it goes.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I looked at Ridgid and Shop-vacs before replacing my old Craftsman with a new Craftsman. Ridgid seemed louder than the others was one factor. I use the Gore-tex filter for it - don't know what the micron size is, but also use the cyclone lid /trash can to reduce the clean up time.
Once I installed my DC and filter system, I put my shop vacuum in the attic, and haven't taken it down since.
I created a quick connect between the shop vacuum hose and the 4" DC line, and now don't need another noisy vacuum in my way.
4" rigid pipe goes within your DC flex, and a (hardware store) rubber, plumbing reducer will take you to the OD of the shop vacuum hose.
IMO
"4" rigid pipe goes within your DC flex, and a (hardware store) rubber, plumbing reducer will take you to the OD of the shop vacuum hose."
Please explain that statement more definitively. I need to do some changes in my DC setup. I am currently using the flex hose and I know that there is a real issue with friction loss (Forestgirl said so). I want to use the metal pipe down the wall and flex only to get from my main line to the machine(s)
I have seen the metal in ww magazines but they seem awefully high. Can you suggest a good source that is not so pricey.
Here's a shotgun answer. If you'd like to redirect me with another question, please do so.My shop is a 2-car garage. The DC is a 1.5hp Jet with cannister. Blast gates are used. The longest flex run is 25', up across the ceiling and down over the TS. Metal pipe looks pro, but I don't use it . . . The flex allows me to easily roll the DC out from the wall where it is kept when not in use. (I can still get one car in the garage, with some effort). In my situation, the flex/resistance issue is mythical. When in use, the TS receives 2 lines that are wide open, and the system works well.I apologize if I mislead you when referring to "rigid pipe." I meant that literally. I refer to 4", white, rigid, non-perforated irrigation pipe. You may want to stop reading here, but I'm going to try to draw a mental picture of a TS DC arrangement that I wouldn't trade for a $300 unit. (And I haven't forgotten about the vacuum unit.)Wanting suction over the TS blade, I think hanging 4" flex from the ceiling to a few inches from the tabletop is a start. It is, though, unstable and opaque. Initially, I shortened the flex by a foot and inserted and taped into the flex a 15" length of the irrigation pipe. I saw-toothed the bottom edge to allow airflow and better visibility at the blade. The weight of the pipe stabilized the flex. I also found that by using the bell end of the irrigation pipe, also cut to about one foot, I could easily (temporarily) extend this elephant trunk apparatus to clean more of the tabletop.If I want to vacuum the floor, workbench, etc., I connect the shop vac hose and wand to the end of the 4" that hangs over the TS. I use a wireless off/on switch to start the DC, and I'm in business quickly. Here's how. A hardware store (plumbing dept.) will have a somewhat heavy, rubber reduction bell, from 4" I.D. to the O.D. of the larger shop vac tubing. My Craftsman hose has a locking ring; the bell goes inside that with no modification. That end of the bell clamped and screwed down. The large end of the bell has a thumbscrew clamp. If you attach the bell to the 4" pipe when the DC is running, you hardly need to worry about careful clamping, as the suction works on your behalf.I'll digress to speak to using this rig for TS tabletop DC. The vacuum conversion remains the same, as does the use of the bell-ended irrigation pipe. This time, obtain a one foot length of clear plastic 4" rigid pipe (hobby type store, Tap Plastics in California). Slip that inside the 4" flex hanging down from the ceiling and tape the two together. This is safer, easier, etc. than the earlier plan.With a large hook in the ceiling, I can swing the flex up, parallel to the ceiling when not in use.
Thanks, IMO
I have printed your reply so I can digest it. I am particularly interested in how to get DC to my new PM 2000. One "problem" I have is that my 34 x 24 shop has a 14' ceiling. In spite of that height, I am thinking overhead. I have also thought about raising my floor about 6-8" and running everything under. One beenefit of that is that it would get me off concrete.
