-22 dB Shop Vac Silencer

A shop vac is a critical item for dust control in your workshop, but its deafening roar is a clear and present danger to domestic tranquility. This is a brief video explaining and demonstrating a sound-deadening cabinet I made in 2007 to control the noise from my shop vac. It works amazingly well; when it's in use in the basement, it's difficult to hear from ground floor, and just about impossible to hear from second flooor.
For other esoteric workshop creations, you can check out my website:
www.mojotiretoo...

[@Fish6699]

Nice build. The absolute Best display of how effective it is. A continuous shot of the Vacuum running and being placed in the Cabinet leaves no question of the effectiveness.

[@puderzucker8667]

Is there no loss of efficiency?

[@vtxrider1800r]

I've built a similar one but only bigger. It's 5'5" tall by 3' around. I use it for my mother-in-law when she comes over. Her constant bitching about everything has gone from 100db to just 20db. In my design I don't use air holes.

[@danburch9989]

With no air holes, her oxygen level drops which causes the bitch level to drop to 20db. You just proved it scientifically.

[@garrisongarage1505]

Bawahahahahahahaha! Freakin classic!

[@rs-ut5wr]

vtxrider1800r 😂😂😂😂

[@calebwillhelm2635]

LMAO

[@3mptyroom66]

interesting u just saved my marriage thanks ganna start making one rn

[@totheknee]

It made me happy when you put the vacuum inside the enclosure. It was like you told physics to quiet down and deal with the box for a while.

[@MrSpinnerbug]

I just built my vac silencer, similar to yours and it works GREAT. Really does make it pleasant to be in the Wood-shop and use my much needed shop vac on all of my tools. Very pleased with it and I added the Oneida Cyclone dust collector to the top, to all but eliminate emptying the vac. A very important tool for my shop...thanks for sharing your idea with all.

[@RBimas37]

What a gem of a video. You have made the world a better place. Thanks!

[@lion39]

Very impressive results. If you could attach a cyclone bucket system to it, you'd eliminate the filter clogging issue.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

lion39 Actually I do have one: home.comcast.net/~prestondrake/Stuff_Workshop.htm but it's only convenient for use with my sandblasting cabinet. I haven't gotten around to setting up a dust control system that lets me vacuum the rest of my shop through that cyclonic separator, e.g. when cleaning up after spraying powdercoat, or using table saw or router. That's what I get for procrastinating...

[@ernieengineer3462]

Just watched about 10 videos for ideas on silencing my “Screaming Banshee” and yours wins hands down. Most effective, simple. Good point about cooling air flow reduction as the filter gets dirty. 👍🏻👍🏻

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

Thanks. I recently finished building a new cabinet that addresses all the shortcomings of the first one. I'll be posting a video about it sometime in the next few months.

[@Lambig56]

@@JoeFrickinFriday Hey man, I am really interested about that new cabinet as I am gonna start building in the next fews days. Could you make a quick plan of the build? Anyhow, that one was defo really good. Have a nice day.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

I built the new cabinet last year, with all of the improvements I've mentioned elsewhere in this comment section - most notably, a separate duct for hot air coming off of the motor. It holds a Ridgid 14-gallon vac, and keeps it quiet and cool, even when the filter is seriously dusted up. I haven't made a movie about the new cabinet yet, but you can see pics in my SmugMug gallery here: www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-N6q5M8/ You can get a general idea of the dimensions by eyeballing those pics; I can post more detailed specs later this week. Hope to get a movie uploaded later this year.

[@FilipedosSantos]

@@JoeFrickinFridaygreat! Waiting your new video. Tks for sharing.

[@Lambig56]

@@JoeFrickinFriday thanks man!

[@aarondcmedia9585]

The difference was striking. Well done, and thanks for the ideas.

