J. Phil Thien's Projects

I also  used dowels and screws - no problems.       Jim

Phil - the photos were each 650 - 780 kb, so I shrunk them and got ok thumb size.  Thanx.   Jim

Hi - I also thank Vawoodworker for his super design, and I put a few mods on mine.

1) I remounted the whole DC on a new, castered stand to keep it portable, thus eliminating the need to mount the blower & motor to a wall,

2) Being concerned about the TRUE volume flow from an HF unit, I went with 5" ducting, and

3) I built mine with ONLY 1/8" hardboard separating the "topper" top from bottom, then cut out the bottom to extend the hardboard "swirl chamber" about 3/4" into the trash can, then added a common Thien baffle made from 2 sandwiched/glued 1/8" hardboard discs (Phil recommends a thin baffle).

So far I am very pleased -very good separation and no apparent scrubbing in the plastic dust bag - but, testing to date has been minimal, so I'm looking forward to a good run sucking up planer chips.

Jim

Hi - I've been trying to reply to several member's posts, but when I construct my message, add the attachments (photos), and hit "POST", nothing happens & neither my message nor photos go anywhere, and never show up in the original post. What's with the "max 125 kb per post: 15" warning that appears on  "attachments" , (I believe "attachments" is located by clicking "additional options" or some similar phrase). Can photos EVER be LESS than 125 kb?? Is the "125 kb limit the problem (I only have three photos)? I've dreaded creating this thread, but I'm at "the end of my rope" with this frustration!!!

Jim Finnegan

Thanks, both Phil and Fred! Fred - you "plumbed" your DC ducting with 5" HVAC pipe. I have the same DC, and am planning to "duct" my installation with the same piping.

In your May 9, 2010 thread, "New to DC - have a question", the photos suggest that the duct joint between the trash can pipe  and the upstream ductwork was done with a "tape" joint - true?

I believe Fred's input, but anything I can reasonably do to reduce the system SP loss is all in my favor. I'm considering cutting the crimps off, then joining sections by butting them together and "tying" them to each other with a sheet metal collar around the joint and pop rivets. I know its a lot of work (and I may abandon it once I try it!), but that's where my "head" is right now. Comments, please!

Again - THANKS!!!                         Jim         

Phil - I hated to drag up this old thread, but I wanted the photo. Looking at the really nice side entry modification, does it bother you (or anyone else) that the air/chip flow will jam right into the crimps in the HVAC pipe? HVAC is my best bet, size and money-wise. My plan is one main duct run & a couple branches. But, all the fittings which are "flow through" with either a 30 or 45 degree branch will all cause the flow to go INTO the crimps instead of flowing THROUGH the crimp area (as the flow would go in a correctly done HVAC installation). Is this "jamming" a problem? If so, how can I overcome it?                  Thanx                        Jim Finnegan

I agree - I really don't have a GOOD reason - or, at least I can't think of one! And, I may go back to metal. We'll see what is available locally.                       Jim

Again, thanks dbhost for your input. Got a note from vawoodworker84. His plastic container is doing fine.  Rubbermaid has a commercial line called BRUTE, and I'll go with the 32 gallon. Let ya'all know how it works out when I get it built.                   Jim

dbhost - very fair response! And, thank you. My plan is a HF 2hp DC, modified to get the blower venting directly into the filter system (no 5" flex hose), and an "on can" separator similar to the one in this thread. Rubbermaid makes some commercial/industrial 32 gal "trash cans", and I see a plastic one in this thread.

Given this info, any more inputs are GREATLY appreciated!   

Someone else asked "Does a PLASTIC trash can REALLY work without collapsing"? Please - anyone - post an answer to the question. I'm ready to build, and my plastic trash can is here, but I DON'T want to build the entire thing, only to collapse the container.          Thanx             Jim   

Biowood - and Others - I am brand new to posting to this forum. I read your question re: measuring actual DC flow before and after ducting, mods, etc. I would be installing/building my system right now, but we engineers like to engineer 1st, then build. But, with a new HF 2HP unit, I don't have (and can't get) any baseline data anyway. So, whatever I do, I'm just "shooting blind". I have posted similar to this post  on other forums, but there does not seem to be a lot of interest in "hard data". Maybe, since all you folks are into building, modding, etc., this may be the best forum for this post.

I believe I can get the instrument setup to do this for about $100.00. I'm an Aero Engr, so I can do the "number crunching", set up instructions, conversion charts, etc. I'm STRONGLY considering doing this for myself, so I would have to do the tech work anyway, but then I would only have one data set. That would be great for me, but why not "share the opportunity". The instrument is small & easy to mail.

Folks - does anyone else have any interest in this idea? Please post, if only a "yea" or "nay" -

Jim Finnegan

PS. One question I really want an answer to is, given two identical built-in DC systems, one with expensive welded ductwork and one with the common ducting you can get at Home Depot, Loews, etc., how much more does the "cheap" ducting cost me in static pressure loss, if any?