Problem with Oneida dust deputy system

[escpg]

Hello,
I really hope you can help me with this. I have owned the Oneida dust deputy system for many years now. For the first few years it worked incredibly well. I had not gotten any dust in my vacuum bag for years. All of the sudden something changed and I can’t figure out what. The dust somehow Makes it to the bag. I wrote a message to Oneida. They were very concise. This is what they said: “The most common cause of debris in your filter/bag/vac is an air leak at one of the below points. You can check for this by performing a smoke test, using a smoke stick or incense.”
I cannot understand how to perform this test. Anyway all the points they suggested look sealed to me. Moreover, if I close the hose with my hand I can feel a strong increase of suction, and I got the feeling that there are no leaks. Any idea? Thanks Enrico

 

[DBT85]

Has anything changed that you are aware of? Added a branch, new tool, different vac, different drum? The cyclone relies on particle velocity to work, so maybe there's a blockage in a pipe slowing down the flow.

I know that when the cyclone drum is full they become all but useless.

 

[artie]

I don't have the oneida, mine cost 12 quid off ebay but it works well.
I can't see how dust would get to the vacuum unless the bin was full

 

[Inspector]

A smoke test is done by passing the smoke stick along every joint in the system. If there is a leak the smoke will be drawn into the hole, crack, loose joint, etc. A small leak could be anywhere so look around the bucket too in case it has a worn corner or something. Your hose could have a crack too.

Pete

 

[MikeK]

If you have a leak anywhere in the collection drum, base of the cyclone where it attaches to the drum, or the cyclone itself, the bag and filter will fill with dust.
I attached an image of my Oneida system showing where to look for leaks using smoke. If your cyclone attaches to the bucket lid, then you won't have the coupling hose, but you will have the bucket, lid seal, and cyclone to lid seal that could be leaking.

It doesn't take a large leak to cause the problem, and you likely won't notice it by blocking the hose with your hand. My plastic trash can buckled slightly, which broke the rubber gasket seal between the rim of the can and the plywood, shown by the bottom arrow. By the time I noticed the problem, my two filters were significantly blocked with dust. The leak caused an alternate source of airflow, in addition to the inlet, and instead of dropping into the can, a lot of the dust went directly to the filters. I added some internal braces to the can and haven't had a problem since, but I spent over an hour cleaning out the filters and plenum.

To check the seals using incense, or any other source of smoke, run the dust collection and move the smoke source around the areas that should be sealed. If there is a leak, then the smoke will be sucked into the cyclone. There might be more than one leak, so check everything before you start fixing the first leak you find. When you think you're finished with the fixes, check again to make sure you haven't created more leaks in the process.

 

[escpg]

You all were very nice and helpful. i will perform the incense test. Now it’s clear what I should do. Before it wasn’t. Thank you.

 

[escpg]

I found the problem. incense smoke enters from the place I am showing. I am glad at least I found the reason. Do you think I should try to fix it by sealing it, or just buy a new hose? Thanks

 

[escpg]

I just saw the price. It’s quite expensive. I hope I can fix it

 

[Inspector]

If it doesn’t come apart easily to replace a gasket or O-ring I would tape it to see if that stops the problem. If it does then take the tape off and seal it.
Pete

 

[DBT85]

Things like bicycle inner tubes make excellent thin gaskets where needed

 

[Droogs]

just as an aside how do people say Oneida

One Ida
One EEda
OH needa
oneeda ????????

 

[Inspector]

I don't have to say it. I have Clear Vue.

Pete

 

[DBT85]

I don't have to say it. I have Clear Vue.

Pete

Captain money bags over here!

Can't get them here iirc.

 

[MikeK]

just as an aside how do people say Oneida

One Ida
One EEda
OH needa
oneeda ????????

I pronounce it oh-nigh-da, with emphasis on the middle syllable. When I called Oneida for technical support, the person answered the phone with this pronunciation.

 

[Droogs]

I have a Steve Maskery special

 

[Inspector]

No but you can make them.

Pete

Can't get them here iirc.

True.......but you can make your own. Bill Pentz has a spread sheet that sizes and provides a pattern to cut and roll your own.

Pete

 

[DBT85]

No but you can make them.

Pete


True.......but you can make your own. Bill Pentz has a spread sheet that sizes and provides a pattern to cut and roll your own.

Pete

Didn't know he'd gone that far with it.

Frankly I think Axminster do a 4" one for about £120 (just the cyclone) but I imagine it's like most, a basic cone with none of the refinements that Pentz has advocated and clearvue have actually implemented.

 

[okeydokey]

If it were mine I would unscrew the joint run a little silicone sealant around the mating faces and screw back. If it doesn't unscrew same sealant around the outside.

 

[Farmer Giles]

Didn't know he'd gone that far with it.

Frankly I think Axminster do a 4" one for about £120 (just the cyclone) but I imagine it's like most, a basic cone with none of the refinements that Pentz has advocated and clearvue have actually implemented.

I've got the Axi one. Works fine, no dust in the bag yet and the filter looks clean, plus its steel so quite robust I've just swapped the extractor from an Axi/Numatic NVD750 high pressure/low volume vacuum that I bought when I only had a short length of duct and couple of tools. Peter Parfitt uses this same combo to good effect on short lengths.

However on longer runs the recommended high volume extractor is necessary to keep the particle velocity up, the old extractor filter was getting hit and needed frequent cleaning and it was leaving chips in the ducts. I now have the Axi AC153E 2Hp high volume extractor, much better, but early days. Here's the thread

 

[MikeJhn]

Looking at the photograph of your troublesome joint, the hose protruding from the top looks to be substantial and at an angle, this angle could be putting a sideways strain on the joint and causing the leak, IMO the hose should come out of the fitting vertically to prevent this.