Hanging Air Filters

[rseeley13]

I know this doesn't revolve around CNC directly but to me it still does since the machine makes dust. We are looking at adding a hanging dust filter machine and was wondering what everyone is using and if they work well. We have piped dust collectors through out our place but looking to add more filtering. We have 14' high ceilings and our space we are looking to hang one is about 40 x 60, what would you recommend?

[barrowj]

That is a good question, I would love to hear from others. I have a 35' x 40' shop with 12' ceilings and would love to look into one but really would like to hear from others too.

[tri4sale]

I have a Jet, AFS-1000B I think is the model number. I run it when I am cutting and leave it running for 2 hours after, has a built in timer so it shuts it self off. I am in a small 1 car garage so it handles my dust load no problems, and pick up replacement filters at Lowes as needed. I didn't hang mine yet, I just put it ontop of a freezer in my garage for now. Remote control lets me turn on / off, set which of 3 speeds I want to run it, and set the timer for 2, 4 or 6 hours (I think those are the choices)

It seems to do a decent job of getting the particles out of the air, the DC gets most of it but I really felt that the more the better when it comes to dust collection. With bigger shops you may need to run more than one hanging collector.

[jTr]

I have the Jet AFS-1000B also. Started in a one car garage, now in 1.800 sq ft shop w/10' ceilings. Though I should by spec's have more, one is better than none. It does a fair job of cleaning air.

Really wanted to mention a problem I had with mine recently, which is about 10 years old. It began to randomly shut off, and eventually would not run longer than a minute or so. Thought it was a neighbor w/similar remote, but found the control board needed replacing.
Good news: found an article on line about repairing this model - turns out there is a capacitor that wears out - will look either burned or slightly swollen at the top. Mine was in the latter condition - really didn't think it was bad, but purchased a new one for $1, soldered it in place and voila- runs like new again. Just FYI for those of you who also own this unit. (The alternative was to buy a new control board for $100)

jeff

[dlcw]

I use 2 Jet AFS-1000B's in my 40'x80' shop. My vaulted ceiling center is around 16'. Miine are mounted about 11' above the floor. They work pretty well. I do the same thing as tri4sale. Turn them on when I come into the shop and set the timer for them to run 2 hours after I'm finished for the day. Do they remove ALL dust, no. I still have dust (it's a wood shop). But it does remove quite a bit because I clean the filter about 2 times a month and they are very full of dust.

Dust collection at the point of dust generation is still the best route to go. I just haven't found a setup that catches 100% of generated dust, thus the air filters.

[Kyle Stapleton]

If you have extra CFM's in your DC you can just add a port about 12/6" off the ceiling and let it suck, not only does it filter the air but in the winter it will take to hot air off the ceiling and move it around your shop.
We did this at the home shop and for heating reasons it was the best thing we have done in years.

[harryball]

I have two, a Jet AFS-1000B and a Steel City 65120.
The Jet works well, remote works, 3 speeds, balanced with no vibration, quiet.
The Steel City vibrates due to balance issues, runs at 2 speeds despite having 3 settings (the 3rd speed setting is the same speed as 2), it turns on by itself randomly, the remote works if you are directly in front of it and no more than 5 feet away. I've had it apart twice now fixing things that came loose inside and I wished I'd never bought it. The only thing I've found worse than the air cleaner is their support.

Having one running in the shop makes a big difference. Anytime I'm cutting, it's running. I noticed a big drop in dust on top of things around the shop when I started running it.

Get the Jet, it is worth the extra $50 or so.

Oh, and I run both of them to create a circle of airflow in the shop.

/RB

[rseeley13]

Love seeing and hearing what everyone is running, not a bad idea to get two and run both. I saw that Grizzly had one that pulled 1400 CFM but didn't know if that would be good or not. I will look up the Jet and see what the specs are on that one. Our main reason for this is that when we run our double drum sander we get dust that will leak out by the conveyor area and the DC doesn't get everything.

[bearcat]

Here's a good DIY shop filter idea from a luthiers forum -

http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=45178

Ed

[harryball]

Here's a good DIY shop filter idea from a luthiers forum -

http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=45178

Ed

You know, someone with a pan brake might be able to make one of those out of sheet metal and have something pretty nifty on the cheap.

[Tim Lucas]

I have a Delta and it is very noisy, but I also made one from an old house heater blower, I bought 2 of them from a heat and a/c company for $40 and use 20" by 20" filters on both sides of the fan, helps a lot

[gerryv]

Like both of these - Thanks Kyle and Ed.

[waynelocke]

Can someone source the fitted enclosure?

[bleeth]

RE: The DIY in Ed's link-I have built "home made not to code" spray booths using box fans and paint spray filters. Worked great.
In our home the builder used an oddball sized main intake filter that wasn't available at the big box store so I bought a "permanent cleanable" filter that you custom cut that uses a combo of metal mesh and foam and it has been doing a great job for years. Just pull it out, blow it out, and then hose it out and let it dry. Obviously a somewhat larger upfront investment but over the long haul I'm sure it has saved money as well. The frame is plastic and made to slot together in adjustable increments. The same cleanable filters are available with metal frames in many standard sizes as well. Select a filter larger than 20 x 20 so you can angle it in the box and build your box accordingly and frame in the fan. One shop I had was air conditioned (Boy do I miss it in the summer here) and had double cleanable filters. I just blew them out every week or so as part of the shop maintenance.