[@TheJbergner]

Joe! thanks for the inspiration. I just about completed my version of your build. It is super quiet and I appreciate your sharing this! Thanks so much

[@DaveJHarry]

I was astounded with the sound pressure level reduction when you placed the vac in the box, even before you closed the door.It's quiet surprising.I've been reading the comments about heat and the airflow for the motor which is separate from the vacuum airflow. Not owning a shopvac yet, my domestic vacuums have all used the main airflow to cool the motor and I wondered why this model didn't. It didn't take long to realise that if the filter gets clogged then the motor has no cooling and can overheat quickly, which is less likely to happen say when sucking up a sock on the lounge carpet.To avoid this, I'm interested in building one with a combined cyclonic front end, so that the final filter sees very little dust.Your design is probably the most effective that I have seen so far. Thank you for sharing it.

[@spacemanrick2014]

Dave Harry, most home vacuum cleaner motors get their cooling air through the impeller, through the motor. Its not quite axial, as it pushed through vanes on the side, and through the motor. The 5 Rigid shop vacs I have disassembled, the motor is separated from the suction, the impeller is encased in a spiral volute, and they all draw cooling air through a fan from the top. Four of them have channels that draw in cooling air from outside the sides of the vac to the fan, and the oldest one just draws air from the top, where you can see the fan through the grille, and it is the most noisy one. The home upright vacuum cleaners I have taken apart, have no cooling fan on the back shaft, it would impede airflow. The 5 Rigid ones do. The main reason is not a sock, most shop vacuums are sold as wet/dry vacs, and some lazy jerks, (like I used to before I knew better) will suck up drywall dust with the sponge wet filter on. Imagine that mess in the motor.

[@soorenaaslani7491]

I built one exactly like yours and my original reading was around 80ish decibels and with the vacuum inside I get around 70 decibels. Yours is significantly quieter. Its actually silent. Mine has a pitch noise that just hurts your ears. I have no idea what I did differently because its literally the same thing in every way. Maybe the hinges are a tad bit different but that's it.

[@MrSpinnerbug]

Outstanding- Just what I need. The best one I have found on You Tube! Nice job.

[@ToddHollarn]

My 2 cents is that you should leave a clean top surface on it making it able to be utilized as a work surface, bench to mount tool you want the vacuum to pull the dust from or whatever. As time has passed I am guessing that this is something you would have come to figure out but seems something that someone copying your design should take into consideration. Handles on the sides and possibly moving the switch below one of the handles so it can act as a bumper / protection for the switch. I would think the chord could be snaked out the back vent if not wanting to make another hole in it. The comment about it being similar to speaker cabinet instead of seeing as a joke might actually be one more way it can be utilized for someone who likes their music in the shop. With initial thoughts are have speakers firing down but may need to have another bottom to reflect off and use side for port. Whatever someone decides the noise of some shop vacuum is so deafening that I wont even use but your muffler is a good alternative.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

Todd Hollarn All good suggestions, thanks. If I were going to make another cabinet (and I may someday for a larger/more powerful shop vac), I would do many of those things: handles/switch/cord attached to the sides, with maybe a laminate top surface or something.

[@shamsularfeen1676]

Awesome..getting down to 66 from 87 is a great achievement...i am going to try out something similar to my inverted jigsaw and diy table saw...thanks for the video.👌❤

[@tonyja661]

That is the best noise reduction system I have seen. great job and thanks for sharing, that foam is the key without doubt. you have obviously put a lot of thought into this setup.

[@EmmittBrownBTTF1]

A horizontal baffle in the cabinet exhaust path would help create a drafting draw and lower the temperature by separating intake and outlet airflows, A PC fan could also force draft, quietly. Well done.

[@williameshea]

Results that speak (quietly) for themselves. Great job.

[@ramaroodle]

Nice job. You can just use an inner bag for the shop vac and eliminate the filter problem. They're not free but they are convenient.

[@duff5000]

Very cool and thank you for the sound warning. Appreciate it.

[@timgrace4434]

I did something similar with my air compressor, but didn't run the soft seals around the doors. The egg crate foam works wonders at suppressing sound. I did notice that even prior to you closing the door, the sound levels dropped significantly. Good job!

[@kenlee6088]

+Tim Grace You couldnt be more wrong. Do your research, egg crate foam does absolutely nothing lol. For you to say that the sound levels drop to a 'significant' degree is just hilarious.

