To do this, I made a simple stand with spruce legs and plywood stretchers. When I bought my dust collector, I thought it would be perfect for the kind of work I do in my shop. Much better to do what you can to capture the dust at the machine and have a small air cleaner running constantly to filter the airborne dust. Ive come to the conclusion that to have any kind of large scale dust collection in a small hobby-type shop occupies too much space and may be overkill. 
If the pressure drop proved to be too large, I could always put a bigger blower unit on top, just by lifting off this one.
Having the air cleaner turn on with the lights would mean its working while you are in the shop, and this is something I will be doing in the near future. The few times when I would create a lot of dust can be handled with the trusty broom and dustpan. I should say that the collector did work well, but was not well suited to the situation. Here Ive attached one of the side panels. To fix it, I added solid wood strips to the edge: With that little problem solved, I could move on to assembling the collector cabinet. The pipe then goes across the floor beside the saw. The next day, I put the filter bag on and found that the collar was not quite big enough. Click here for 27 plans for dust collectors, 40 Plans for Homemade Sanders: Disc, Drum, Spindle, and Thickness Sanders, http://woodgears.ca/dust_collector/blower.html, Workers between a bridge expansion joint - GIF, Definition of kilogram, amp, and kelvin set to change forever, Roubo's Winding Sticks - 18th Century Design, Crane tips over while lifting bulldozer - GIF. To make this as airtight as possible, I added a ring of 3/4 plywood to the blower housing that provides a flat mating surface: I used my compact compass to draw the right size hole: A bead of construction adhesive seals and fixes the ring to the blower housing. 
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Also, by adding a port for the 2-1/2 hose, I can still use it to vacuum the shop floor. 
Even with building it on the fly, I dont know that I could have done much better, performance wise. This is a little higher than the middle of the hooded area and works well to draw out the airborne dust from using the miter saw. This will allow me to use that space to put another tool on a pull out shelf. 
It is held in place, set to the angle that needs to be matched, and then measured with a protractor or marked off on the, Leer este artculoen espaol I first had the idea for this diy belt sander two years ago and quickly made the prototype, with the intention that I would build the final version shortly thereafter. All Rights Reserved. To seal the filter bag compartment, I just held a piece of 1/4 plywood over the front and turned on the blower. The model I bought was inexpensive and the specifications say its capable of 350cfm, which is probably a little low for the kind of dust a table saw can pump out. Another blast gate stops flow from the table saw, and that is just below the inlet for the hose to vacuum the floor: I have to say that at first, I thought I would not use this for some cuts, but find that every time I get ready to make a cut, I immediately turn the collector on. Another 4 hole is cut through the top of the cabinet for the inlet to come though. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. The idea is to catch the fine dust that these two tools produce, while leaving the heavier dust to the passive collection systems that are already in place. I cut the right size hole through the side of the chop saw station and screwed the box on from inside. To make sure this junction is as airtight as possible, I used more of the construction adhesive to caulk the joint all the way around.
I expect the few crumbs fell back down from the filter bag, after the blower stopped. It is probably the best glue to use for this, since it adheres to both wood and metal and can easily fill any gap between the two: Ive cut blocks to prop the collar up high enough to get the filter bag back on afterwards. Even though I wasnt sure that this new configuration for the collector would work well, I still took the time to make sure that all of the things that should be done, were done. As it turns out, that was actually a lot more inconvenient than I thought, especially in a small shop with limited walking space and always a bunch of stuff on the floor. About the only thing I regularly connected it to was my thickness planer. I may look at making something that will capture the fine dust inside the hood, but right now thats not a priority. I may experiment with a smaller, more portable design, something that is small enough to wheel around the shop for cleaning. spent a bit more time at the drawing board. The sides and back are 1/2 plywood, glued and screwed to the centre section. When cutting dusty material like MDF, I would often connect it to my table saw to let it catch the fine dust. Going forward, I will work to improve the passive dust collection on the table saw and may use another smaller shop vac for fine dust control.
