30 gal. barrel or drum for dust collection ... where?

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Rick M

New User
Rick
The plan: integrate a Thien baffle with my 1HP DC. Fan will be relocated atop the baffle which will set on the barrel. All in one solution. I'll have to carry the barrel to dump it, maybe 50-60 feet, so a smaller plastic barrel around 30 gal. would be better. I'd rather empty it more often than carry a heavy barrel.

I've contacted a couple people on craigslist but haven't heard back yet. One is selling 55 gal blue plastic barrels, the other is/was selling 15 gal blue plastic barrels. Not sure 15 gal is big enough?
 

nn4jw

New User
Jim
As I'm sure most will say, it depends on the tools producing the dust. I use an Oneida Super Dust Deputy with a 10 gal can and Thien baffle. Keeps up fine with my table saw, band saw, and router table. Fills up pretty quickly with my planer or jointer. In between would be my lathe with what I'm turning determining how much waste is being generated.
 

Hmerkle

Board of Directors, Development Director
Hank
Staff member
Corporate Member
I think it was a 15 gal. It fits under the delta AP-400

Similar to what this guy did - only mine is ON the cart...

62285d1360361504-returning-forum-image-3726103790.jpg
(you probably got to fix this one too - the HTML link is not working...)

I will take some pictures of it this weekend...
 

DWSmith

New User
David
Cardinal Drum and Barrel in Lexington sells their 55 gallon plastic barrels with a removable lid for $40 plus tax. Very high quality! I have 2.
 

thsb

New User
Tim
I have a 30 gallon steel can and I wish it was 55 gallon. When i use the planer it fills up FAST.
 

Hmerkle

Board of Directors, Development Director
Hank
Staff member
Corporate Member
Yes and no - he was talking about installing the window - be Ethan did it in a rubbermaid "Brute" trash can! I thought that was novel!
 

smallboat

smallboat
Corporate Member
Interested to see what you end up with.
I like the idea of getting rid of the hose between the baffle and the blower.

I started with a regular Rubbermaid plastic trash can and collapsed it.
Moved to a decent fiber barrel that had held plastic beads for injection molding- collapsed it
Ended up with a very heavy duty fiber barrel that had held welding wire- its been going strong for a year or so.
Wish I could get my hands on more of those barrels, they seem perfect for these set ups.

The barrel includes handles that are engineered to lift it with several hundred lbs of wire inside- plenty strong to handle a saw dust load.
I'm not a big guy and have no problem carrying it when its full of sawdust. I cart it about the same distance you describe, including up some steps.

Another thing I like is it came with the lid - I kept the clamping ring and it makes a great seal around the top where my baffle meets the barrel rim.

Didn't try any of the heavier plastic barrels, can't comment on them.
I'm also using a shopvac, a true dust collector may not be as prone to collapse the barrel. Not sure how the pressure/volume difference will effect that.
 

Rick M

New User
Rick
I have a 30 gallon steel can and I wish it was 55 gallon. When i use the planer it fills up FAST.

Yeah, carrying a 55g steel drum full of wood shavings would be a good workout but I'm not very enthusiastic about it. I'm not worried about size so much in terms of how fast it fills but I'm afraid too small a barrel won't be efficient and too much fine dust will make it past the baffle.

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk 2
 

DanR

New User
Dan
The State Surplus store. I bought three 50 gallon plastic drums there a couple of years ago for $5 each. I know you want 30 gallon, you could cut one down to make it shorter, although I would advise against that since it would decrease the rigidity of the top. The drums are very light, if you get in the habit of dumping every day I do not think the added pound will be a big deal.

State Surplus Property Agency Warehouse
6501 Chapel Hill Road
Raleigh, NC 27607
919-854-2160
Store Hours: Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:30 PM

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3409
 

blakeyon2asd

New User
blake
Can't help you with finding the barrels but we done something like that with barrels but used just used them for dust collection we got some cheapo hand trucks and ratchet straps from harbor freight to help move them.
 

ehpoole

Administrator
Ethan
Yes and no - he was talking about installing the window - be Ethan did it in a rubbermaid "Brute" trash can! I thought that was novel!