[@jasonlisonbee]

'Significant' is a subjective term. To some it means from headache inducing to conversation level. To others it means from close enough to a space shuttle to touch it at launch to the most sensitive dB meter seems defective until someone touches it or lets a breath in or out.

[@p.p.g.6629]

Muy buen trabajo. me eentretenido en leer algunos comentarios y las respuestas porque queria saber el efecto causado por el calor pero veo que es totalmente factible hacelo, estaba buscando algo parecido para hacelo en mi pequeño taller y esta es la mejor opción. Felicidades

[@MegaSoyaMan]

Amazing work , I think I will test your build if I can ,

[@jwcivccc]

Best one i've seen on YT yet. the heck with the hecklers.

[@clsbrasil2]

Wow. Really nice. 50 pounds for the vac and the box together or just the box?

[@jloughland]

Best one I've seen yet!!

[@0tempora]

God I love KZbin. Thank you.

[@minimonkeyplay]

Even with the door open it made a difference I think 4 latches is a bit of overkill.

[@paulseminara2483]

Wow and that VAC is superloud to start with. (Even more impressive). That is so very cool. I will build this! Jumping in truck quickly to go get plywood........run back in house and puts some pants on.

[@rogerdickinson920]

Put a small cyclone in front of it, Dust Deputy comes to mind. Almost no dust in the vacuum. UTube has lots of them. Also the other poster was correct, baffle the intake, a lot of nose comes out of that opening.Good job.

[@uriel-heavensguardian8949]

best one i seen yet

[@hollowman1836]

This was incredibly helpful

[@smhunter17]

ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT

[@TairnKA]

"Winner, Winner, Turkey Dinner". You said it's a little quieter, No Dude ... It's way more quiet! Great job.

[@ederangelo21]

it is great... BR your friend of Brazil

[@mehdihazam1588]

can I have the reference of your acoustic insulation? i need the same thing, its really great.!.!.!.! thank you!

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

The foam I used is item #9710T95 from www.mcmaster.com. However, I've since discovered that you can get better prices and selection at www.thefoamfactory.com.

[@104Tomcat]

I like it! Good job! Do you have or can you make a short video on how you made the short hose that connects the Shop-Vac to the "outside world"?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

Home Depot sells Ridgid branded accessories for Ridgid shop vacs; this includes kits (fittings + hose stock) for making hoses of arbitrary length, and also couplers for joining two lengths of hose. Look at the wood block on the side of the cabinet; there's a hose coupler secured in that block with construction adhesive. It passes all the way through to the inside of the cabinet (I can't remember for sure, I may have cut/ground off external features from the coupler to make a smooth cylinder). So you use Ridgid parts to make a short hose that connects the shop vac to that pass-through coupler, and then your external hose just plugs into the other end of that pass-through coupler. You'll need a big ol' hole saw to make that hole.

[@Cass_772]

I NEED THAT FOR DOING NAILS!!

[@cultusmechanicus8001]

ever thought about an watertrap ? would solve your temp problems and you wont clog your filter anymore

[@gunfighterzero]

nice job, if you wanted to get fancy you could add a thermal temp controller that would automatically shut off at a preset temp

[@quietkey2003]

WOW on the sound decrease. That's quite striking...Peace

[@marcellustone]

WOW! Thanks dad, It gives back hope.

[@100mpgus]

awesome! The world is too loud these days, good idea to make it a little quieter

[@thymekiller]

Thanks. Best one on utube.

[@axentchen]

Great Idea, best one I found.

[@Linrox]

Very nice. My only concern is the higher temperature shortening the life span of the vac. I am looking at doing something similar and need to find a good way to exchange the hot air out and the cooler air in quickly without letting the noise out.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

I'm currently working on a design for a new cabinet that includes a separate exit duct just for the warm motor exhaust. A fitting on the motor cowl will allow a hose to carry warm motor exhaust to that separate exit duct. This way, even if the main vac hose/filter is completely blocked, the motor can still draw fresh cool air from the cabinet interior (backwards through the main cabinet exhaust, if necessary). The cabinet will be slightly larger and heavier, but this should alleviate any concerns about the operating temperature of the vac.

