Shop vac or expensive dust collector

1418 Views 25 Replies 11 Participants Last post by allpurpose, 2 mo ago

Hunter734

Discussion Starter · 3 mo ago

Hi all I'm looking for a better dust collector for my new cabinet table saw. I've been using a midsized shop vac for my sanding and general cleaning. But the new table saw has a 4" port so I'm trying to figure out if I should get a bigger shop vac and 4" adapter or step up to a expensive dust collector.
I apologize ahead of time if I'm beating a dead horse here, but any advice is appreciated

1 - 20 of 26 Posts

Bob Bengal

· #2 · 3 mo ago

Hunter734 said:
But the new table saw has a 4" port so I'm trying to figure out if I should get a bigger shop vac and 4" adapter or step up to a expensive dust collector.

A shop vac pulls hard, low pressure, but it doesn't move a large volume of air. Something like a table saw doesn't need the pressure to be as low, but it does need a high volume of air moved, that's what a dust collector does.

www.harborfreight.com

70 gallon 2 HP High Flow High Capacity Dust Collector

Amazing deals on this 70 Gallon 2Hp Hi Flo Dust Collector at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

This is a low end collector, but some people get good results, often modifying them with different filters etc. More experienced forum members can go into greater detail for you.

Reactions: 2

Hunter734

Discussion Starter · #3 · 3 mo ago

1 HP Wall Hanging Dust Collector at Grizzly.com

Thanks @Bob Bengal I try to steer clear of HF for anything with a cord on it. I never have any luck with the power tools they have.

I'm thinking about a wall unit like the one above because space in my shop is limited

Bob Bengal

· #4 · 3 mo ago

I haven't heard about that model but Grizzly has a good general reputation. You might want to add a better than 30 micron filter for air you'll be breathing.

Reactions: 1

difalkner

· #5 · 3 mo ago

Hunter734 said:
I'm looking for a better dust collector for my new cabinet table saw.

Most table saws do poorly at dust collection. You're almost better off catching the dust from the top of the blade.

I have a 1990 PM66 and have often said that manufacturers show they have a sense of humor by putting a 4" dust port on the bottom back of the cabinet. It does virtually nothing except catch whatever dust happens to fall close to the port.

Newer saws are better but probably not significantly better.

Reactions: 2

JayArr

· #6 · 3 mo ago

I went even smaller to a 3/4HP that came with wheels but was easy to hang on the wall. My shop is small and the ducting runs are short so it works just fine. It was less than $200CDN so about$150USD?

www.kmstools.com

King Canada 3/4 HP Mini Dust Collector

With four casters and a powerful 3/4 hp motor, this mini dust collector from King Canada combines mobility and performance. It moves air at 590 cubic feet per minute, and is equipped with an easy-to-empty Quick-Zip dust bag that filters dust as small as 3

www.kmstools.com

DrRobert

· #7 · 3 mo ago

There are two separate aspects to collecting a cabinet saw - the cabinet and over the blade. The former is CFM’S (volumes of air) that latter is static pressure (suction). I agree 100% with @difalkner. Over the blade is the most important. SawStop has a very good cabinet collection that uses a hose all the way to a hood under tha blade, IOW you’re nit collecting the whole cabinet space.

On top is where dust getting thrown back at you and polluting the air. I’m of the opinion that collecting the cabinet is only effective with huge CFM’s, they say 350 but I think it’s more on the order of 8-900. You’re only going to get that with a very large blower - 1 1/2 HP dedicated, 3-5HP ducted. And you’ll still need over blade collection.

A shop vac works best for a blade hood. You can build one or buy one. If you collect only above the blade and periodically clean out the cabinet, you can do more good health wise.

Now that said, my experience is you’re going to find over blade collection hoods/guards to be obstructive or even impossible to use with tasks like dados, grooves, miter gauges, sleds or rips under 2” which happens to account for 90% of what we do. I use mine only when cutting sheet goods, especially MDF.

In short, if you really want to do some good focus on over blade. If you want to collect the cabinet, a 1HP would need to be a dedicated blower and you need to figure out what to do about filters, cyclone, etc. The bags that come with them are useless. Or nothing and simply do an occasional clean out. This is what I did for years and it worked fine for me.

Dont forget PPE and air quality. There is a lot if dust suspended in the air long after you’ve turned off the saw and ripped the mask off your face. An open shop is an advantage. If your shop is closed air filtration, is a must as well as high efficiency filters on your blower, HEPA filters on your shop vac. A high capacity exhaust fan is great for getting rid of noxious fumes and dust.

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Reactions: 2

allpurpose

· #8 · 3 mo ago

I mostly depends, at least in my mind, how much sawdust you plan on generating.. Toss in a planer and 65 boards to shave down to 1/8"* and you're talking! Personally for me I got tired of crawling around on my hands and knees with a vacuum hose cleaning up 3 feet of sawdust all over the floor. Now instead of crawling around it's a titanic struggle to empty the DC bag..
*wildly gross exaggeration

Reactions: 1

DrRobert

· #9 · 3 mo ago

allpurpose said:
I mostly depends, at least in my mind, how much sawdust you plan on generating.. Toss in a planer and 65 boards to shave down to 1/8"* and you're talking! Personally for me I got tired of crawling around on my hands and knees with a vacuum hose cleaning up 3 feet of sawdust all over the floor. Now instead of crawling around it's a titanic struggle to empty the DC bag..
*wildly gross exaggeration

Sawdust and chips are totally different. Fine dust is what really matters. A planer or jointer should be throwing out shavings, collecting them = less broom time, that’s all. For a long time I had my old Parks planer set up to throw shavings out the door. That was a nice machine but zero dust collection.

