wood dust in routers

[Peter Lynch]

I am kicking around some ideas for a router tsble, based broadly on the NYW design with an enclosed bay for the router.

My concern is that with the router inverted, there is a natural tendency for wood dust to fall into the router from the table. I am keen to avoid, or at least minimise this, to prolong the life of my router.

So far I have thought of using a vacuum on "blow" or a small compressor, to maintain a positive pressure in the router compartment. However, this strikes me as somewhat impractical.

My next idea was to use some baffles and judicious placement of ventilation holes to try and create a vortex inside the router compartment to keep in-fall away from the router, on its way to the suction.

Has anyone any experience of dealing with this issue. Either success stories or failures, to stop me repeating past mistakes, would be welcome. As would anyone who could reassure me that I'm making the problem bigger than it really is.

Pete

[Upscale]

You're building a mountain. Router manufacturers know that wood dust is flying all over the place when their machines are being used and design against serious effect from this type of problem. Doesn't matter if it's being used as a handheld or in a table.

[Redd]

Peter;

I have the PC 890 router mounted in a table similar to what you are going to build. The 890 has an internal fan that moves a good amount of air through the router for cooling purposes. The air is flowing outward or exiting the router on the collet end and keeps the chips from collecting in the router itself. Your router should have a similar fan system because they get hot and need some good air flow to keep them from letting the smoke out.

Redd

[Doug Miller]

[snip]

As others have said, you're worrying needlessly. Blow the router clean with compressed air from time to time, and all should be fine.

[CW]

[Bob Martin]

Pity it doesn't work for heavier particles. I recently broke a 1/4 inch straight cutter and couldn't find the broken bit anywhere.

I fitted a new bit, switched on ... and found the missing piece - it had dropped into the router (Ryobi).

[Leon]

Like every one else has said, routers have fans that keep the dust out. Not to worry.

Larger debris is another matter entirely.

Many routers have an improved design fan that keeps debris out of the router. Some fans on some routers will allow debris to fall into the housing when the router is not running in its upside down position. Better routers designed to be hung upside-down have a style fan that blocks anything from falling inside the router motor.

[barry]

Been there (momentarily,D only), done that.

DeWalt 621 router sits under my table, with vacuum hose into its dust-pickup port. Shop-Vac sucks up the debris very nicely. BTW, great router.

For highly "productive" cuts, a second vac connected above the table enables sucking up serious amounts of chips/dust per hour.

See the pattern? Suck it up. Not blow it about.

J

[Chris Richmond - MD6-FDC ~]

Not to add fuel to the fire, but I've got an upside down M12V and found that dust was getting into the place where the switch is and making it inoperable (mechanical interference). This isn't part of the space that's got moving air to keep it clean. I covered the holes around the plunger shafts with duct tape. So far, so good.

Chris

[George Max]

What happened then?

[George Max]

What the other guys say is true, routers live in a dusty environment and the designers have allowed for that.

However, the time I was routing MDF freehand with my Bosch 1617EVS, it began emitting sounds of mechanical pain about the time I completed the task. It required complete disassembly to clean out a significant amount of dust. Of course, the whole work area was very significantly dustier than I've ever seen if before or after.

YMMV. Caveat Emptor. This is just my experience and it probably has never happened to anyone other than me. Take this with a grain of salt. :)

[Bob Martin]

Lots of noise and smoke !!

[bridgerfafc]

that's how I have mine set up- dust extraction above the table, a small furnace blower below. I worked that configuration out when I was doing a long run of heavy cuts and the chips filled the motor up enough to make it audibly strain and get quite hot.

I do find that the above the table suction is enough by itself most of the time.

[J. Mohnike]

VACCUME ONLY FROM THE TOP. I HAD AN EYE INJURY, WHILE WEARING SAFTY GLASSES, USEING A SHAPER THAT HAD A BLOWER ON TOP. CHIP WENT UP AND UNDER MY GLASSES AND IN MY EYE.

SAFETY FIRST, YOU CAN WALK WITH AN ARTIFICAL LEG, PICK THINGS UP WITH AN ARTIFICIAL HAND/ARM. BUT NO ONE HAS MADE AN ARTIFICIAL EYE THAT YOU CAN SEE WITH.

[bridgerfafc]

the blower from below is only in use when the volume of chips exceeds what the DC hose positioned directly over the cutter can slurp up. even then the air flow from the blower isn't particularly high volume- just enough to keep stuff from falling down through the hole in the insert plate.

[Lew Hodgett]

Your Cap Lock Key broken?

Lew

[Upscale]

Just thinking of that when turning the router on makes me grimace.

[Mike Richardson]

I understand the logic here, and it highlights a real deficiency in my current set-up which has the dust collection via the Triton, pulling the dust / chips down the insert plate hole, encouraging more rubbish below. I will try to incorporate your extra blower thought in my *in progress* ultimate router table.

Mike

[Doug Miller]

Which is why I keep yammering about this point over and over -- wear a face shield.

And fix your Caps-Lock key. It's broken.