Thread: Another Cyclone build series

Originally Posted by QC Inspector

I sit corrected.

Welcome to the best forum about dust collection. Should you take the time to read it you will learn a lot that will help you make an even better system if you ever want to.

Pete

I'll def be consulting you guys with any questions. Will be buying a real cyclone at some point I'm sure, but I've always got to try stuff for myself. I fail A LOT lol but I rarely ever regret it.

Dust extraction is quite like benches in some ways, and seemingly a right of passage to find out what suits.
You know what they say, need a bench to build a better one!

Bet idiotsapproacj isn't afraid of having another bash at it, should the right sized sheet metal crop up somewhere
it'll be a bit less daunting.
Ill be watching for sure, as it appears that this ain't no foolproof endeavour, (hell, we didn't even see so much as a SCRATCH )
especially/seemingly very much so, if needing to go even a little off the beaten track in regards to the plans,

Those plans, in which I guess likely used from grain fans or whatever, and worked out by very clever folk a century ago
Has there been any improvements since Bill launched his website, I wonder?

I guess that it must be obvious to those with such brain capacity that it would be evident if it was,
but perhaps these folk are trying to cut the costs, or make more compact for the consumer market.

Here's hoping at least I'll know what to expect if I happen onto some scrap sheet
which might hopefully be closer to the required size for Bills design/spec,
(the one thing someone experienced would be concerned about, vs an inexperienced person regarding everything being the unknown)


Thanks for your expertise folks !

Tom

Quoting Bill Pentz on cyclone proportions...

Cyclone research models all say the best fine dust separation occurs when the cone length is 3 times the upper cylinder diameter

All of the cyclones that I have built have been to that 3:1 ratio. They are highly efficient. The issue for most home workshops is that they don't have the available height to fit a cyclone of that size in them. So, Bill experimented with different reversal points for 18" diameter cyclone bodies (that 18" diameter is based on 3x the ducting inlet size of 6") to see if he could get a cyclone design that would fit inside a small home workshop and found...

The 1.64 times D cone multiplier is my innovation with my unique design. When used with a 18" diameter cyclone which is ideal for most small woodworking shops

That is the ratio used on the Clearviews. To that Bill added his ramp design to optimise the airflow for fine dust separation inside the cyclone.

Impellers and motor sizes are matched to work with 6" ducting and 18" cyclones. The ducting size relates to the air speeds required to entrain fine dust in at ports and to maintain the dust and larger particles in suspension through the ducting. If multiple ports are going to be open at the same time (in larger workshops with more than one operator) then a larger trunk will be needed, but the branching can still be 6" with an 18" cyclone run with more HP/larger impeller/higher rpm will be required. Domestic electricity power supplies is another factor in all of that.

Bill's website is not easy to 'digest'. It is more of a diary of his research journey and findings than a neat easy to follow DIY manual. It requires much time and effort to go through it all and to understand the key findings, then apply it to your own situation. However, it is an invaluable resource and we are indebted to him for his major contribution to those of us that wish to control the fine dust in our small woodworking shops.