[@javiercarrillo7388]

FullLifeRebel

[@Linrox]

@Javier Carrillo EH?

[@t1000eg]

Really handy for the stairs

[@silentscribes]

wow thats a big difference nice video

[@90210sky]

If you want to go even further on noise reduction, remove the foam and apply a layer of MLV (Mass loaded Vynil), this is sold by sheets.

[@gracesilverwood8759]

Simple yet effective! I think I may build one of these myself. Do you find dust inside the box at all?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

As far as I can tell, no dust is getting blown out of the shop vac's exhaust into the cabinet.

[@internalharm]

I like the idea, just wish there is some way to make it smaller. I have a 16 gallon shop vac

[@rmhutchins7]

I enjoyed your video. It was very helpful. Thank you!

[@cletusrobinson]

Simply Fabulous!

[@Tensquaremetreworkshop]

You really need to choose a shop vac that uses the vac airflow for cooling. Many do.

[@Nocholas]

Impressed, yet disappointed that it wasn't actually reading -22dB.

[@BronkBuilt]

It's now been a few years. How is this hold up as far as heat? Your's seems to be the best I've seen for reducing sound so just wondering if any heat issues.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

It was built in 2007, so it's now (5/2018) 11 years old. The heat is fine (cabinet exhaust temp 115F or less) as long as you keep an eye on how clogged the vac's filter is getting. If it's clogged enough so that the cabinet exhaust temp hits 115F, then the loss of suction is noticeable, so that's a good time to take the vac's filter out and tap it clean. I do have safety concerns, in that it IS vulnerable to overheating if the vac hose is completely blocked, and the acoustic foam in my cabinet is NOT flame-resistant. Search KZbin for "acoustic foam fire test," and watch a comparison between flame-resistant and non-resistant acoustic foam, and you'll understand my concern. I have a cabinet design drawn up that features separate paths for vac air and motor-cooling air: even if the vac hose or filter gets completely clogged, the motor will still be able to get all the fresh air it needs to keep itself cool. When I do get around to building this cabinet, I will use flame-resistant acoustic foam, and I will also include a thermal fuse to interrupt power if the cabinet temp gets above 160F.

[@100mpgus]

This video has been waiting for 11 years for me to find....sorry it took so long to get here! lol

[@elonmusk8667]

You should use Green Glue begins the foam. It will lower the noise to about 40.

[@chancho00]

I think you could improve it even more if you do some kind of platform with a piece of plywood and 4 nails or rubber rods on each corner the way you dont press those points on the foam with the vacuum, also cover those unfilled edges around the inside of the box.

[@swordfish1120]

Great idea and so functional. How long have you run that shop vac in the box?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

I made the cabinet in 2007. Based on the amount of sandblasting/powdercoating I've done since then, I'd estimate it's actually got about 300 hours of operation.

[@alexchechkin8802]

wow very impressive. i/m building mine on your prototype

[@rolandassemaska538]

Definitely will do that on my table saw,will make freedom from my neighbour :)thanks for sharing. .....

[@davidsumser1814]

How long before it over heats and burns up the shop vac?

[@summerswoodworking]

Oh man yes! This one works!

[@GMONEYFIFTYFOUR]

You built a band pass box, but reversed?

[@clienteuainfo3021]

muito boa sua ideia, acho que vou copiar, parabéns.

[@doitmyselfrunza]

What temp does the exit air get to. That would be my concern

[@jamesrogers4674]

This video has a Tech Ingredients vibe.

[@visioncristiana7]

Great idea. thanks

[@batvette]

Alternate version: s353.photobucket.com/user/batvette/library/tools?sort=3&src=wap&page=1 Oak plywood. Carpet outside neoprene/rubber mass material inside. Fans in and out with labyrinthe ducts turn on automatically when you hit the single switch on the outside. It helped that the vac I used was quiet already. Ridgids are LOUD.

