Homemade cyclone extractor.

[Tanglefoot20]

Hello all...
I came across a plastic cyclone adaptor for using with a small vacuum and old blue bin..or whatever is available.
I’ve got an old Tesco wheeled vacuum and I’m wondering if it would be powerful enough to make one of these extractors/dust collectors.
The vacuum has a small jug type container....sort of thing that’s sold for around £50.
The cyclone thingy is available on Amazon ..but I think the idea looks sound.
Any help or ideas???

 

[julianf]

I've got one of the black Chinese cyclones that are about £20 off eBay, stuck on top of a 30ltr drum, and powered by a Henry vac.

It's great. I've got a 30ltr drum on it for size but I tried a 60 at the start, which just folded as soon as there was any inlet restriction.

When I first put it together I was astounded. The Henry bag just stayed empty forever. Admittedly this was on metal splinters from the CNC stuff, but it's the same with floor grime.

Very fine dust from a da etc, I don't know, but I do know that I've not changed the bag on the Henry in the couple of years or so that I've been using it.

It really is great. I use it for cleaning up after lime work and evreything - ie sucking up wet mortar.

I reckon you could suck up water with it happily, but I've not tried more than small puddles when hoovering other stuff.

 

[Tanglefoot20]

This all sounds good news.... my little vac is 1600w max....I reckon with thirty litre bin and 50mm pipe it would work fine....so may give it a go...

Cheers. Steve

 

[sometimewoodworker]

It's great. I've got a 30ltr drum on it for size but I tried a 60 at the start, which just folded as soon as there was any inlet restriction.

Just a FWIW my dust extractor collapsed the container but it was not difficult to make a wooden ring that fits inside and reinforces the the walls.

 

[Retired]

Hi,

Years ago I paid less than £20 for a vac of about 1600W and when I upgraded I gave this cheap vac to my friend who added a cyclone and he too is delighted with it so I'm sure you'll be fine using your 1600W vac.

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[Dr Al]

I've got a 1250 W, 3600 litres/minute vacuum cleaner (one of these). I have very, very little space in my workshop so I made myself a dust bucket rather than buying one of the bins. This also has the advantage of it being solid and therefore unlikely to compress.

It's made out of MDF (the moisture resistant stuff as I had some left-over) and designed to sit on top of the vacuum cleaner but be short enough to slide under my bench:

(I actually shortened it slightly after taking this photo to give a bit more clearance under the bench). Since taking the photo I've added a draught-excluder strip around the inside and some clips from screwfix to hold it together. That was always the plan but the draught excluder strip hadn't arrived when I took the photo. I haven't got round to taking photos of it since I actually finished making it. Clips I used:

The joints inside were sealed with decorator's caulk and then the inside is painted with some primer on the premise that it might help (although I don't know whether it actually does). Another photo pre-draught-excluder strip and clips:

The screws you can see at the bottom go into a couple of bits of MDF that sit in the top of the vacuum cleaner:

The "window" is a bit of acrylic glued into a slot in the MDF on one side and sealed with caulk again. It helps to see when the box is getting full as I can't hear the difference in vacuum cleaner noise if the saw or thicknesser is running at the same time.

I use 50 mm pipe with it and some 3D-printed (thanks to a kind soul on the mig-welding forum) adaptors to attach it to the cyclone as well as to either the table saw, thicknesser or the original hose ends for the vacuum cleaner.

Everything I'd read about vacuum cleaners / cyclones etc said that they'd never be good enough for a thicknesser due to the amount of sawdust produced. However, since I made the cyclone, the exhaust (or whatever you'd call it) on the thicknesser has only blocked up once and that was because I plugged the thicknesser into a wall socket rather than the power tool socket on the vacuum cleaner and then I forgot to turn the vacuum cleaner on!

One thing I would do differently if I were starting again though is to try to get hold of some smooth-bore pipe rather than the ribbed stuff you can see in the photo above. Occasionally when I'm using it with the table saw some bigger bits get sucked down the tube and get stuck against the ribs. It's not a big deal to get them moving again, but it would probably work better with a smooth-bore pipe.

 

[Sachakins]

I have used one these cheap cones for around last 4 years. Connected to a cheap aldi ash vac to the cone and cone set onto a small steel can from another aldi ash collector bin. Added 5 metres of 50mm dust extractor tube instead of vacuum hose.

I am still on the original canister filter on the vacuum, just give it a blow out every 3 months

Collects dust and chippings fantastically from my woodworking shed, used daily still going strong,

 

[Sachakins]

I've got a 1250 W, 3600 litres/minute vacuum cleaner (one of these). I have very, very little space in my workshop so I made myself a dust bucket rather than buying one of the bins. This also has the advantage of it being solid and therefore unlikely to compress.

Nice build Dr Al

 

[Tanglefoot20]

Wow there is some really good stuff about this subject...and I love that bespoke build...
I’m hooked...looks as though it’s amazon later to order the bits..,

 

[Robbo3]

Practically any vacuum cleaner will do & the collector can be any size.
This is one I use for cleaning out the ash in the wood burner.

If you have problems with the system being too tall or if it is prone to tipping over then look at a Thien baffle which is basically a piece of wood that has a gap around most of its edge & sits immediately below the dust inlet port.
- J. Phil Thien's Cyclone Separator Lid w/ the Thien Cyclone Separator Baffle
His ports are both on top whereas mine are the same as the cyclone above.

