Thread: Ducting FAQ - suggestions for content

yep as a newish weekend wood worker it would be nice to have a very readable condensed or bullet point version of what i should be looking at for buying a decent more adequate dust extraction setup. maybe even if its own little subsection somewhere for us guys who only use the table saw once every week or two and don't quite require a huge multi running machine setup which i guess is hard on a "doing it right vs doing what you can fit/afford". As much as i should be i'm just not interested in matching impeller designs, or the exact flow rate over my entire system, i more just need a list of some recommended items or ideas that i should be following to avoid my self and lungs getting caked in wood particles.

but some simple guidelines along the lines of (this just some rough points from the small amount of reading i've been doing):

1. sort out your dust extraction because dust = bad... like really bad for you, also your machines, and the time spent having to clean up
2. if space permits, buy a 2hp extractor as a minimum
3. shove it out side if possible, if not encapsulate it as best you can
4. 6" hose/pipe is better then 4" as more flow is better then higher pressure (or is it vacuum)
5. try to avoid 90 degree bends where possible in your setup
6. etc
7. etc

its actually kind of sad that my setup at the moment is basically the opposite of that list


my apologies, i just read the last line in your OP that said you don't want to talk about extractors. please disregard the above.

Great idea Bob. It would also be useful to show how to connect a manometer to the ducting.

Thanks for the continual feed back.

RE: Dust collectors; As well as taking too long, I'm barely in the mood to write something about ducting.

Lance: Your question is easily and quickly answered.
When I have used a U-tube liquid manometer I have used 4 mm clear PVC tubing and connected that to 4mm black micro irrigation hose using micro irrigation fittings. My digital pressure devices are connected using the same 4mm hose and fittings.

To connect the 4mm hose to ducting I drill a 4mm hole in the ducting and thread the hole with an M5 tap.
It's a wierd combo but it works, even though its 4 mm hose the double ended screw fittings are closer to an M5 thread.
I then screw a double ended screw fitting into the hole and seal it with Loctite.

Often I don't drill holes in the ducting instead I use a micro irrigation tap attached to ducting end caps like the pic below.
These are great when building a system - add a couple of components and the temporarily add the cap and check pressures to suss out any leaks etc
The little caps are used to assess shop vac pressures.
More inför about pressure measurements here
Fibreglass Cyclone Project

Originally Posted by BobL

Lance: Your question is easily and quickly answered.

Thanks Bob. I did actually know the answer, as that's exactly what I did, but when I did it, it took me ages searching the forums to find your instructions, hence my suggestion it go in the guide. The end cap idea is new to me though.

Originally Posted by BobL

Unlike other forum posts what I write will also not be cast in stone. As I have mod status I can edit this post indefinitely so if members can convince me to add or modify something I might just do that

Your FAQ would be invaluable, Bob.

As a long time user of these forums (just a year behind you Bob), my preference is to keep as much as possible within the same thread as defined by the thread Title.

Given your mod status, if your initial post in the FAQ includes your index of sub-topics these can be hyperlinked progressively as you add those sub-topic posts (plus a hyperlink back to the index post). That should address Dave's (dmorse) concern about navigation.

This doesn't preclude hyperlinks to associated threads to avoid duplication.

Wishing you as pleasant recovery.

Thanks Neil,

I like your idea of linked subtopics as individual posts in the same thread.

This also might push me to keep going with this as I ran out of steam last week when I over did the walking around on my crutches and have had to spend more time laying down.

OK have written the bulk of the text and it comes to about 6 x A4 pages.
I have split these up into 8 separate posts that I will hyper link to a TOC in an intro post.

What I would like to write now is an FAQ section so am looking for suitable (newbie) questions to provide brief answers to
Remember this is only about ducting.

Maybe try putting on a newbie hat first.
Thanks

Newby question. If I exhaust my DC to the outside how big should the duct be?

Pete

Originally Posted by QC Inspector

Newby question. If I exhaust my DC to the outside how big should the duct be?

Pete

Good question but I'm wondering if that is more of a DC question. I'll have a think about it.

Newbie question: I'm thinking I might need to change my ducting layout later and would like to just push fit all of my fittings together so that I can reuse them if I do that. How critical is it that the ducting joints be airtight?

Good question but I think I have answered that in post #8 in the Recommendations thread.
DRAFT Ducting Recommendations

Originally Posted by NeilS

Newbie question: I'm thinking I might need to change my ducting layout later and would like to just push fit all of my fittings together so that I can reuse them if I do that. How critical is it that the ducting joints be airtight?

I saw a guy on YouTube who did a Clearview install, he wrapped all his fittings in silicon tape so it was sealed but removable.

Tommy Tape 25mm x 3m Specialty Tape - White | Bunnings Warehouse

That silicone tape is fantastic stuff for some applications, but I wouldn't use it to seal ducting. It bonds to itself, so you can't unwrap it. You have to cut it off. And it's insanely expensive. The best stuff for sealing ducting is, not surprisingly, duct tape. I've installed a lot of flexible ducting in ceilings and under floors for heating/cooling systems. All joints were sealed with pvc duct tape. I was in my own ceiling a few days ago and the tape is holding up well after 15 years in that extreme environment.

Bear 48mm x 30m Black PVC Duct Tape | Bunnings Warehouse

20c per metre vs $4.66 per metre!

Great Series Bob

Newbie Question How do you read and understand a Cincinati Flow Chart?

Cheers Barry