Camvac worth the money?

[Apps]

I use a Record Bandsaw and Lathe, together with a bobbin sander, I currently have a Scheppach HA1000 50L drum type vacuum together with the record AC400 Filter. However is there is always a fine dust all over the workshop, I use a trend face mask, but the general dust is annoying.

When I use the sander I have it enclosed in a perspex box affair I made up and it doesn't appear the offender as the vacuum pulls the dust well in the enclosed space. I was thinking of upgrading the Scheppach to a camvac extractor to improve the situation. The volume of saw dust I make is low and I don't mind emptying regularly so I don't need a large collection drum.

My thoughts are I want the most bang for my lowly pound (who doesn't) and therefore the smallest filtration which appears to be the Camvac. Chip extractors appear to offer a "larger" through put of air but costing double the price and still offer less filtration and I cannot place the extractor outside, I'm in a converted garage on a modern housing estate.

I guess my uncertainty is, is a Camvac going to be "man enough" for the job and improve the situation? or am I missing something simple like one of these big mouth collection type attachments or something completely different?

can anyone offer a recommendation ?

​

 

[Doug B]

I’ve had a camvac for 17 years now & it’s still going strong though I know Record bought them out a few years ago so can’t say if the quality is still the same.
Mine is attached to a cyclone which stops over 90% of the dust getting to the vac filters & I’d recommended anyone gets/makes a cyclone they are such a time saver, mine cost £18 to make.

 

[fleyh]

If you decide to go with Camvac - make sure it is Twin or Triple Motor.

Single motor CamVac (suction wise) is the same as any other dust extractor. In fact - my domestic 18y/o Bosch vacuum cleaner produces more suction than Camvac in Single motor mode. The only difference is that Bosch overheats and Camvac does not.

Most used camvacs offered on ebay are Single motor. Probably because people are not particularly satisfied with single motor Camvac performance.

 

[Sideways]

Bear this in mind. As a useful rule of thumb, the suction from any extractor only extends about one hose diameter from the end of the hose. A little more if you have one of those flared trumpet fittings on the end. But it's still very little "reach".
So you need to keep the hose end very close to the point where you are sanding. An hvlp extractor is better simply because it has a bigger hose and a bigger capture zone.
Putting a bigger hose on a single motor vacuum won't cheat your way around this limitation.

I was always very sceptical about the camvac as it's nothing very clever for the money but I saw a few in recent years that were much quieter than I remembered them, and that changed my opinion for the better.
But this week I attended a turning club where they pass around a single motor camvac for use when sanding. Probably chosen because they have v limited storage space. After a half hour while I was sitting at the opposite end of the scout hut, this was turned off. Oooof ! The relief when the noise stopped ! Now HVLP's are noisy too, but that single motor camvac was obnoxious. As loud as I remember them from my early bad impressions.

 

[Jameshow]

Is there any way you could build an enclosure for the DX and have that vented to outside? That way the fine particles aren't recycled around the workshop??

 

[Apps]

I’ve had a camvac for 17 years now & it’s still going strong though I know Record bought them out a few years ago so can’t say if the quality is still the same.
Mine is attached to a cyclone which stops over 90% of the dust getting to the vac filters & I’d recommended anyone gets/makes a cyclone they are such a time saver, mine cost £18 to make.

That sounds very interesting I have a cyclone at the minute but was assuming that it was stealing some of the current vacuums efficiency. But I was thinking or hoping it was saving the paper bags and the pleated air filter.
If you don't mind what are you using yours for turning or general woodwork?

 

[Apps]

If you decide to go with Camvac - make sure it is Twin or Triple Motor.

Single motor CamVac (suction wise) is the same as any other dust extractor. In fact - my domestic 18y/o Bosch vacuum cleaner produces more suction than Camvac in Single motor mode. The only difference is that Bosch overheats and Camvac does not.

Most used camvacs offered on ebay are Single motor. Probably because people are not particularly satisfied with single motor Camvac performance.

That's what I was thinking my current vacuum has the same power as a single cam vacuum. Although I do like the cleanable cloth filters

 

[Apps]

Bear this in mind. As a useful rule of thumb, the suction from any extractor only extends about one hose diameter from the end of the hose. A little more if you have one of those flared trumpet fittings on the end. But it's still very little "reach".
So you need to keep the hose end very close to the point where you are sanding. An hvlp extractor is better simply because it has a bigger hose and a bigger capture zone.
Putting a bigger hose on a single motor vacuum won't cheat your way around this limitation.

I was always very sceptical about the camvac as it's nothing very clever for the money but I saw a few in recent years that were much quieter than I remembered them, and that changed my opinion for the better.
But this week I attended a turning club where they pass around a single motor camvac for use when sanding. Probably chosen because they have v limited storage space. After a half hour while I was sitting at the opposite end of the scout hut, this was turned off. Oooof ! The relief when the noise stopped ! Now HVLP's are noisy too, but that single motor camvac was obnoxious. As loud as I remember them from my early bad impressions.

This is my worry that they are quite expensive and may not offer much benefit. Sound is a consideration too I was thinking of boxing in a camvac and venting thru a sound box as I have seen posted elsewhere on here
The reach is also a big consideration the canvas appear to have only 100mm 4" connections now so I assume a reach of 100mm. If a big mouth funnel would help I'd be happy to get one.
I'm a sceptical individual and when i notice that the suppliers of 1 don't seem to sell the other type alarm bells ring to me. But like I say I am a little overly sceptical.

