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does exhausters really suck chips away??

S

squirrel

Joined
Sep 27, 2007
Messages
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Location
Belgium
I explored the market to find the right exhauster. I wanted it to do 2 things: suck the dust and suck the chips as I do not want to have chips or dust in my studio anymore (health).

I saw good ones, pretty powerfull. When you put your hand before the entrance (16 cm wide) it really sucks very hard but ... 10 - 15 cm further you hardly feels some air?!?
All new woodworkingmachines have flexible pipelines and 'mouths' very very close to the area where the dust or chips appear.
In woodturning the only place where you can put the big mouth is on the other side of the lathe. Even when you place it as close as possibel, i hardly cannot believe that the chips who fly in your direction of course , suddenly would change their flying direction and go to the opposite side????
But if they don't do that, there is no need for a big installation to suck chips, because you will use the exhauster as a vacuumcleaner: sucking the chips of from the ground after you stopped turning.
If this is true, the main thing to have in the shop is a filter to clean the air as good as possible (which is done by the type of exhauster I want to buy as well ) but .... as I am wearing a face shield with an airfilter included .... why should I buy a bigger one for? Maybe to have a double air filter?

Does anybody has experience with this matter?
Thanks - Squirrel
 
Dust collectors are great for collecting the finer dust and particles that we create when turning. If you turn bowls, most of them can not keep up with the volumes of shavings that we can generate, and a big scoop shovel works better.

The hose by itself, will get a lot of the dust, but if you want to get most if not all of it, you need a hood of some sort, and the more enclosed the hood is the more dust you collect. This is a short video of my sanding hood I use for bowls. There are many variations, even a cardboard box with the hose sticking out the back is better than the end of the hose.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZsVc7qVx7A

robo hippy
 
Squirrel I don't think anyone has found a way to catch all the chips that are generated when turning on a lathe. I have a 6" plastic pipe connected to a 2 hp blower exhausting outside. I also have a 16" exhaust fan in the wall behind my lathe and it exhaust outside. Neither get very many of the big curly chips but they do get most of the fine dust, the kind that is most dangerous to your health. I have to open a window a little to let in outside air. It makes the shop a little cool in the winter but for me I will take cool over dust. Sometimes I use a 4" flex pipe to pick up the chips but they go through the blower and hang on the blades of the blower. They are easy to clean off but I usually just shovel them outside.
 
hello,


thanks for the writings and for the video. You are both expressing my ideas.
I would like to buy a 3 hp and the pipes are 16 cm (1 inch is 2.54 cm)
I had the intention to make a hose for sanding and to use the end of the pipe as a vacuumcleaner for the chips. Thanks - it proves that my thinking was right.
Squirrel
 
Squirrel,

You should be looking at CFM (cubic feet per minute) rather than horsepower, and cyclone systems are the state of the art.

I strongly suggest you spend some time on Bill Pentz's site, do the reading to understand the issues, and then work up your collection system accordingly.

http://billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/index.cfm

m
 
A cyclone (or any dust collection setup) won't get all the chips, there is just too wide of an area that they eject from, on both sides of the lathe. But, the chips aren't a health problem (unless they are hitting you or some type of odor output that effects the breathing).

If you have an enclosed studio, where you can't exhaust the air, the cyclone with a good filter and overhead dust filtration would be the way to go.

If you have a studio with a door, you could just put a fan behind you and blow the dust away. A filtered helmet with forced air will take care of dust issues also, but if it is enclosed you will want an air filtration system that stays on long after you leave the studio to take care of the airborne dust. You will also need to be diligent about cleaning the filters.
 
Dust from sanding is about all you will do with a collector. I even have ducts with screen in them to protect myself from chasing wads of shavings if I accidentally turn the collector on when turning. Shavings lodge in the hose and can be frustratingly difficult to dislodge. Neglected sandpaper can also be a nightmare.

I have my lathe up against a wall, with a tabletop behind to keep shavings from falling into the gap. If you don't want to take your lathe to the wall, take a wall to your lathe by adding a vertical component to keep things from flying all over the shop. That, and a collection bag under the piece being turned will capture nearly everything. Scoop the stuff from behind periodically and add it to your bag. Keeps you from having to deal with shovels and brooms.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d160/GoodOnesGone/Forged-Peel-Long-View.jpg One day I'll enclose the front of the cabinet. I said that seven years ago....

