Apologies if this has already been analyzed, but...

[loxmyth]

The standard Thien design has the extraction slot on the bottom surface of the chamber.

I find myself wondering whether permitting the  slot to extend up the side of the cyclone chamber slightly -- and having the cyclone be a smaller diameter than the enclosing container -- would allow momentum to throw material out of the cyclone chamber and thus aid separation ... or if this would be counterproductive because it would increase airflow in the outer chamber and thus permit material to be "scrubbed" back in... or if it'd simply produce too much turbulence.

Any idea?


(I have a 1980-vintage 16-gallon Sears vacuum for which filters have become hard to find. I'm pondering whether cyclonizing it is worthwhile, or if simply buying a real dust extractor makes more sense. Or, possibly, both. I don't think it's amenable to turning into a sandwich, alas.)

[loxmyth]

(Actually, that monster's big enough that I could almost install the separator inside the existing case.... Another "alas", I don't think I could get away with just building the vortex chamber to enclose the existing filter.)

[alan m]

im not sure i folow you.
could you sketch a quick drawing of what your sugesting