[@gilangpermana8710]

Please, can u show me how u made a same box for belt sander ?

[@matthewcampbell7412]

Well done.

[@9q7a5z]

Good idea, but would the operating temp go down with a little larger exit port? Seems kind of restricted.

[@isyrzy]

How about the temperature?

[@mogong7260]

What about the. Won't get hot?

[@danburch9989]

I wonder if a similar design (with baffles on the intake and exhaust) would quiet a noisy generator. With an auxiliary exhaust fan, I'd bet there'd be almost an equal reduction in the noise level.

[@rupe53]

You could but there's a lot more heat to deal with and portable generators are air cooled. Try this... build a 3 sided noise deflector about 1 ft larger than the gen set all the way around, then face the exhaust to the open side. Lay a piece of plywood on top to make a 4th side, keeping that 1 ft higher than the set, just for air flow. It's not perfect but as long as the open side faces away from the house it will help with noise and also keep rain / snow off the set on a stormy day. If it works out you can add strap hinges so storage is almost flat. Keep in mind that plywood will burn so the exhaust MUST face the open side to avoid direct contact with the wood!

[@rs-ut5wr]

just made mine, all i had on hand was roxul but it worked!

[@prathamesh2332]

Sir how can we build it??..

[@garrisongarage1505]

Looks good!

[@thegreenman4898]

great stuff, can i suggest a baffled air intake similar to your exhaust with a computer fan on the front to blow cooling air into the cabinet? im guessing your biggest problem is heat build up inside. i would be paranoid the thing would catch fire. fantastic noise reduction!

[@tripjet999]

I turned down the volume and that worked, too.

[@israelsiar9]

Great job!!

[@aarevalo49]

Dude. It looks like you built a pretty decent bass-reflex speaker box. Have you tried playing music inside of it? Just kidding.

[@stoplivinginthepast1470]

Alex Arevalo looks like it's tuned around 38hz

[@hyperhektor7733]

install a 10-inch-monstercock-SubWooferSpeaker so you have a dual purpose box :)

[@jasonlisonbee]

Space shuttle launch pads require a huge area around them to be clear of residents in order to avoid deafening them. I wonder how close a person could soundly sleep during launch if they mastered sound deadening with current technologies and materials. Considering examples I'd seen, it's probably easy to fit within almost any homeowner or builder's budget to be just outside its burn radius.

[@Aleschenko]

Ty for this sir ! inspiring vid

[@kevinchappell3694]

So my Fein Shop VAc is 66 dBa to start with, so I'm hoping that my cabinet will reduce down to below 50 dBa....will find out tomorrow. THANKS FOR THE IDEAS. Follow up: my Fein starts at 66dBa and is now in a 36”w x 36”h x 20”d.......very quiet. Cabinet and baffles are lined with a 1/4” heavy felt material. Also with a soft gasket Ed door seal. My only concern is the interior cabinet temperature that raises to 48C (118F). I may have to add a small exhaust venting fan and some inlet air vents. My filters are dead clean due to cyclone dust collector installed before vac.

[@SunWKim]

For Bitcoin miners, I've seen some videos where they use a portable cooler (top lid, plastic finish, hollow perhaps -> e.g. coleman). Any thoughts on how well your shopvac noise would be reduced in something like that versus your wood/foam box?

[@rs-ut5wr]

thinking of building something very similar, think roxul safe n sound would perform better?

[@joeworkman]

Do you lose any suction by reducing the airflow like this?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

There's very little flow restriction in that serpentine exit baffle. It's about 25 inches tall, so the cross-sectional flow area is quite large, making the air velocity low; it's a gentle breeze coming out of that tall exit slot in the side of the cabinet.

