Thread: Dust extractor filter - required after cyclone?

Originally Posted by Warb

Central West, Mudgee area (I've updated my profile!). I live on a farm so I'm planning a cyclone and then "straight out" - the benefits of having no close neighbours!

Why bother with the cyclone then?

It'd be easier to just suck and dump it all straight outside, even if its just straight into an open top box or a pile on the ground. The fine stuff can just float away with the breeze

Would a cyclone put your tools in the bucket if tools got sucked up ?

Originally Posted by Hoey

Would a cyclone put your tools in the bucket if tools got sucked up ?

I had a little 2m Stanley tape measure go through the ducting into the collection bucket under the cyclone. It survived, because my impeller is after the cyclone in my system. I retrieved it on emptying the collector only because it was easy to see. It only cost me $2.00 t Bunnings.

Originally Posted by havabeer69

Why bother with the cyclone then?

It'd be easier to just suck and dump it all straight outside, even if its just straight into an open top box or a pile on the ground. The fine stuff can just float away with the breeze

You're probably quite right, but I thought long and hard and finally went cylcone for several reasons (real or imaginary!).

Firstly, one of the problems I'm having with my existing setup is that long shavings get trapped on the leading edge of the "fan" in the extractor (they also got trapped on the strange cross-piece in the inlet, but that got removed!) which can't do anything for efficiency. I first noticed this when the extractor blocked after we vacuumed up some long hand-plane shavings, but I've since realised that sometimes it also happens to longer shavings from the lathe. I decided that a cyclone would remove these, and avoid clogging the extractor.

Secondly, if I simply ejected the shavings then sooner or later I'd have to deal with them. If they got wet and stacked up against the shed they might encourage rust, and there is a chance that a pile of shavings might compost down developing enough heat to catch fire. Whilst this sounds unlikely, it does actually happen in wet hay - when I bought this farm one of my first jobs was rebuilding a large hay shed that had burnt down for this exact reason. This possibility only occurred to me very recently, when I drove past a pile of mulched timber on the roadside (the RMS have been clearing trees from the sides of roads around here) with smoke billowing from the top. Obviously I have no idea what had happened, it may have been a cigarette or possibly lit deliberately, but it made me think!

Thirdly, the area behind this workshop where the extractor will exit is the place we store/wash/fill a large spray rig (weed sprayer). The fines that get through a cyclone won't cause a problem, but having my sprayer covered in wood shavings is something I'd rather avoid.

Lastly, I'm trying to encourage my son to do the right thing. My fathers motto was "do as I say, not as I do", but I'm trying to lead by example!

Originally Posted by Warb

You're probably quite right, but I thought long and hard and finally went cylcone for several reasons (real or imaginary!).

Firstly, one of the problems I'm having with my existing setup is that long shavings get trapped on the leading edge of the "fan" in the extractor (they also got trapped on the strange cross-piece in the inlet, but that got removed!) which can't do anything for efficiency. I first noticed this when the extractor blocked after we vacuumed up some long hand-plane shavings, but I've since realised that sometimes it also happens to longer shavings from the lathe. I decided that a cyclone would remove these, and avoid clogging the extractor.

Secondly, if I simply ejected the shavings then sooner or later I'd have to deal with them. If they got wet and stacked up against the shed they might encourage rust, and there is a chance that a pile of shavings might compost down developing enough heat to catch fire. Whilst this sounds unlikely, it does actually happen in wet hay - when I bought this farm one of my first jobs was rebuilding a large hay shed that had burnt down for this exact reason. This possibility only occurred to me very recently, when I drove past a pile of mulched timber on the roadside (the RMS have been clearing trees from the sides of roads around here) with smoke billowing from the top. Obviously I have no idea what had happened, it may have been a cigarette or possibly lit deliberately, but it made me think!

Thirdly, the area behind this workshop where the extractor will exit is the place we store/wash/fill a large spray rig (weed sprayer). The fines that get through a cyclone won't cause a problem, but having my sprayer covered in wood shavings is something I'd rather avoid.

Lastly, I'm trying to encourage my son to do the right thing. My fathers motto was "do as I say, not as I do", but I'm trying to lead by example!

Shavings can catch fire in the manner you mentioned - happened quite a few years ago on a very windy night in the SE suburbs of Melbourne - a few hours after the first fire truck arrived there was about 10 industrial premises downwind on fire and someone decided that the new tactical goal was to contain the fire to the suburb or origin!

Warb if you don't have an aversion to buying directly from China hot wire anemometers can be had for about a $100US. Still not cheap but not terribly bad, just make sure the measuring range is enough. In the second Sticky at the top of this forum Bob has a rundown on how to do the testing and there is more info in other threads throughout the forum.

Sawmills all over western Canada have sprinklers constantly spraying the massive sawdust piles throughout the summer to keep them from igniting by heat from composting. They turn them off when it gets cold.

Pete

Originally Posted by QC Inspector

Warb if you don't have an aversion to buying directly from China hot wire anemometers can be had for about a $100US.

Sawmills all over western Canada have sprinklers constantly spraying the massive sawdust piles throughout the summer to keep them from igniting by heat from composting. They turn them off when it gets cold.

Pete

Thanks Pete. I don't mind buying direct from China, I've purchased a fair number of drones and also surveillance cameras that way because the mark-ups in Australia were crazy - sometimes 4 times the price (and they try to blame it on 10% tax!) for the same item makes for an easy decision! I'll investigate the options......

Originally Posted by QC Inspector

Warb if you don't have an aversion to buying directly from China hot wire anemometers can be had for about a $100US. Still not cheap but not terribly bad, just make sure the measuring range is enough. In the second Sticky at the top of this forum Bob has a rundown on how to do the testing and there is more info in other threads throughout the forum.

Sawmills all over western Canada have sprinklers constantly spraying the massive sawdust piles throughout the summer to keep them from igniting by heat from composting. They turn them off when it gets cold.

Pete

Thanks for the link, it's Taiwanese made whoo hoo

Hoey