under the floor dust collection system
To all,
I am now in the process of finally setting up a permanent shop instead of renting. I am looking to run a series of 4″ PVC ducting under a raised plywood floor. My shop is +/- 600sq ft. I plan on providing connections to an older 10″ Unisaw, 8″ jointer, 12″ planer/moulder, 2 router tables 2 bandsaws, 12″ mitersaw and 2 hose connections for sanders and portable power tools. The area for my dust collector is 5 feet higher from the floor and in a separate room, so I have to run the pipe thru the wall and then down under the floor and then over to the machines. The furthest run of piping is roughly 30 feet from where the collector will be. I have not purchased a dust collector yet. Does anyone have any ideas on the best way to set this up? I am open to any good ideas or suggestions.
thanks,
sandlcustom
Replies
wow, you get all that in 600 SF?
Careful planning is the ticket. I have room to add annother 450 feet but it won't happen until later this year. My first project is to raise the floor and run the dust collection piping at the same time. To save room, one of my routers is on the side table of my table saw and the other is it's own cabinet. The planer/moulder is on wheels. it may not seem like it but I still have room to move arround.
If you have the wherewithall could you post a pic or three? I've a small (~ 320 SF) woodshop and am always looking for ideas. Would also like to outboard my DC downstairs too.
I'm planning on running 6" up from the 1st floor below and then connect to existing 4" - longest run will be about 10'. Gravity is my friend - I hope.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
As soon as I get moved in I would be glad to send you some pictures. I should be completely moved in a couple of weeks.sandlcustom
I am guessing then that you guys in the smaller shops are mostly doing projects without sheet goods. My "hobby shop" (because it isn't my full time job) is only about 650 SF and I am always fighting the walls and planers when I cut full sheets. Do you cut them down with an edge clamp and plunge saw or skil saw prior to bringing them in the door? I am always looking at ways to cut and save space, but mostly building cabinets and entertainment centers for construction projects (my fulltime job) always leaves me wanting more floor space.
I got almost as much in 340 square feet. This guy's got it easy.Brian
Male sure you have your calculations done. 4" main ducting will not work for your purpose. You will need 6" to do the job.
This site will give you lots of information on ducting as well as a static calculation sheeet that will help you assess your dust collector sizing etc.
http://billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/ducting.cfm
Don
There are lots of ways to skin any cat. Don't let anyone (even if they have a website) tell you that there's only one way.
Four inch ducts have kept a lot of people happy for many years; if you have medical problems associated with wood dust, no size of ductwork will keep you happy.
Another option (much easier to install and WAY easier to maintain or change) is to run the ducts on the ceiling.
Good luck!
Looking forward to the pictures!
I agree with jammer, why would running the duct under the floor save you any more room than keeping it high on the ceiling? If you ever do have a jamb or want to add an extra port, it would be way more trouble. Unless of course you can access the floor from underneath.
What I'm going to do is mebbe a bit different.
Not going to have runs of DC under the floor but rather straight down thru the floor. I have most of my stationary power tools in an island in the center of the woodshop. The DC connects to all of them (2 TS's, jointer, router table and downdraft table). I use one section for those and another for the planer, BS and 16/32 as needed.
I'm looking to relocate the DC downstairs and have a 6" plenum going straight down to the DC, with a 6" to two 4" connectors upstairs in the woodshop. The plenum would come up through the floor in the center of the island then connect to the existing 4" ductwork, longest run is about 8'. The 6" plenum will only be about 6'.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
If you system is directly below in an island area, why can't you just directly shoot them down a plenum or hard metal pipe right into a barrel lined with a bag. Why would you need a dust collection blower? Most machines will throw the chips to the elbow. Just disconnect every now and then and vacuum out the cabinet. Save the money and buy a new tool!
To be honest, I would be very wary about putting all of my machines in the center of a building and puncturing a fairly large hole in the floor there. That is putting a lot of dead load in one area and severly stressing the joists most likely. Be sure to plan a plenum penetration accordingly.
why can't you just directly shoot them down a plenum or hard metal pipe right into a barrel lined with a bag.
In the case of my planer I could prolly shoot the chips across the road into my neighbors yard! Not really but the extractor will spread them all over the woodshop. The major consideration is that all the tools don't send their debris to one spot in the woodshop - the DC accomodates this.
But the main reason for having the DC involved is not the chips so much as the dust eminated by the tools. That and I have to lug the collector bags downstairs.
Structurally (sp?) I'm not concerned. The second floor woodshop is well braced under the floor. And the room below (currently the pellet/wood storage room) is solidly constructed. Previous owners used it for firewood storage.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
I'm planning a similar shop for my retirement, both in size and the underfloor DC system. I've reached the conclusion that I'll need at least 6" lines underfloor, perhaps even 8". You should read carefully Bill Pentz's site, there's a lot of useful info on it.
David Ring
http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1
Part of my dust collection system is in the floor. I have a concrete floor so I have trenches with metal cover plates to keep me from falling in the holes. The remainder of the system goes around the walls at the floor. It works just fine; I have come across any issues yet. My duct runs are long in some areas so I start with an 8” metal duct and work my way down thru 6” to the 4” on the back of the machine. They are metal “stove” pipe, which you can get from any of the big box stores.
My dust collection system is in a closet that adjoins the shop. My thought was it would cut down on the noise of the system. I discovered, very quickly, I had to provide a return air path for the system. The dust collection system sucked all of the conditioned air out of the workshop. You might need to keep that in mind as you set up your system.
Bob
My biggest thing is not to have to climb up on a ladder to dust the pipes off and also cut down the noise. My shop is in the basement of my house, I have 12' ceilings and the family room is directly above. I intend on insulating the ceiling and putting up sound board. My goal is to isolate the noise from the house as much as possible. My dust collector is going in a separate room from where my tools are. I also don't like the idea of having the duct work hanging down and risk the possibility of damaging the hoses or piping.
Yea, I agree, I should have added I just don't like the appearance of ducts hanging from the ceiling. I can just picture all the cobwebs and dust.
The proper way to do it is to make a diagram of your shop and equipment and send ot over to Oneida and a few other companies tha specialize in this. They will size the dust collecotor and pipe sizes and always get somehting a bit bigger for future upgrades. Running pipe above or below isn't that much different. Standard is to use larger pipe and reduce it down. You will most likely start with 6" pipe before 4". Bigger elbow sweeps improve efficiency. You are not doing anything new so get advice from "Expereinced" experts before you do anything. This is how we do it in the factories and even before the internet so some advice is never going out of style.
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