I Put My Dust Collector OUTSIDE!

I'm in a small wood shop. That means space is a premium. Also, sounds are REALLY loud. If you've ever used a shop-vac, then you know what I mean. I decided to take a chance and mount my wood shop dust collector on the outside of my workshop. I built a small floating storage closet around the dust collector and piped the hose through the ceiling.
Do you think I made the right call? It's certainly much more quiet when it's on inside!
Also, don't buy the Harbor Freight 1 hp dust collector, it doesn't suck well enough. At least get the Rockler Dust Right 1 1/2 dust collector. It's priced well and does a great job at suction. It's much quieter, built much better, and has a RF remote to turn it on and off!
Rockler sent the dust collector for review
TOOLS / MATERIALS
■ Rockler Dust Collector 1.5hp : www.rockler.co... : amzn.to/38hbo4R
■ Rockler Hose : www.rockler.co...
■ Milwalkee Ratchet : amzn.to/39vy1jE
■ Dewalt Drill : amzn.to/2UuSQHq
■ Milwalkee Impact Drill : amzn.to/2UPrfj9
■ Circular Saw : amzn.to/2UwZ1ec
■ Cordless Miter Saw : amzn.to/33WBhTY
■ Bora Fliptop Stand : amzn.to/33Y08Xq
■ Graco Paint Sprayer : amzn.to/3dUF6gQ
Become a Patreon Member!
/ myerswoodshop
FILMING GEAR
■ Panasonic Lumix (main camera) : amzn.to/2BVA9nH
■ Rode Microphone : amzn.to/2HQxdcv
■ GoPro Hero 5 Black : amzn.to/2CMWi43
■ Neewer 62"/158cm Camera Tripod : amzn.to/2COtEQo
■ Neewer 31.5"/80cm Camera Track Dolly Slider Rail System : amzn.to/2BTKJv7
Find Me On The Internet:
■ Website : www.myerswoodsh...
■ Instagram : / myerswoodshop
■ Facebook : / myerswoodshop
■ Etsy : www.etsy.com/sh...
■ Pinterest : / myerswoodshop
■ Twitter : / benjmyers1
■ Blog : www.myerswoodsh...
■ Amazon Shop : www.amazon.com...
■ Podcast : www.thebuildgu...

[@MyersWoodshop]

■ Rockler Dust Collector 1.5hp : www.rockler.com/rockler-wall-... ■ Rockler Hose : www.rockler.com/rockler-4-dia... ■ Milwalkee Ratchet : amzn.to/39vy1jE ■ Dewalt Drill : amzn.to/2UuSQHq ■ Milwalkee Impact Drill : amzn.to/2UPrfj9 ■ Circular Saw : amzn.to/2UwZ1ec ■ Cordless Miter Saw : amzn.to/33WBhTY ■ Bora Fliptop Stand : amzn.to/33Y08Xq

[@erickmanuel7852]

Sorry to be off topic but does someone know of a method to log back into an Instagram account?? I was dumb lost my password. I would appreciate any tips you can offer me

[@ephraimjake5857]

@Erick Manuel Instablaster :)

[@erickmanuel7852]

@Ephraim Jake Thanks for your reply. I got to the site through google and I'm trying it out now. Seems to take quite some time so I will get back to you later with my results.

[@erickmanuel7852]

@Ephraim Jake it worked and I actually got access to my account again. Im so happy:D Thanks so much, you saved my ass !

[@ephraimjake5857]

@Erick Manuel happy to help xD

[@gigglesaregood]

Hello, so I work as an engineer and I work with HVAC and extraction systems quite a bit. You did a great job here. I would recommend that you put a 6x6" vent in the side of your enclosure as this will allow for the CFMs from the extraction fan to actually vent from the housing. You can put a louver on the vent so that there is less backflow of air when you aren't using the fan as I see that you insulated with the refletix product. If you don't allow for the CFMs to vent from the enclosed space with little to no back effect this will significantly affect the real CFMs that you experience. Also, if you want to dramatically increase the suction that you experience from the fan, I would also highly recommend that you use non-flexible pipe such as drainage pipe that you can get from home depot for as many of the runs as possible. I am glad to see that you are looking after your lungs. By placing the dust extraction outside you are also dramatically reducing the dangerous levels of PM5 (essentially small dust particales) and lower that you will experience in your shop. Sorry for all the nerd speak. Great job on the project. :) Cheers. Cameron.