My thinking is that it would be the perfect place to put my surface planer, since the stand for that is another project that has not worked well in my shop. Airflow through the inlet was strong, also, in spite of the bottom compartment being wide open: With the blower turned off and the plywood removed, I looked to see how close the filter bag is to the sides after it was fully expanded. It would be wired so that it will turn on when the table saw is started. Of, Back in November, 2011, after I finished myrouter table project, I started getting requests for plans. I then left it to dry overnight. To join the tee to the inlet, I cut a short length of pipe as a coupling: The pipe is a tight fit over the inlet and I just screwed that in place using sheet metal screws. The fact is, the two tools it is connected to have very effective passive dust collection and really dont need this large unit. There will be lots of people suggesting that this is a dangerous trip hazard, but for those of us that have some real world experience, and actually pay attention to what we are doing, this wont be a problem. Time for a quick test. But thats at topic for another day. Honestly though, I'd just go out and buy one. With the bulk of the cabinet done, I had to figure out how to mount the blower. Homemade dust collector blower featuring a handmade pine impeller and powered by a motor sourced from a surplus tile saw. It also works with the new belt grinder stand that I will be building very soon, in that it increases the amount of space beneath the top of the stand. The front panel is screwed in place, just tight enough to compress the weatherstrip to get a good seal: To close the bottom compartment, I made a panel from 3/4 plywood that is glued and nailed in place. For the table saw, I needed to figure out the best place to put the inlet. The miter saw is very good as it is, but can be improved by closing in the hood as much as possible. This one had to be cut for the inlet pipe: The back is put on.
I just used an ordinary light switch to do this. In its place, I ran a wire down the side of the cabinet to a switch mounted at a convenient height: Easy to quickly switch it on before a cutting operation. Copyright 2022 IBUILDIT.CA. Next, I added cleats to attach the front panel: I then put peel and stick foam weatherstripping around it to make an air tight seal. To get started, the first thing I have to do is adapt the metal centre section of the collector (the part where the filter bag will attach) so that a cabinet can be built around it. To empty the collection bin, an access door is needed, and I cut an opening near the bottom in the front panel: The door for the opening is 3/4 plywood, fitted with cabinet door hinges and a weatherstripping gasket: The door overlays the opening by about 3/4 on all sides, providing a place for the weatherstripping seal. In the end, it turned out better than I expected. I then cut out a piece of 3/4 plywood to fit: Then made a scoop with more plywood and cut a 4 hole in the bottom for the pipe. My shop is not used constantly, very little in fact, and dust control is not a big issue. This kind of abuse takes its toll on the impeller and housing, which is quite dented. Overall, a fairly simple design to build, with no complex joinery just butt joints, glued and nailed: I used 3/4 plywood for the top and bottom. Ive always found the working height to be a bit too low, so this will make it more comfortable to use. With the dust collector out of the way, I was able to move the miter saw station a bit further down the wall, and raise it up about 4 higher. Since I have so many shop organization projects happening, I decided to rebuild the dust collector and make it stationary. It is a typical Thien baffle with a slot cut three quarters of the way around to let the dust drop through to the collection bin: To attach it, more construction adhesive is applied to the rim of the centre section. There are a few things that I will be changing over the next month or two, and the dust collector is the first to go. Thats fine, if all that goes in is saw dust. I decided to keep it simple and just let it sit up on top of the cabinet with the inlet pipe coming down through to hold it in place. Easy enough to do with a zipcut blade in the grinder. Managing all of the various bits, pieces, parts, fittings and a multitude of fasteners can be. The pipe meets the side at an angle and I also want a blast gate here, so I need to make an angled box to fit: The blast gate is just a piece of 1/4 plywood with a stop on the inside, to keep it from sliding all the way out. I have to say that I wasnt 100% certain that doing this would be successful, so I rushed through it without much planning, just to see if it would work as I thought it would. As I was using mine mainly to clean up, it would suck in all kinds of things, including this countersink: Thats where it was! I found that while taking the unit apart to do this rebuild. To hold the door tightly closed, I made a simple latch using a hanger bolt, wing nut and fender washer: When closed, the door seals tight to the front panel. The table saw and miter saw are the two most used tools in my shop, so I