Consistent with the title of this thread, it is, in fact, a 32-gallon Rubbermaid Brute.

However, keep in mind that anything short of very stiff/strong plastic or heavy metal/fiber board will require reinforcement for use in any vacuum system... While a DC generates far lower static pressures than a Shop Vac, the DC's static pressures can prove more than sufficient to collapse an unreinforced container, especially if all the blast gates are momentarily closed (or blocked, etc.).

Fortunately they are not terribly difficult to reinforce. Most containers will need either one or two reinforcing hoops, most easily made from 1/8"x3/4" aluminum bar extrusion available from most home improvement centers (e.g. Lowes or Home Depot). A really lightweight container might need a third hoop, but I would expect that to be rarely needed.

To calculate the length of the aluminum extrusion needed to create your reinforcing hoop just multiply the diameter (D) of the barrel at the point you wish to install the hoop by pi (i.e. D x 3.142) -- this will be how long the bar needs to be in total (plus a few inches of added length for the overlap so you can rivet the two ends into a closed loop. If needed you can rivet two such bars together to get a longer length. Then simply form them into a round hoop by hand, rivet the two ends together and then rivet the hoop to the barrel so that it can not move or become dislodged. If your container is flared (i.e. not perfectly vertical) at the point where you want to locate the hoop it can be helpful to add just a little extra length so that you can press the hoop into position for a tight fit before riveting it to the barrel permanently.

One or two such hoops (at about 1/3rd and 2/3-to-3/4 height depending upon stiffness of the top opening) will pretty well ensure that most barrels will not collapse under the vacuum pressures seen in a DC system. In the case of the Rubbermaid Brute trashcan I only needed one such hoop because there is a stepped edge near the handles that greatly stiffens the top half of the trashcan so no reinforcing hoop was needed for the top half.

My 32-gallon Rubbermaid Brute trashcan is incredibly easy to carry (even though disabled I can easily handle it) outdoors even when filled to the brim with sawdust from dense hardwoods -- and it even included a convenient lid that I can place over the can while I'm transporting it so that I don't have to worry about stirring up the dust.

HTH

PS - I used 1/8"x1/4" aluminum rivets... and if you opt for rivets as well and make a mistake, you can undo your mistake by drilling out a bad rivet with the same 1/8" bit you used to drill the original pilot holes for the rivet (i.e. rivets are no more permanent than screws, just less likely to work loose over time).
 

junquecol

Bruce
Senior User
Go to Lowes, and buy a 30 gallon METAL trash can. They come with handles, and a lid to protect contents from weather. Look up (it's here) a post "Another Vote for Phil Thien's Baffle," and see how I built the ORIGINAL Top Hat design. This way you don't loose can capacity. My next model will be side inlet. When funds allow, buy a second trash can, same brand and size. This way you will have a spare till full one is emptied, plus lid will kept contents in the can, which can be left outside in the weather. Can't say that for a fiber drum.
 

ehpoole

Administrator
Ethan
Metal trashcans work equally well to the plastic, just be aware that many of them will still require reinforcement as many DCs are capable of crushing many of the steel trashcans on the market -- and you only get to crush a steel trashcan once!

One may also wish to ensure a good ground path for a metal trashcan (if your shop floor is a wet/porous concrete this may not be necessary as there may be sufficient losses already, but otherwise...). When I first setup my DC I was quite "shocked" :eek: at how much static charge all that swirling dust can accumulate during periods of low humidity!

Also, if you have flower beds in your yard you can often mix your sawdust into your beds rather than disposing of the sawdust as household trash.
 

Rick M

New User
Rick
In my case I just need to take them down the hill to the compost bin but sometimes the hill is slippery after a rain (or dew) and trying to move a heavy barrel would be ... exciting. I might just park the wheelbarrow outside the shop and dump the barrel at the door (my shop is a couple feet off the ground in front). There isn't room to keep a handtruck in the shop so it'll have to be carried.

So my DC is rated at 650 cfm, can a DC that small collapse a fiber drum?

edit: I'll consider the metal or plastic trash cans. I had dismissed plastic because they can collapse and I didn't want to mess with reinforcing it. The fiber drums are just the right size. The metal cans are a tad wide but would work.
 
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