[@patrickshannon8125]

Did you consider how the air from the blower was going to get out of your outside housing? Seems like that would keep the vacuum from working.

[@davidbennett3707]

That what I thought

[@rickasisco]

One issue you have is that you didn't put a vent into the box outside of your building for the air to get dispelled. If you are sucking air in, the air needs to go somewhere.

[@Thomas998822]

Dude put the DC outside and vents the fines back into the shop. That has certainly GOT to the one of the most hilariously a**-backward things I've EVER seen in my life.

[@michaelmunch8682]

you need to vent that cabinet, you wont get good performance if the air you are blowing in has no where to go, the cabinet will get pressurized and decrease suction. I would leave the bottom open.

[@MyersWoodshop]

theres a vent for air to come back in the shop in the top of the cabinet.

[@TheDivegeek]

@@MyersWoodshop This means any fine dust the filter doesn't stop will come back into the shop. Actually venting to the outside would mean you also need a vent to draw fresh air in (away from the dust vent!), which is bad if you need to heat/cool the shop, since you're going to be drawing a huge volume of outside air into the shop.

[@tomas6700]

Wow, you took a beating with this one. But, I learned a few things about dust collection that I did not know before. So, job well done! 👍

[@ashbrockus]

If you want even better performance you might look at a canister filter instead of the bag filter. The bag, especially a smaller bag than is meant for it, greatly restricts air flow. A canister filter will keep smaller particles from filtering back into your shop as well as give a much larger surface area for the air to escape the filter.

[@MyersWoodshop]

i'll check that out.

[@anyfoolknowthat]

Why use a filter at all though? Isn’t that the point of venting outside?

[@nikjett4154]

Please try adding some sort of vent to the box outside I bet you see a lot better performance. With it enclosed like it is you’re pressurizing the box and not allowing the air that is pumped into the box to escape fast enough.

[@MyersWoodshop]

i've run it with the door open and there's not a difference in performance.

[@carriep7812]

Thanks for the video. I won't hammer you on that cabinet needing air, I'm sure you've figured this out by now. Especially with so many people advising the same. What i was thinking of, was that this was a big commitment for a central machinery device. Don't get me wrong, I love me some harbor freight, but I'm not sure I would have gone that route.

[@kennethsullivan72]

Add a cyclone to make it a two stage. It works like a charm and the dust will drop in a trash can and never touch the fan blade.

[@MyersWoodshop]

eh, its outside and im out of room.

[@jayraysdiy852]

I like the mounting solution. The problem I have is you are comparing a 1 hp (650 CFM unit) motor to a 1.5 hp (1250 CFM unit)motor and the impeller is larger on the Rockler unit, so of course it has more suction. However, I do agree that you should do your research before buying so you get what you need.

[@carlb401]

That insulation is good if you want to keep your dust collector warm, to reduce sound use egg box foam. Also rigid pipe is better for dust collection, that flexi hose reduces the airflow as it causes turbulence. Ideally you only want a short section of hose just to make the final connection from rigid pipe to the machine. :)

[@NickKarpen]

Where does the air vent to outside. Looked like you sealed the box. Wouldn’t that just pressurize the box and affect your cfm?

[@BrianRussellFromWA]

I'm thinking the exact same thing. I think the harbor freight collector would have been fine if the air had some place to go. Open the door on your outside box and run a test with it open versus closed. I bet there would be a large difference if the air had some place to go.

[@ncglad]

I'm in this camp. With that long run in the shop and constricted exhaust, it's no wonder the 1hp HF collector didn't work. I use one of those with shorter smooth ducting and an unobstructed exhaust on a bandsaw and tablesaw (switch blast gates between tools) and it works great.

[@nikjett4154]

Yep this was exactly my thoughts...