figured I could put it close to those and connect it directly to both. I made a short video going through the build, plus a brief demonstration at the beginning: Well, its exactly one year later and I have decided that this type of dust collection is not what I need in my shop. I've been fixing up my shed to use for metal working projects and part of that is to include an area for lumber storage. The next part goes at the bottom of the centre section and divides it from the collection bin below. I was pleased to see that it sucked in tight to the cabinet and stayed in place. The vac would only work to capture the fine dust inside the saw housing, creating negative pressure to pull air into the saw whenever the saw is used. It was portable and I could just move it where needed and quickly connect it to the tool I would be using. A project well worth the time and effort, transforming the nearly useless dust collector that I had into a valuable shop tool. DIY Dust Collector Blower - comment on how to build a Dust Collector Blower - 1 comments. At this point, there is no gasket between the ring and the top of the cabinet, since I wanted to make sure that this was going to be an effective arrangement before going much further. Mostly I just used it to vacuum the floor, during my all too infrequent clean-up sessions. That's a finely crafted piece. Along with that, it can be switched on to clean the air in the shop while Im doing some other operation, like sanding. This bottom compartment is where the dust will collect: Another test was to vacuum up a pile of sawdust and small pieces of wood to see how well the Thien baffle works. When I want to increase suction at the table saw or to use the hose, I can close the blast gate. Get 500+ tool plans, full site access, and more. I removed the power switch that was on the blower unit, since I could no longer reach it. The majority of these requests were for the lift itself - some wanted the table as well, but most, It wasn't long after buying this house in 2005 that I began renovations on various parts of it. Of course, I made some mistakes that could have been avoided if I had Clamps hold it until the glue dries. The corner gussets are cut from the circle left over from cutting out the ring for the centre section: I can drive screws up through these into the bottom of the collector to attach the stand. A look inside the centre section afterwards shows it is performing very well, with nearly nothing left. Here Ive got it put where it will be in the shop, right next to the chop saw station: The perfect height for the garbage bucket I have. I could have been a bit more generous with how much space there is, but it seems to be working well and the bag is not actually touching the sides, so air can still flow reasonably well. This will really be a time saver over the original setup, and hopefully a lot less messy. I then extended the pipe over to the chop saw station. Signup for our newsletter and get the 173 Best Homemade Tools eBook free! Then the other side was put on. A sliding t-bevel is used to measure or transfer angles. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. In order to conveniently empty the collection bin, I decided to lift the collector up off the floor high enough to get a garbage can under it to scoop the dust into.
I figured that the best place to capture the fine dust, is right there, at the front of the saw: I marked and cut out an opening in the front panel of the saw. Looking inside, I saw that most of the dust is thrown downward off the front of the blade into the bin at the bottom. To do this, I cut two pieces of 3/4 plywood into equal parts, then put them together and drew a circle that is equal to the outside diameter of the centre section: I then cut out each half on the band saw and fitted around the centre section: Polyurethane construction adhesive is used to attach the two halves. The only time I would switch it on was for an extended cutting session on the table saw, and those events are fairly rare. I made a video showing the work and in it I talk a bit about what I have in mind: All of the parts will be saved and reused, including the plywood it was made from and the blower unit. Over the last year Ive used the dust collector less and less, and eventually not at all. One of the biggest problems with the type of dust collector that I had is that everything that gets sucked in has to pass the impeller. It worked well for that, drastically reducing the amount that got into the air. I came to this conclusion after a reassessment of the layout and tool placement in my workshop. Next up, the ducting, and Im using 4 PVC. The glue needs several hours to cure, but before leaving it, I make sure the two parts are lined up correctly. The clasp sticks out past it: Lack of a detailed plan and trying to make this as slim as possible are to blame for this mistake. It is extremely effective at keeping the air free of dust while Im making cuts, and has proven itself in the short time since I finished it. The kitchen was at the top of the list, but since it was such a large project,, I'm currently doing a major renovation on my house and, as usual, I'm doing most of the work myself.