Dust Collection question

[Joe C]

Okay, I've a question for you dust collection guru's out there.

I've been using a 1stage DC with one of those 'cyclonic' lids on a 30 gallon steel trash can with 20' of black plastic wire-reinforced hose. This works great for most applications that are close to the DC (TS, Jointer, Planer, RAS). However, my router table and BS are clear on the other side of the shop which requires me to attach another 30' worth of above-mentioned hose to my existing 20' that's attached to the cyclonic lid. This leads to an enormous loss of suction. Those hoses are not the most efficient for long runs.

What I'm considering doing is running a short 6" line from DC to pre-separator (yes, I'd have to enlarge the holes in the lid), then a short run (under 3 ft) of 5" or 6" from there to what would be the only splitter with one end going to my existing (4") hose and the other running permanent steel ducting along the ceiling. Now, all that being said, what's the best/most efficien diameter pipe to run up the wall, across the garage ceiling and down the far wall to the router table and BS? This is in a standard 2-car shop.

Thanks in advance for advice,

Joe

[Frank J. Vitale]

The larger the diameter, the lower the losses. I have a 2 hp Jet DC and I run about 15 feet of 4 inch PVC plus 6 feet of hose to my planer, the tool needing the most suction. I am about 20 feet to my jointer also with 4 inch PVC and very little hose and it works fine.

You could try the 4" PVC (using the sewer drain pipe) for only a few bucks. I made up large radius elbows by using 2 - 45 degree elbows.

I do have the PVC grounded, though there are a lot of people that says it is unnecessary.

There are books that give the pressure drops but you should be OK with 4" if you are only using one tool at a time. Clearly 5 or 6 inch would give you a safety factor.