Anyone struggling with the dust container collapsing can remedy that with a simple pressure relief valve (PRV) made from bits & pieces that are likely to be at hand or can be obtained cheaply.
- Tips & Tricks

 

[Yorkieguy]

I was the recipient of the little vac that my friend Colin, 'Retired' (post #5 above) gifted to me back in 2017. I turned a couple of bushes for the inlet and outlet of the cyclone to mate with the hose from my bandsaw and the vac. For a collecting box, I bought a cheap but robust plastic square plant container from B&M and made a tight fitting lid from MDF on which to mount the cyclone. (The cyclone is fitted to the lid with four screws). It works a treat - hardly any dust gets through to the vac dust collector as the third pic below shows.

First pic shows the plastic adaptors that I turned for the two hoses. Second pic with the cyclone and lid in place on the dust collecting box. Third pic shows how little dust finds its way into the vac dust collector. My large bandsaw is located in my garage - other power tools - belt/disc sander, smaller bandsaw etc, are located in my garden workshop where I have a shop vac. Until Colin gifted me the little vac I used to have to lug the shop vac into the garage whenever I used my large bandsaw, so this little set-up is serving me well. It surprises me how cheap these well made cyclones are.

 

[Tanglefoot20]

Hi Robbo...thanks for that info...
I have just sent for the bits and bobs....hopefully up and running next week.
Not sure told you......I bought a bench drill....and old champion No2...3/8 capacity but it’s ok for me. There is one on eBay for £75 at the moment...I have to make or buy a couple of pulley wheels due to the fact the previous owner lashed the motor to the column...it works but not good.it should have motor on bench and a vertical belt turned 90deg....still got that Sealey saw?

Steve

 

[Tanglefoot20]

I was the recipient of the little vac that my friend Colin, 'Retired' (post #5 above) gifted to me back in 2017. I turned a couple of bushes for the inlet and outlet of the cyclone to mate with the hose from my bandsaw and the vac. For a collecting box, I bought a cheap but robust plastic square plant container from B&M and made a tight fitting lid from MDF on which to mount the cyclone. (The cyclone is fitted to the lid with four screws). It works a treat - hardly any dust gets through to the vac dust collector as the third pic below shows.

First pic shows the plastic adaptors that I turned for the two hoses. Second pic with the cyclone and lid in place on the dust collecting box. Third pic shows how little dust finds its way into the vac dust collector. My large bandsaw is located in my garage - other power tools - belt/disc sander, smaller bandsaw etc, are located in my garden workshop where I have a shop vac. Until Colin gifted me the little vac I used to have to lug the shop vac into the garage whenever I used my large bandsaw, so this little set-up is serving me well. It surprises me how cheap these well made cyclones are.

Hi there...that’s a great idea... that’s similar to the vacuum I have... Ines 1600w max...so hopefully it’s going to suck Woodturning and bandsaw waste
It’s great to get ideas and help on this site....

Steve

 

[chris.gid]

Hi all, i posted a while back on this Dual hoover extractor which worked fine if a bit loud.
I have now moved away from cyclone hoovers to Miele bagged hoover. Not only are these quieter but i found that the filters on cyclone hoovers just clog up with fine dust (from sanding) and you loose a lot of suction. Bagged hoovers catch more of the really fine dust in the bag and I'm not clearing the filter every other time i use it.
What i would say is the cheap Chinese cyclones are amazing, hardly any (except the very fine stuff) gets through it so i cant imagine I'll be emptying the bags on the hoovers for a few years.

 

[Tanglefoot20]

Hi all.....my little project is completed.., been hoovering the garage out this afty.
Even without a filter in the little vacuum...all I got was about a half tablespoon of dust in the container. The rest was all in the bin....what a great result...
Thanks for all your comments and guidance.
Will now try to make a tray up to place under the lathe and see if I can clear falling chippings and dust at source...

 

[Peterm1000]

Hi all, i posted a while back on this Dual hoover extractor which worked fine if a bit loud.
I have now moved away from cyclone hoovers to Miele bagged hoover. Not only are these quieter but i found that the filters on cyclone hoovers just clog up with fine dust (from sanding) and you loose a lot of suction. Bagged hoovers catch more of the really fine dust in the bag and I'm not clearing the filter every other time i use it.
What i would say is the cheap Chinese cyclones are amazing, hardly any (except the very fine stuff) gets through it so i cant imagine I'll be emptying the bags on the hoovers for a few years.
View attachment 101504

Probably a dumb question - why don't you have the hoovers on full power?

 

[Richard_C]

Will now try to make a tray up to place under the lathe and see if I can clear falling chippings and dust at source...

I'm playing about with various ideas. Just got a 68mm hopper for gutter systems, about £5 from Screwfix, as a collector. Last trial used a 4 pint plastic milk carton with one side cut out and the vac fitted through the scre cap end. Bit too flimsy. When you sand the dust comes off horizontally not vertically and you can sort of direct it by moving the abrasive a bit. No proper solution yet but getting there.

 

[DBT85]

@Dr Al nice build, sensible get away from a square box and go with the octagon as it maintains the vortex better!

 

[joethedrummer]

,,my effort from way back,, saved a lot of filter bags,, regards joe,

 

[The Bear]

Here's my effort from years ago. Still going strong.

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/dust-mite-and-systainer-drop-box.74625/
Mark