[@chadwilliam1]

Came here to say this. The only escape is around the door and up where the 4 inch hose comes in. Leave the panel off and give it some air. You will want to empty that bag often bags clog quickly. Also the trash can seems like a bad idea since the dust wont ever settle in there because it will blow it out of the can when it's turned on. One more thing cfm is not suction, dust collectors are high volume low suction a shop vac is the opposite.

[@MyersWoodshop]

trash can was a horrible idea, which is why i ended on the bag. I've run it with the door open and it didn't make a suction difference.

[@Psychlist1972]

I have an Oneida cyclone, also outside to save room in my tiny shop and cut down on noise. The return is also outside (which is not ideal) so it sucks out the conditioned air and pulls in non-conditioned/heated air in the shop. But that's a tradeoff I was ok with for now. I don't get quite how yours is intended to work, though, unless you are just relying on the door to not be air-tight. The air is returned through the bag and needs somewhere to go or else your suction will suffer.

[@Psychlist1972]

Ahh, I see you addressed this at the end and have an air return back into the shop at the top. That wasn't obvious when looking at the cabinet.

[@MyersWoodshop]

its really hard to film inside that little, dark, cabinet

[@cityfiedredneck6841]

Like a few others have said, rigid pipe (sewer pipe) reduces turbulence greatly. Sharp turns will slow the air flow as well. And just as important is the fact the air has to fight it's way out of that box outside. Open the door and test it and I bet you'll see a noticeable difference with just that. Lots of folks use that same HF model with much better results. Toss a little $$$ at the piping and give us an update 😎

[@accessfm]

Have a look at rag n bone browns channel and the video "my new dust extraction system - installation and demonstration" he did a couple of years back. He put his compressor and dust vac and bin on a wall mounted extension similar to yours. Only thing is that he added two vents for the airflow in the end walls of the extension and that's what yours needs otherwise you have basically nearly sealed your extension putting your vac under pressure when running. Great idea though. Keeps the noise down. Love the videos mate and keep up the good work. Greetings from Ireland!

[@MyersWoodshop]

thanks for the heads up.

[@jayrich1985]

Awesome, I literally google "dust collector outside" Of Course Ben did this! I have about a week left of nice weather and I am debating this since I have a Onefinity on the way and Im keeping my XXL. I need to gain as much space as possible in my shop. (14x11) And it wouldn't be bad to have a port outside as well. I often plane long material outside my shop when the weather is nice to me. I may go one step further with a bit more insulation for climate, and also so I dont bother the neighbors

[@MyersWoodshop]

haha. small shop minds think alike!

[@caseyballentine3205]

Great video and explanations. One day I will get a better dust collector and system for my work area. I'm currently a shop vac guy 🙈

[@MyersWoodshop]

thanks Casey. It may not work for all, but it works perfectly for me.

[@eugenetrippy8490]

Good job. A possible alternative would have been the HF 2hp dust collector. another 16.00$ with coupon. Do the fan modification and it really sucks. If you separated your box from the wall, maybe some large rubber something. Stand alone would be best. Not always practical. The vacuum would be pretty much silent except for the sucking sound from the end of the four inch hose . No wall vibrations. Definitly need some ventilation in your box. Or venting to the great out doors is best, again not always practical. Space availability generally dictates how we get to build, and then modify and modify ect. our shops.

[@MyersWoodshop]

i wish i would have done that from the start.

[@samsungstark2377]

9:04 so is that how you make a square hole with a round peg?

[@samhiss6807]

You're dB comparison...isn't. You gotta measure at same distance, exhaust direction, etc. Would be great to see real/ accurate comparison. Thinking about doing same mod.

[@DanGoodchild]

Are you genuinely surprised that a $750 Rockler machine outperformed a $150 Harbor Freight machine?

[@mutigers88]

Do you have any instructions on getting the Alexa System setup for the on/off? Maybe another video?

[@MyersWoodshop]

i just have the dust collection going to a alexa outlet.

[@HueyF]

I enjoyed the video, but my Alexa didn't. 😄👍

[@MyersWoodshop]

haha.