You should get rid of the bags they are horribly inefficient and clog easily. They are also a mess to empty. You’re in SC right? Climate controlled shop? Then you definitely need better filters. No climate control - a cyclone and vent outside. That’s what I have and it’s a good set up just empty the trash can in burn ring 👍

Reactions: 1

allpurpose

· #10 · 3 mo ago

I was just happy to not have to spend hours crawling around on my hands and knees with the vacuum hose when I got the DC.. My space is still quite limited, but I am going to switch things up when deck chairs get rearranged in this Titanic..

Reactions: 1

sanchez

· #11 · 3 mo ago

I have a small basement shop with the main tools, so space is at a premium. If you can swing the extra cash, this is a much better option.

www.grizzly.com

1-1/2 HP Wall-Mount Dust Collector with Canister Filter at Grizzly.com

<h1>G0944 1-1/2 HP Wall-Mount Dust Collector</h1> <h2>Trap all the sawdust and wood chips in your small shop with this wall-mount dust collector.</h2> <p>The G0944 1-1/2 HP Wall-Mount Dust Collector is the beast you need for all your small shop dust capturing needs with an airflow capacity of...

www.grizzly.com

I have this with a super dust deputy ahead of it. You don't need a separator, but they're great to collect the big stuff. A planer would clog any filter in no time.

I have a shop made over blade dust arm for the table saw, and with the two 4"inlets, I can hook up both over and under at the same time.

Here's my DC setup. It works for me because all my tools except the lathe are on wheels.

Shelf Wood Shelving Gas Closet

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Reactions: 1

Hunter734

Discussion Starter · #12 · 3 mo ago

https://www.harveywoodworking.com/products/alpha-hw110lc-36p-10-cabinet-table-saw

I appreciate all the advice. I do have overhead/blade dust collection. I'll have to decide what dust collector to go with.

I have the saw in the link

OHctf

· #13 · 3 mo ago

If you go with a shop vac, I highly recommend a cyclone dust separator. Heck, I highly recommend it for any use with a shop vac. I personally have a Mullet, and it works like a charm. My dust collection at the source is lacking right now and when I would go to clean up (particularly after using the planer), my hose was constantly clogged. The Mullet really fixed this problem.

Reactions: 1

sanchez

· #14 · 3 mo ago

Since you can afford a Harvey alpha, I'll assume you can afford the larger DC. 😁

Reactions: 1

Hunter734

Discussion Starter · #15 · 3 mo ago

sanchez said:
Since you can afford a Harvey alpha, I'll assume you can afford the larger DC. 😁

I might be able too

Reactions: 1

OHctf

· #16 · 3 mo ago

I will also say I am not sure a larger collector is needed unless you are doing a commercial shop level amount of work. It is just more or a hassle to clean out a larger one. Honestly, that is my biggest gripe about the cyclone unit. I let it get too full and then end up spilling some of it on the ground when I empty it lol.

I would personally probably go the cyclone route with the overhead and use zero clearance inserts to limit what gets inside the cabinet. I have not used a cabinet saw since HS, but I assume it has a 4 inch dust port? If you keep the chunky stuff out of the cabinet with zero clearance inserts, I would think the higher the CFM the better on the cabinet as you are only really collecting dust. I will defer to those with more experience, thought.

Reactions: 1

Hunter734

Discussion Starter · #17 · 3 mo ago

POWERTEC DC5370 Wall Mounted Dust Collector with 2.5 Micron Filter Bag | 537 CFM Amazon.com

I'm probably going to go with the grizzly wall mount one or the power tech one in link above. Seems like a good starting point for a beginner like myself. Maybe I'll add a cyclone or something later. The power tech one has a 2.5 micron bag which is nice

DrRobert

· #18 · 3 mo ago

Hunter734 said:
POWERTEC DC5370 Wall Mounted Dust Collector with 2.5 Micron Filter Bag | 537 CFM Amazon.com

I'm probably going to go with the grizzly wall mount one or the power tech one in link above. Seems like a good starting point for a beginner like myself. Maybe I'll add a cyclone or something later. The power tech one has a 2.5 micron bag which is nice

I have the Powertek blower and use it as a dedicated collector for my radial arm & router table. I does a good job, but I seriously doubt its going to collect a table saw. CFM are always overblown 🤣 and often based on calculations not actual measurements . I wouldn’t doubt actual CFM probably in the 300 range. If you can’t exhaust outside I don’t know. I know the bag that came on mine was a joke made of felt. Cannister filter would cost more than the blower.

I agree with @OHctf concentrate on the stuff above the table using a shop vac or dust extractor and just consider the cabinet a collection bin you clean out occasionally.

Reactions: 1

Hunter734

Discussion Starter · #19 · 3 mo ago

Well we'll see about the power tech wall mount 1 HP dust collector. It's on its way here from the zon. I also ordered couple things from rockler. A 3' - 21' hose and clamps. 3' when not extended. It'll be a couple weeks before I get the order from rockler. After I'll come back and post the results.
Thanks to all for the input it's much appreciated

Rob Cook

· #20 · 2 mo ago

I didn't read all the replies so I apologize if I stepped on anyone else's comments,

My suggestion Hunter, is buy both - and maybe a high powered leaf blower. Your big tools - cabinet saw, planer, bandsaw and joiner - are going to need a dust collector. Your smaller tools - sanders, routers and your shop floor will need a shop vac. A couple of times a year I'll raise the shop (garage) door, back the cars out of the driveway, grab the leaf blower (which I don't need for blowing leaves here in Arizona), put on a mask and dust the whole shop. Unless you live way out in the country, I'd wait for a windy day, vacuum up all the big stuff first, then blow away!

Reactions: 1

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