[ThomasOSB]

Air intake for air cleaner. I used half-lap joints to build the frame (20.75"x20.75")

 

[Burb]

I've been toying with this idea so I think I shall follow along on this build. Thanks for sharing.

Mark

 

[d_slat]

I think I shall follow along on this build.

I think I may join you.

 

[ThomasOSB]

Guys,
These are the plans I put together for this build. The size was determined by the size of the squirrel fan motor I was able to pick up.

 

[ThomasOSB]

All the sides are cut, as well as the rabbets and dados according to the plans I drew.

The motor was put inside to take a few measurements for where to cut the air outflow. It is upside down in the picture, however.

 

[ThomasOSB]

I mounted the squirrel motor to the inside wall with 1.5" wide pieces of 3/4" plywood. Some of the screws were drilled through the sheet metal tabs and others to the side alone.

The sides were attached to the top and bottom with 2" sheet rock screws, they are spaced approximately 3" apart. I also cut a hole for the gang box to house the rocker switches for the various fan speeds. I also attached t-hinges to the area where the filters will be for easy access. I chose that style of hinge because it was the only ones I had on hand that would work.

View of the air intake area. I will be installing guides to hold the filters in place. I should also mention that I added 5/16" metal hoops to the top so that it can be suspended from the ceiling - washers on each side with a bolt on the inside.

 

[03roadking]

Thanks for the pics and keep them coming! I am needing to build one of these for my garage.

 

[WoodMachiner]

Looks great! I have a blower out of my old house furnace I was going to repurpose for an air cleaner. This post really helped me gain some motivation! Thanks

 

[Burb]

Ok, question about the blower motor/squirrel cage assembly? When looking for one of these, what size, etc should I be looking for? I have a buddy who owns a HVAC company and he said he'd look for a decent used one for me if I told him what I wanted.

Thanks.

Mark

 

[ThomasOSB]

Ok, question about the blower motor/squirrel cage assembly? When looking for one of these, what size, etc should I be looking for? I have a buddy who owns a HVAC company and he said he'd look for a decent used one for me if I told him what I wanted.

Thanks.

Mark

I picked mine up a while ago, and it was just sitting around the shop. I believe it came out of a 3 ton unit. What was important for me was that it was wired for 110v so I could plug it into a regular outlet.

 

[Burb]

I picked mine up a while ago, and it was just sitting around the shop. I believe it came out of a 3 ton unit. What was important for me was that it was wired for 110v so I could plug it into a regular outlet.

Thanks. That makes sense.

Mark

 

[tvman44]

You will probably want one that is 120 volt instead of 240 volts. Usually from a unit with a gas furnance.

 

[ThomasOSB]

I painted the whole thing bright yellow. If I knock my head on it, its my own fault.

I glued and nailed strips (1" wide) on all four-sides to create tracks for the filters. There are two sets, the first is for a cheap filter and the second is for a higher quality filter.

A quick 5/8" hole in the ceiling allowed for the 12 gauge extension cord to enter the box. I spliced the cables and attached the neutral wire inside the box and put the ground and line wires through the gang box.

Simple wire job.
1) Extension cord black to the common pole
2) Fan Black (High) to the top switch
3) Fan Blue (Medium) to the middle switch
4) Fan Red (Low) to the bottom switch
5) Extension cord green to the ground pole

Filter compartment is screwed closed.

Only thing left to do is to attach the chain to hang from the ceiling, which I will pick up at the store tomorrow.

 

[ThomasOSB]

All done. Now to finish up the shoe shine box. The air cleaner is plugged into a timer switch, which is set to turn on for 2 hours each evening. The timer also has an override on and off for when needed.

 

[03roadking]

Great job and thank you for all of the detailed images. This will help a lot when I am making mine. Keep up the good work!

 

[Grandpa's old tools]

That looks great! I have a squirrel cage sitting in my garage waiting for exactly the same type of project. I hadn't thought about the timer switch but now that you mention it, I think I'm going to look for one of those bathroom fan switches with a timer. That way, I can work in the garage and then walk away and let the fan run a half an hour or so to clean out the air.

 

[ThomasOSB]

Here is the video explanation of the build:

 

[03roadking]

Thanks for the video! I sub'd and hit the thumbs up button for ya. I enjoy functional builds like these to make my shop safer and more enjoyable to be in. I just had a new furnace installed yesterday so I pulled the blower out of my old furnace.

I have a few questions:

1. What are your thoughts so far on how it cleans the air in the shop after you have been making cuts?
2. I noticed that my blower has 4 wires for 4 different speeds. Do you think it is worth having a switch for all 4 speeds?
3. When yours runs at night, what speed is it set to?

 

[kkalin78]

Nice job. I'm kinda wondered. Is it permanent place? I mean the filter is hanged on water pipes. Honestly I would not do that. The filter has a vibration. The vibration will be translated into the house using pipes as amplifier. Second reason is the vibration significantly reduces life of connections (even glued one).

 

[ThomasOSB]

Thanks for the video! I sub'd and hit the thumbs up button for ya. I enjoy functional builds like these to make my shop safer and more enjoyable to be in. I just had a new furnace installed yesterday so I pulled the blower out of my old furnace.

I have a few questions:

1. What are your thoughts so far on how it cleans the air in the shop after you have been making cuts?
2. I noticed that my blower has 4 wires for 4 different speeds. Do you think it is worth having a switch for all 4 speeds?
3. When yours runs at night, what speed is it set to?

I've only had it for a little while, but I do see an improvement. The coat of dust that used to settle on everything is greatly reduced. While cutting, you should still wear a respirator because it can't zap it out of the air. It has to wait until the air current moves it to the intake.

I have 3 speeds on mine, but I only use two. High when I have it run at night for a couple of hours while I'm not in the shop and low when I'm working in there.