[@gdonham1203]

Mr Myers, I subscribe to your channel and enjoy your videos. I have a critique of your video and that is it is too long. This is a suggestion to make your video shorter. During the construction of your outside cabinet you showed all your cutting but you did not explain exactly what you were doing. You did an explanation of your overall project but the step by step of cutting and fitting parts was unnecessary. You could just show the start and then the finished project of the cabinet. Some things could use step by step instructions but in this case after your overview you could have cut out over half of your video. Please accept this as constructive critique. I enjoy your videos and want you to keep making them but leave out unnecessary detail. I know you spend a lot of time planning and executing your videos but unless you are giving a blow by blow explanation cut out the middle part, state your objective and details then show the finished product with any unexpected events that happened along the way. If you are giving a technical explanation of a process then a detailed description would be good. Explaining why you bought a particular product is good but mundane construction of a custom enclosure was unnecessary. Keep up your good work and please consider my suggestions.

[@MyersWoodshop]

sorry man. just fast forward.

[@craigfrank3503]

So, my question is, when the air (and dust) is sucked out of the shop and blown into the box you built, How does the air get out of the box? If you limit the air that can go out, you limit the air that can come into the collection hose. I just saw a similar comment below, but didn't want to erase all that I just typed. Enjoyed the video.

[@MyersWoodshop]

i''ve compared it with the outside box door open, zero difference in sucktion.

[@carterscustomrods]

The HF vac I got is running hot... 135F hot on the housing... after 4 m8nutes. Is that normal?

[@H2Dwoat]

Hi, thanks for that. I find videos like this much more helpful: plan, implement, find issues, analyse, come up with a solution, implement. Do you think the issue with the harbour freight one was it only being 1hp or that it is poorly designed?

[@MyersWoodshop]

It wasn’t enough cfm, and I think it was because it had so much pipe and hose between the dc and tool.

[@OurTayloredHome]

So, like you mentioned in the video, you could just attach a pipe and exhaust all the dust out into your yard?

[@dtlepley]

The complete lack of venting of the outside enclosure MUST make a difference...if it does not than you have substantially choked flow upstream of the DC. What happens if you take the bag off and leave the door open?

[@MyersWoodshop]

It operates the same

[@p90x1011]

Humm. At 28:14 you call the rocker vacuum harbor freight. Might want to fix that.

[@MyersWoodshop]

whooops

[@robertgudger3713]

I caught that too.

[@rickchole4500]

Do you open the door when you use the dust collector? If not, the air has no where to go. I have a similar setup with a large vent.

[@ScottysVise]

Do you find yourself wishing you would have built a bigger box to separate into a large trash can, or do you find the dust collector bag to be sufficient for your needs? I'd like to do something similar, with a galvanized trash can, and a dryer vent.

[@MyersWoodshop]

Trash can idea did not work at all. The rockler dust right bag is perfect and I’m really happy with it. Zipper to empty and clear window too see how full it is

[@ScottysVise]

@@MyersWoodshop right, I get that the trash can didnt work in the way you used it. I meant using a large trash can seperator for more volume of the chips. Then vent it out wherever you want.

[@anyfoolknowthat]

@@ScottysVise Yeah, why not remove the box floor, put a trash can on the ground below it?

[@fournierluc2205]

Ben, sorry but in watching this, I think that you are comparing apples and oranges the first unit is designed to be portable and connected directly to the machine you are using. As you said, the second while not outrageous, it is a larger unit but at 3 to 4 times the price. It would have been interesting to compare the HF 2HP unit to the Rockler as it is less than half the price of the Rockler and is designed to be installed as a central dust collection. This is not to say that the Rockler unit is not good, it has a remote and appears to be quieter. While you have reduced the noise level in your shop, I wonder how the neighbors will feel with the additional noise with a window right on the other side of the fence or when they are spending time in their backyard.

[@MyersWoodshop]

true. its not quiet the same. but i was switching from a shop vac, and looking at the smallest, least expensive dust collector I could find. these were on the list. It's VERY quiet in the box outside, and I only run it when I need to, which isn't often.

