[againstthegrain]

Has anyone made their own dust collector? I was talking to a carver yesterday at the Smoky Mountain Woodcarver's in Townsend, TN and he said you could make one out of a box fan (Wal-mart, $8) by turning the fan around so that the blowing part was away from you. He said to attach a piece of wood backing to the side that blows out the air so that you could slide a filter between the fan and the piece of wood backing. It would be easy enough to make, just have to add a couple of pieces of wood between the wood backing and the fan to allow for the width of the filter.

Just wondering if anyone has made such a dust collector, or does anyone have a better idea. "Real" dust collectors are so pricey!

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

I would think you would want the filter on the intake side? Be careful with that, motors of that type may not be designed to handle the dust. Some can start a fire.

[Kenny_S]

I have one in my garage that I made with the filter on the intake side. Guess you could put a filter on the exhaust side also. Mine done get it all but it sure cuts down on the dust for sure. Course I didn't get fancy, I used duct tape to hold the filter on. Ugggggggly but works.

[againstthegrain]

Kenny,

Ugly is OK! No one would see it but me. Can you post a pic?

[Thomp]

unless your trying to save heated or cooled air just put the fan in a window, blowing out, but force the air movement through a frame so air just dont bypass right back to the intake side,

wood burners have discussed the same fan/filter on there forum without exhausting the smoke some were getting sick....

[Claude]

I agree with Dave - best to have the fan suck the dust-laden air through the filter. To make clear. Work --> filter --> fan --> back into the room. The "-->" represents air flow. If you have the fan try to blow the dust-ladden air through the filter, you take a chance on dust/chips getting into the fan motor and either causing a fire, or abnormally fast wear on the motor.

Here's a link to plans for a homemade dust collector:

WWWoodc@rver E-zine, Volume3 Issue3, May 1999

Claude

[brian bailey]

Here is one that I made from plans in WoodSmith Magazine #95 Oct. 1994.

It uses 3 pleated filters 1"x14"x25" and a small furnace blower.
The overall size is 15 1/2" x 26 1/4" x 32". I have it mounted on a roller base so I can move it around.
I use it in front of my work bench when sanding.
Works great!

Also in that same issue is plans for a smaller dust collector that uses one filter and 2 bathroom exhaust fans.

The 2nd photo was taken with the top removed.

[Capt. Bandaid]

I made one with a box fan and furnace filter. It works pretty good but it makes you feel like you are working in a wind tunnel.

[againstthegrain]

Thank you for your suggestions! I appreciate all the input. You guys have been so helpful.

[Paul_Guraedy]

I am building a carving studio and am at the painting stage. My brother owns a heating and mechanical business. I mentioned to him that I was thinking of building in my own dust removal system for power carving. He asked me what I had in mind. I told him that I wanted:

it built into my work table, downdraft, dust contained by 3 sides, exhaust to outside, roughly 2'x3'.

I was thinking of an inverted pyramid with a filter at the bottom and a bathroom fan for power. He advised:

first use a "squirrel cage" for air movement to keep the motor outside of the dust flow, don't bother with a filter since I am not talking commercial amounts of dust...just blow it outside of the building, use one of the "clothes dryer" type "self closing" vents to retain my cooled/heated air, and in the interest of time/effort he would make me a "funnel" from sheet metal.

I use an old "squirrel cage" he gave me as a fan when I am not using air conditioning, just built a frame for it.....these things create hurricanes. He said that they make small "squirrel cage" fan/motors that are ideal for the cfm's I would need to get rid of carving dust.

We are in the process of doing the final design. I will post photos and such when we get it finished.