 

[Nic Rhodes]

I have a two motor and three motor unit and love them. I also use a Festool M class 26. Camvacs are surprisingly easy to quiet down though I don't find them over noisy without any help. The exhaust muffler is great and really easy even if it looks like an octopus. Hooked on wood has some videos about them. I use my Festool on my sanders and can turn it down easy as you rarely need full power here. If I was to use this with Camvacs then the obvious solution is to cut some motors out. If I was to do this I would utilise blast gates also. The three motor unit (3Kw) is VERY powerful, you have been warned! Latest Camvacs have a plastic flange for 100mm connection rather than welded pipe.

 

[SLM]

Are you set on a Camvac, or might another brand fit the bill? Yorkleen are a brilliant company to deal with, offering fantastic support is needed. I have one of their WV2 twin motor units for sale, in the usual section of this site.

https://www.yorkleen.co.uk/product/wv2/

 

[RobNichols]

If you decide to go with Camvac - make sure it is Twin or Triple Motor.

I have to agree with this. I got my Camvac as part of another purchase. I'd been thinking about getting one for a while. Unfortunately, one of the motors wasn't working. I was underwhelmed with the Camvac in its one motor mode and was glad I hadn't spent a lot to get it. My cheap shop vac had more suction (though via a narrower pipe).

However, I've recently managed to fix the second motor (faulty switch unit) and in twin motor mode it's a totally different story. The suction is excellent. It's nice being able to switch between the two levels of suction - though I find myself turning a second motor on more and more.

 

[Wood&StuffLtd]

I bought the 3 motor Camvac and a switch was faulty. Record was helpful and sent me two new switches which was very easy to replace. I use two motors when sanding with an Axminster big hood with a 100mm hose. It works well and you can see the fine dust disappearing down the hood. The three inlets have long hoses which attenuate the noise OK. I never turn the lathe on without wearing a Trend mask. Even with all the kit the fine dust does seem to get everywhere which I hoover up with a Triton vacuum cleaner. I also leave the workshop doors open when working come rain or shine! I hope this may be of interest.

 

[MikeJhn]

I had a Neumatic George which is a twin motor unit, with a bag internally and the two other filters under the motors it does not need a cyclone to prevent dust escaping.

 

[HamsterJam]

I have to agree with this. I got my Camvac as part of another purchase. I'd been thinking about getting one for a while. Unfortunately, one of the motors wasn't working. I was underwhelmed with the Camvac in its one motor mode and was glad I hadn't spent a lot to get it. My cheap shop vac had more suction (though via a narrower pipe).

However, I've recently managed to fix the second motor (faulty switch unit) and in twin motor mode it's a totally different story. The suction is excellent. It's nice being able to switch between the two levels of suction - though I find myself turning a second motor on more and more.

Did you block the exhaust on the non-working motor?
if not some suction is lost through air being drawn backwards through the unused motor.

 

[RobNichols]

Did you block the exhaust on the non-working motor?
if not some suction is lost through air being drawn backwards through the unused motor.

No I didn't. I'll give that a try.

 

[Apps]

I bought the 3 motor Camvac and a switch was faulty. Record was helpful and sent me two new switches which was very easy to replace. I use two motors when sanding with an Axminster big hood with a 100mm hose. It works well and you can see the fine dust disappearing down the hood. The three inlets have long hoses which attenuate the noise OK. I never turn the lathe on without wearing a Trend mask. Even with all the kit the fine dust does seem to get everywhere which I hoover up with a Triton vacuum cleaner. I also leave the workshop doors open when working come rain or shine! I hope this may be of interest.

Thank you for your input, Whilst your approach is appealing I finally decided to go for a HVLP SIP 2hp extractor with a fine filter cartridge instead. More money than I was initially thinking but still a long way short of the 3 motor Camvacs. I just felt that the bang for buck was greater going HVLP.

 

[Apps]

Are you set on a Camvac, or might another brand fit the bill? Yorkleen are a brilliant company to deal with, offering fantastic support is needed. I have one of their WV2 twin motor units for sale, in the usual section of this site.

https://www.yorkleen.co.uk/product/wv2/

I Certainly was not totally set on the brand , I looked at the Yorkleen but their prices were a fair bit more than the Camvac. This proved theoretical in the end as I have decided to go the HVLP route and ordered a SIP 2HP model with a cartridge filter to get the filtration down to 1um. Thankyou for the heads up on Yorkleen though not a name I had thought still traded.

 

[RobNichols]

Did you block the exhaust on the non-working motor?
if not some suction is lost through air being drawn backwards through the unused motor.

No I didn't. I'll give that a try.

@HamsterJam I had a little play with my CamVac earlier. I can confirm that if I cover/seal the outlet from the motor that's not running, then the vac is a lot more effective running on one motor. It looks like I need to looking at getting or making some sort of cap for the outlet.

 

[RobNichols]

@HamsterJam I had a little play with my CamVac earlier. I can confirm that if I cover/seal the outlet from the motor that's not running, then the vac is a lot more effective running on one motor. It looks like I need to looking at getting or making some sort of cap for the outlet.

Further to this, I was in the workshop today and realised the lid to an old coffee jar would be just about the right size to cover the Camvac outlet. It's a Percol 100g coffee jar. I had to trim the inner screw housing a little - but with that done it fit perfectly and seems to provide a good seal. The Canvac is now easy to use with one motor.

 

[fleyh]

Further to this, I was in the workshop today and realised the lid to an old coffee jar would be just about the right size to cover the Camvac outlet.

LOL. There must be some kind of coffee conspiracy/collaboration.
On my Twin motor CamVac I have been using a filter holder from aeropress cofee maker to block exhaust when required. It fits perfectly. I did have to add an obligatory piece of duck tape though. Your coffee jar lid must be new and updated version