I sand with power, so I can direct the stream of dust right into a pickup duct in front of the ways, and catch what ejects from the bottom of the bowl when working inside by attaching to the rear. http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d160/GoodOnesGone/Dryer-Duct.jpg Since gravity is my helper, I don't need any huge cubic meter capacity on the collector. Epoxy some magnets to the ductwork of your choice to hold in place.
 
I don't know of a way to pick up the chips. However I'm getting ready to start on a project of making a whole bunch of small bowls and will have chips everywhere. What I'm going to do is hang tarps around the lathe to contain the chips to at least a reasonably small area. they are going to be Oak and I don't want green Oak chips on any of my other tools or my motorcycle which also shares that space.
I thought i would buy 6 foot plastic tarps and overlap them so I can easily get out to other machines if need be. That will also serve the purpose of containing the heat. It's difficult to heat my entire shop but I think if I can mask off an 8x 10 foot area with the tarps I can get this area fairly warm and be able to get this production job out of my hair.
I'm also building a new dust collection chute for the lathe itself I may put one chute under the ways near the headstock to collect the dust and chips that fly that way. I'll put another one on an adjustable arm so I can move the collector to the best spot as well as rotate it for spindles or platters.
 
Like John, I think that containment of chips is the way to go. I have pull-down roller window shades on three sides of the lathe that use when roughing out large turnings. They are especially useful when turning green wood, keeping you from painting the whole shop with tree sap.

Dennis
 
You can pick up chips and shavings if

a) you have a cyclone collector so that the shavings stay out of the blower; and
b) you pipe your system with 6" pipe. 4" is fine for dust and saw dust, but you can't get enough air flowing in a 4" duct to move that kind of weight, especially when it's wet.

With a sufficient CFM in a 6" duct you can use a floor pick-up that allows you to sweep the shavings into the port.

I set up a set of heavy plastic sheets on shower rods that worked well to confine the shavings.
 
Mark Mandell said:
..... With a sufficient CFM in a 6" duct you can use a floor pick-up that allows you to sweep the shavings into the port....
Click to expand...

If you do this, put the collection bucket in an easy to reach place as you will have to empty it rather frequently.
 
squirrel said:
hello,

… I would like to buy a 3 hp and the pipes are 16 cm (1 inch is 2.54 cm)
I had the intention to make a hose for sanding and to use the end of the pipe as a vacuumcleaner for the chips. Thanks - it proves that my thinking was right.
Squirrel
Click to expand...

Most manufacturers of 2 hp dust collection systems will recommend that you run a main line that is 6 inches in diameter so that you will move enough air (about 1200 cu. ft/min air). If you run a 4 inch diameter main line, you will restrict your air flow. Now, your drop to each machine (e.g. your lathe) can be a 4 inch diameter hose.

If you run a 3 hp dust collector (1750 cu. ft/min air), then many manufacturers recommend that your main line be 8 inches in diameter. Again, your drop to your machine can be a 4 inch hose. The main idea is that you want to optimize the volume of air that is moving through your system. Lastly, remember that it is the fine dust that you want captured in the system. I have one and, believe me, it is the best investment in my health that I could have made (out side of the face shield that I always wear at the lathe). The chips that fall to the ground would never end up in your lungs. Besides, sweeping them up at the end of the day rather than passing them through your system will keep it operating at maximum efficiency for much longer. Good Luck!

Matt
 
answer

Hi guys!

sorry , I was awy from home for a wile!
Thanksfor all your replies! They are full of usefull tips!
Squirrel
 
Chip collecting

You can't catch them. If you are doing a pull cut they will be going over left shoulder and with a push cut they will flying off to the right.

I wait until the chips are knee deep and use a grain scoop to get them up.
 
The Bill Pentz site is excellent. Combine the cyclone with a drop box which is easier than emptying a bag & keeps any coarse stuff out of the fan. However you need big headroom. The Wood Magazine unit works well & is much shorter. You need volume to pick up fines, so the pipes should be minimum 6" right to the pick-up area. In using a cyclone, again, the outlet pipe should be larger to lower the air velocity which allows the fines to drop out better.
The ideal set-up would be cyclone with drop box - to fan - to a filter & reclaim the warm air you have paid to heat. It is doable!! Ron.
 
John Lucas, I bought two lagrge shades wiich I can pull down and up to confine the large chips to the vicinity of the lathe and I use a 4 inch pvc pipe connected to my vacum systerm to pull away the dust.
 
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