Dust collector

[Sean Boyle]

I have the run of the mill 1 hp dust collector with the 1 micron fabric filter on the top. I have noticed reduced suction has anyone tried to wash the bag and what's better hand or machine wash or is it better to just replace

 

[Bill Boehme]

I turn mine wrong side out and beat it against a tree -- standing upwind on a windy day. I'm skeptical that a fabric filter really can work to catch one micron particles. At least, mine doesn't. I see a cloud of visible dust hovering around the bag on my cheapo DC. I would love to have something better. Andy Chen gave me a copy of the design he used to build his own DC. I probably ought to build one like that to replace my current DC.

 

[Mike Brazeau]

Sean, I have washed a bag once. Just did it in the laundry tub as I didn't want to upset SWMBO. Didn't seem to do any harm. Also used to take it off and just bang against a tree outside to clean. To improve the 1HP collector, I bought the larger bag that Lee Valley sell. A DC consultant in our area used to supply them too. Checkout my Dust Collection section at the link below. I also converted my drum collector to a Phil Thein configuration. Made that mod several years ago and still happy with it. Bag still does gets loaded up with time but larger surface area and Thein design help. I whack the bag with a stick as the collector powers down to get rid of some of the buildup.

 

[Mark Mandell]

I replaced my stock bag with one from Process Systems, an outfit that made custom DC bags. It is far heavier and 3 times the size of stock bags and never gets washed. When the catch bag (now plastic) is ready to be emptied, I whack and shake the big bag to break up part of the dust-cake in the bag. Keep in mind that the dust cake (the coating of fines in the upper bag) increases the efficiency of the filtering. My link for them no longer works but you can try the American Fabric Filter guys as they make the same kinds of things.

http://www.americanfabricfilter.com/index.html

They will ask you about your "system" and then suggest the upgrades to optimize collection

 

[Michael Mendelsohn]

I replaced the pleated filter on my Grizzly 2hp cyclone system with a set of 8 felt tubes purchased from American Fabric Filter. I found that after about 5 years the pleated filter had become clogged to the point that the back pressure was killing the airflow. The system could barely keep up with a single machine.

After replacing the filter the airflow is dramatically improved. I can run the system with several gates open and it will still keep up. I also found that the increased airflow makes the cyclone more effective and I get very little fine dust in the filters.

American Fabric Filter posted pictures of my solution on their web site - http://www.americanfabricfilter.com/Converting_cartridge_cyclone_to_bags.php

 

[robo hippy]

I guess the pleated filters can get clogged to the point where they no longer work as well as they used to. The main advantage they have is you get far more surface area for the air to vent out, in far less area than the bag filters take up. Other than that, some times shavings and 'stuff' can clog up your lines, and the impeller blades on your dust collector. My first one didn't have a cross hairs on the port into the impeller blades. That did cause some problems till I figured it out. Once I got a cyclone, there was no problem at all. Every thing went into the cyclone before it got any where near the impeller blades.

robo hippy

 

[JeffSmith]

a few years ago I replaced the original felt bags that came with my small DC with a cannister from Wynn Environmental. The cost was reasonable when you consider that some of their filter media can be hauled down to the carwash and cleaned (I've never tried this...but some have). They make filter media for both woodworking machines and industrial air systems. All their filters are made in the US - added benefit, in my opinion.
When I got a newer 2hp HF DC at a yard sale a couple of years ago, the first thing I did was replace the bags, again with a cannister from Wynn Environmental. They've got kits for most dust collectors and have great information on their website. A good cannister filters down to 99.9% of .5 microns and will last for a very long time. On my systems they've provided better filtration and increased the airflow dramatically. Clean it occasionally with the airgun on my compressor and it's good to go.
While it may sound like it, I do not have any connection with them except as a satisfied repeat customer. Good people and a great product.
http://wynnenv.com/