Coolbreeze
Coolbreeze -
Here are a couple of pictures of my DC to Vacuum hose setup. I have a black plastic blast gate connected to the 4" steel duct pipe. Then, I used a short (~4") piece of steel duct to add a 4" to 2.5" reducer. The whole contraption is assembled with sheet metal screws and wrapped with electrical tape. The gate is solidly attached to the workbench and the whole thing is very solid.
I just plug whichever shop vac hose I need into the reducer, and I'm good to go. I've had this setup for about five years and it works great. The only change I've made is to install the blast gate so the door opens down. Dust collects in the door channels and needs to be cleaned out or the door won't close fully. This orientation seems to minimize the buildup.
Dave,
I have had a Delta DC from the git-go. I have never considered a shop vac because the only one I ever used reequired a lot of attention to the filter and sounded like a fighter jet screaming by. Was that only exposure to a shop vac an exception to the rule?
I am going to wait until this thread wains and start another thread because I do not want to hijack this thread.
Edited 3/6/2007 10:23 am ET by coolbreeze
Craig; My Milwaukee 8912 is at least fifteen years old. I recently pulled the motor apart to check/replace the brushes since it gets a lot of stop/start action and found them only about ¼ used. It is not a cheap machine but it is quiet and will probably run for ever. It is not a high filtration type unit but the replacement cost on those HEPA filter, as far as I know, is steep. Plain paper vacuum bags are good enough for me.
Duke
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Edited 3/5/2007 10:07 pm by dukeone
I'll put another plug in for Craftsman. I have a large wet/dry one that is easily 15+ years old. I just replaced the filter for $16. Runs like a champ. Picks up nails, rocks, dust and everything in between. I live in a rocky area and I have even used it to dig fence post holes. I think I paid close to $100.00. I haven't even thought to look at the brushes. Another project for the weekend.
I replaced my noisy old Craftsman with a mid-sized Festool and haven't looked back. Large wheels - rolls easily; really long, non-kink hose; variable suction control; great bag closure so you don't spill all the dust you have collected when changong bags.
Frosty
No body actually answered your question. You should get a HEPA cartridge for the shop vac otherwise you will be making the finest dust airborne. The air filtration system will in theory get it eventually, but in the interim you will be breathing it in.
The newest Ridgid shop vacs are considerably quieter than they were just a few years ago and for the money they are a good deal. The HEPA filters for them are cartridges that just get cleaned off they don't need to be replaced. The HEPA cartridges are sold separately but they aren't terribly expensive.
John W.
I have the Fein Turbo II with the standard 5 micron cloth bag. They also have 1 micron and .3 micron HEPA filters available. I always have side draft fans running when I'm sanding because even with 116 cfm and 90" of suction it doesn't get all of the dust. From what I've read it's the 1 to 5 micron stuff you have to worry about. Smaller particle are easily evacuated by the cillia and larger one's don't make it into the lungs anyway. It's also noteworthy that you cannot see particles in this size range. That said the HEPA is overkill. If I didn't have ventillation and the ambient air cleaner I'd use the 1 micron pleated filter. I also have an ambient air cleaner (Jet) that runs when ever the lights are on. The bigest selling point for me was the <58 dB sound spec and automatic operation. The wife liked my Fein so much for doing the 2000 sf of Pergo that she asked for one of her own. I use her Mini-turbo to provide suction for my vacuum hold down board while I use mine for the sanders. Another nice feature is that the Fein vacs have bypass cooling so it won't overheat without air flow. That allows me to wrap the air bleeder fitting on the hold-down board (Carter kit) with plastic wrap so that there's 100% suction all day!
Check the specs for yourself - http://www.feinus.com/p/newdustfree/New-955.htm
If you check Rigid's Specs or most others you won't find real performance specs to compare to the Fein. You wont see cfm, suction or particulate size for the filtering options. You will see 99.5% filtering efficiency and amps which are meaninless. Maybe it's a Germany or Euro thing but performance specs are published for the other German "Dust Extractors" like Attix (WAP) and Festool.
John O'Connell - JKO Handcrafted Woodworking
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