[@AshburnSlumLord]

How does it get air to cool the motor. It is coming from the air in the box which will get progressively warmer?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

Ashburn slum lord The main vacuum hose pulls outside air in, and then the shop vac dumps filtered air into the cabinet. That's the air the motor uses for cooling. The warm exhaust from the motor mixes with the rest of the air inside the cabinet, and because there's always fresh air coming in, there's a general movement of the mixed air to the cabinet's exhaust port, carrying heat away. If the vac's filter is relatively clean and free-flowing, then there's lots of air flowing through, and the inside of the cabinet stabilizes at a temperature that's about 25 degrees higher than outside the cabinet. If it gets clogged, the temperature difference is more like 45 degrees. I watch the cabinet's exhaust temp with a kitchen thermometer; if it hits 110F I know it's time to clean the vac's filter.

[@clearriver5987]

nice job

[@tubaman76]

Do you have any problems with the vac overheating?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

In the video you'll notice the thermometer in the cabinet's exit slot so I can keep an eye on temps. My basement is usually about 65 degrees. If the filter is unclogged, the cabinet exit temp is about 90F. When the filter is clogged enough to give me an annoying decrease in performance, the cabinet exit temp is about 110F; that's when I shut down and unclog the filter. I assume shop vacs like this are designed to tolerate being used outdoors in Las Vegas or Phoenix on a hot summer day, so I'm not expecting (and have not experienced) any trouble with it operating under these conditions. Just in case though, I keep the cabinet exit away from anything flammable so if it starts belching flame, it won't immediately ignite anything else - and there are a couple of fire extinguishers in my basement too.

[@punkbloater]

+JoeFrickinFriday Nice work, it would have been great if you could find a way to give it some fresh air but i guess that would bring the noise up again.

[@punkbloater]

+punkbloater oh just figured out you get fresh air through the hose.

[@julianvidal7361]

+JoeFrickinFriday A nice addon would be to make a programmable thermometer (Arduino, for example) that could turn of the vac to prevent overheating. Excellent project, by the way!

[@bnisimov]

Hi. How do you like it so far? Do you feel any issues with heat as some members pointed out? I would like to build one but want to make sure nothing explodes ;)

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

I've been using it for almost ten years now. It's worked well, but I've felt compelled to keep an eye on the cabinet's outlet temperature so I can shut down and clean the vac's filter when the exhaust temp hits 115F. I recently contacted Ridgid (the maker of my shop vac), and they said that it should be fine up to 120F. As it happened, my shop vac recently died because the brushes on the DC motor finally wore out. It's 15 years old and has hundreds of hours of operation on it, so no complaints. I immediately replaced it with a similar-sized model so I could continue using my silencing cabinet without interruption, but I also bought a larger, more powerful vac, with the intention of building a new/larger cabinet for it. When I do, I will implement a few changes: #1: I will add a separate serpentine inlet duct for dedicated motor-cooling air. A short hose will connect the duct to a fitting on the vac's motor cowl, assuring that the motor gets plenty of fresh cool air, even if the shop vac's filter is 100% blocked. #2: I will use flame-resistant acoustic foam (e.g. www.thefoamfactory.com/acousticfoam/gridfoam.html). The stuff I'm using now is NOT flame-resistant, so if it ignites, the airflow through the cabinet will probably fan the flames, making a nice "afterburner" at the cabinet's exhaust port. When I'm using my current cabinet, I position it so the exhaust isn't near any combustible items; that way if it does ever blow fire, I'll have a chance to shut it down and kill the flames before things get really out of hand (and yes, I've got a hefty ABC fire extinguisher at the bottom of the stairs, as all home basement work shops should). #3: I had been using a simple kitchen thermometer to monitor exhaust temperature. I recently switched to a fancier one (www.amazon.com/Wireless-Digital-Kitchen-Electronic-Thermometer/dp/B01CTZ17QO/ref=pd_lpo_79_lp_t_4?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=V66P6ZGN6Z5FKKD6N2FC) that includes a remote display and an alarm feature. This lets me monitor the exhaust temperature from wherever I'm actually working (e.g. at the table saw or sandblaster), and I can program the alarm to yell at me if the temperature gets above 115F. #4: I will put the power switch, cord, and handles on the sides of the cabinet instead of the top, creating an uninterrupted flat surface on the top of the cabinet for storage/work. Note that many of these changes were suggested by previous commenters. Too many comments here to pore through and find the sources, but if you see your suggestions in my list above, thank you - my next cabinet will be better because of you.