[@zombiehunters6732]

The grates are to keep your kids from sticking their hands in the hole

[@holman26]

i saw a ridgid shop vac but what make is the other one have you made a vid of that system ie the one in ur loft

[@MyersWoodshop]

Do I have a video of the old shopvac? Nope. That was years ago

[@daledahlman4073]

Would it been better to run your main line as a 6”? Good job.

[@MyersWoodshop]

i actually think you'd lose suction from it.

[@anyfoolknowthat]

6” would be better, unless the DC is too weak. I guess depends on CFM versus length of pipe

[@fresh2k2004]

Hey what sprayer did you use to paint the outdoor cabinet? Did you have to thin the paint? Looking for something similar to paint some doors and trim. If you could let me know the brand and model I'd really appreciate it!

[@MyersWoodshop]

It is this model: amzn.to/3dUF6gQ

[@fresh2k2004]

@@MyersWoodshop hey thanks so much for the info! Keep up the great work with your videos. 👍👍

[@9q7a5z]

Good idea but video is much too long. I didn't need to see everything at Diresta speed.

[@billystray7007]

the only problem with that dust right unit is the price , for another 100 - 150 bucks a guy could buy a 30 amp 2hp type unit

[@MyersWoodshop]

unless you don't have room for it :(

[@billystray7007]

@@MyersWoodshop true but my point was the price is on the high side

[@emberwoodandcrafts-thomastritt]

Great video. I ended up doing something similar. My biggest difference is I set the collector on top of a drum and draw through it to act as an extractor. I will likely upgrade to a Rockler or other better brand in the future though. Thank you for sharing! Small Shop Dust Collection - Put It Outside! kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5SlXmuujZ6liLc

[@DrgnSlyr]

Interesting video but in all the years I worked in heavy manufacturing, I never once saw a vacuum system enclosed. Indoors or out.

[@MyersWoodshop]

it's working for me.

[@ArganicWoodwork]

I was going to criticize but others got me covered lol

[@MyersWoodshop]

its not youtube if there's not complaints.

[@su-mu]

7:12

[@stormchasecom]

28:15 *Rockler

[@MyersWoodshop]

yes

[@KevinCoop1]

As an electrical guy, I see a couple problems. First possibly a problem, by enclosing that the way you did, if enough fine dust concentration inside the box, then you have created an explosion proof area. Means dust explosion is possible. Second, it is a violation of NEC for a cord to go through a wall, floor, ceiling, openings as doors or windows. A common sense comment, without enough return air back into the shop, you are cutting down cfm enormously and causing possible over work on motor. That is why you have less suction than you should have. Suggest you drill another hole in top of the enclosure.

[@MyersWoodshop]

i dont want an explosion! :O

[@KevinCoop1]

Myers Woodshop My suggestion. Call the manufacturer and describe what you did. They might tell you to what degree of danger you have created. All I know is concentrated fine dust in the correct amount of air is highly explosive. You might be safe or you might not.

[@byromscustomwoodworks]

uses tool in a way its not meant to be used and complains its junk

[@MyersWoodshop]

how and what did i use in a way its not meant to be used?

[@byromscustomwoodworks]

Myers Woodshop the harbor freight dust collector. It’s meant to be used directly next to a tool. It’s not a long run collector.

[@evecloudlet5284]

I did the same with Woodprix :)

[@A.Dude.]

Great; you replaced a disgrace which should not be sold at all, priced at $150, with a unit which costs four times the amount and call it a comparison... It's like comparing a Corolla to a Lexus... Also, that bag is GARBAGE, you will have to get the canister filter and it will happen very soon because the garbage bag will clog and become useless. Next, cleaning floors... While Rockler is not a bad company, not everything they sell is desirable; one of the least desired products is the nozzle you use for dusting floors. There is a reason why vacuum cleaners have 1 1/4 attachments... Cheers!

[@fsommer1]

Really? You didn't vent the enclosure? And you wonder why it didn't work very well? Don't blame the dust collector. Respectfully, it's your fault.

[@MyersWoodshop]

the hole in the roof is bigger for air venting.

[@fredscott413]

stupidly noisey better to build your own.

[@MyersWoodshop]

easier to buy one.