Thien Cyclone versus ClearVue

[dousterhout]

Hello all,

I have a 15 year old 2 HP 12 amp 220 DC with  .5 M bags that I think needs improvement.  I now have a 2 car garage that is dedicated to the "woodshop", makin dust.., and am trying to make some sense of the very large topic of DC, small and large.

I have read a lot of  posts on this site, and lot's of testimonials for the Thien Cyclone, although most is for 4" and less inputs.  I have also read most of Bill Pentz comments on his site about "fine" dust and cfm and pipe size and I read most of the clearvue cyclone info.

Sure, I would love to buy a Clearvue cyclone with a 5 HP motor, and put it in a separate building to reduce noise but I don't really have the funds to do that right now.  And, Phil's would be the easiest and least expensive to build.  Has anybody analyzed the impact of Phil's cyclone on airflow cfm for a 6" PVC ASTM 2729 system? 

Has there been any studies done on the "fine dust" collection capabilities?

Thanks for your help. 

Dean

[Greg McCallister]

Phil's baffle does work for course as well as fines. How much of a hit on total airflow, as far as I know, has not been scientifically analyzed. Most here are woodworkers by hobby with limited resources.
Knowing that you have read Bill P. site you also know that a cyclone reduces air flow tremendously - upwards of 30% or more if my memory is correct.
Phil's design is no where near that.
I am using 6" duct and I can tell you that Phil's design works great. I have emptied my 30 gal barrel at least 5 times now and have the filter connected directly to the outlet without any clean out. I have to empty the barrel again today and plan on looking at the filter to see what kind of buildup I have as I have been doing a lot of sawing, sanding and have cut some MDF too. Will post results on that soon.
Dean, to be honest I think you have already answered your own question in your post. Not sure as to what size duct you are currently using but I have found personally that 6" duct is the way to go no matter what system you are using.
Phil's design is not a cash cow so if you are not pleased with the results, you can always go to a cyclone without breaking the bank and as far as the 6" duct, it is really needed either way you go.
Wish I had more of a scientific answer to give you but the whole reason I believe Phil made this design is the fact of wanting DC separation without much cost. No one here that I know of has Bill Pentz resources for testing.
Believe me though that you will not be sorry if you use Phil's design.

[dousterhout]

Hello Greg and thanks for the feedback.  I was hoping someone might have a 6" setup like yours and had a way to check the airflow with the Thien cyclone and without the Thien cyclone to see what the difference is?  That way I could compare the two systems. 

Do you have any pictures of your setup?

[Greg McCallister]

you can find my post here http://www.jpthien.com/smf/index.php?topic=90.0

[dousterhout]

Thanks Greg, you have done some nice work... :) 
Thanks for all the pics. 

[Greg McCallister]

You are welcome, glad to help.