[@coeniejansevanrensburg6195]

Can't you put maybe 1 or 2 small fans on the side of it to blow fresh air inside? That small computer fans you get and run them on a 12v Adapter? I'm not sure but maybe it will affect the noise. Can it work just to keep it from over heating?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

Apart from the added noise due to new hole(s) in the enclosure, the challenge would be to ensure that the motor pulls in only this fresh air for cooling, and not any of the other already-warm air inside the enclosure. The only way I can see to achieve this is by connecting the motor's cooling-air intake to the outside world via a dedicated hose; a foam-lined serpentine duct (just like the one for the enclosure's exhaust) would then need to be incorporated into this cooling-air path to minimize noise. If auxiliary fans need to be used for any reason, note that a DC adapter shouldn’t be necessary, as appropriately sized fans that run on 120V AC are available; see www.digikey.com for examples.

[@Bishop0178]

if you use a dustextractor, you wouldn´t have to worry about the filter

[@larss337]

I want one 👍

[@AlainHubert]

It would be even much better if those vacuum cleaner manufacturers could design them to be more efficient and less noisy in the first place. Shop-Vac brand is known to produce more noise than actual vacuum.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

The universal-type motor in most shop vacs features a brushed commutator, and that commutator is responsible for a lot of the noise. Totally enclosed fan-cooled (TEFC) induction motors are quieter, but they're heavy and usually reserved for stationary applications like high-end table saws; I'm not aware of a portable shop vac that features a TEFC motor. I did recently find a shop vac that features a brushless DC motor: no commutator, so the motor noise is virtually gone. However, it's hideously expensive. This seems strange, given the proliferation of powerful brushless DC motors. However, even if you make the motor quiet, it's hard to eliminate the whine of the actual turbine that moves the air. A manufacturer who can do this economically may find that they crush the competition. :-)

[@AlainHubert]

@@JoeFrickinFriday Indeed. Very nice and efficient design on your "silencer box" by the way. Thanks for sharing and Happy New Year 2019 !

[@qfksspecial7866]

Try adding sound proofing material intead of sound absorption material. It may become even more quiet.

[@bobhoskins9595]

Several thick/dense towels on each wall might be much better than this foam as well. Towels are incredibly good at midrange/high frequency absorbing noise.

[@Rebellion_Rules]

Perfect!

[@bliaxiong6439]

smart!!!

[@kenh733]

I think most of the noise comes from the motor and brushs inside it, I wished they would just make them less loud.

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

Several years ago I installed a frequency analyzer app on my phone and took a look at the spectrum for my shop vac operating in open air (outside of the cabinet). Here’s what I captured: prestondrake.smugmug.com/Other/Website-Pics/i-37BthQv/0/O/shop-vac-open-air.jpg The red trace is the peak level since last reset, and the green trace is the current/live reading. A few comments about the spectrum: - There’s a notable peak at 350 Hz (this corresponds to 21,000 RPM on the motor, fairly typical speed for a shop vac impeller). - The 7-bladed main impeller accounts for the peak at 2450 Hz. - The 11-bladed motor cooling fan accounts for the peak at 3850 Hz. - There are some other peaks that appear to be harmonics of the above, and plenty of wind noise, all at higher frequencies. Not much going on below 350 Hz. The brushes and commutator may add some white noise to the mix, but I think the bulk of the noise is due to the above factors. There are vacs out there with brushless DC motors, but their biggest selling point seems to be efficiency: you get more air power for the same electrical input. They don't seem to be marketing them as being particularly quieter than conventional universal motors.

[@llbradfam95]

Where did you get your foam from?

[@JoeFrickinFriday]

+llbradfam95 www.mcmaster.com. Using the search engine on their site, search for "sound absorbers;" you'll get a bunch of options.

[@greenbag7787]

+llbradfam95 If you google "acoustic foam", you might find some in your own city. There's a few foam shops in my city that carries, it, as well as a few music stores, and even Home Depot.

[@arturo4700]

most quiet than festool