J. Phil Thien's Projects

Ok, great. So if I get a 2 HP blower from Penn State or somewhere, I should be able to pull this off. Thanks again.

I'm talking about blowing this stuff (fine dust only) either out onto my lawn or into a concealed utility area between the garage and house. The nearest neighboring house is around 150 feet away. On the lawn side, it's more like 250 feet, across a street, behind a thick wall of trees and shrubs. Are you saying that won't work? On a really busy day I produce about three gallons of sawdust, so it surprises me to hear that the fine dust, which is a smaller amount, would be a big deal.

I often use a leaf blower to blast excess fine dust out onto the driveway, and it hasn't been a problem, but it's not a very elegant solution. On blacktop, you can see the dust until the next rain or big wind, but I would think that on grass, it would be a different story.

Putting a bag outside won't work. It rains a lot here, and I can't build a shelter for it due to zoning issues. I could definitely get away with an exhaust duct, though. I don't mind catching and dumping the big particles.

I really don't want fine dust recirculating inside the garage, and it looks like the only way to guarantee that without exhausting the dust is to get a bulky sub-micron setup with tons of power.

As for the table saw, I have a Sharkguard on order. I want dust collection from the top.

I'm really sick of dust. If I want to use my tools, I have to do it all in one session, or else I have to shower and change clothes every time I turn a tool on. And masks are pretty awful. I don't think they even work (at least not the cheap ones). They don't seem to seal very well.

I've been told that dust collection is pretty much impossible for the band saw and jointer/planer, so maybe the best answer is to stick with a shop vac and continue blowing out the garage. I don't want to build a big project that only works with half of my tools.

Am I totally missing the point of the separator? I want something to capture the big chunks so I can blow the fine dust outside.

Okay, I can work that out. How big a container do I need?

Thanks for the reply.

I just found out about the Thien separator, and I have many dumb questions.

I live in Miami, so I don't have to worry about zero-degree air entering my shop when I pump air out. I would like to create a dust collection machine that lets me blow fine dust out into the yard, so it won't be in my garage with me. But to do that, I need a device to put between my tools and the air blower, to protect it from big pieces of crap. The Thien separator looks like a good option.

Here's what I want to know. How big does the separator have to be, and do I need a true dust collector motor? Is a 5 gallon bucket too small? Can I get away with a Ridgid shop vac? I'd like to save floor space and have something pretty portable. If I could use a Home Depot Bucket Head, it would be fantastic. I would rather not go bigger than a 30-gallon can.

I have a cabinet table saw, 19" band saw, Ridgid oscillating spindle sander, drill press, table-mounted router, and a jointer/planer. I also have a couple of handheld routers. I don't make a whole lot of dust. Takes me quite a while to fill a 9-gallon shop vac.