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I've been needing to build a separator as I hate emptying the bag on my dust collector. One of my LJ buddies sent me old Shop Notes and I saw this model but thought "that's too simple to work". I built it this weekend and am totally amazed by how well it works. It is built entirely of scraps except for the 4" hose. I built a base to raise my DC up where the 'plumbing would fit easier. I used floor underlayment to seal all the potential leaks and intended to bungee the lid on but you can't pull it off when it's running so didn't need that. Thanks Thelt

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Now that's darned spiffy Andy. Nice job.
 

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nice set up , i hated emptying the lower plastic bag so i modified my d c, looks like you have a seperate area for your compressor and dc , nice modification.
 

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very ingenious Andy. wow! simple stuff. where did you get the blue barrel? this is the one you were cutting on you table saw the other day wasn't it?? thnx
 

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Bowtie, My big compressor and the dust collector live in the shop garage so I don't have to listen to them (especially the compressor). That PVC pipe goes through a closet wall into the shop. Roger, My LJ buddy Kenny gave me this barrel but I see them all the time on CL for very cheap. This one had some kind of soap in it so was really easy to clean.
 

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Wow!
No cyclone action and it works! How simple can it get!

Crash and burn! Or Help I've fallen and I can't get up!!!

I love it!
 

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Hey Andy;

Can you remember which issue of Shopnotes? I have all of them.

Thanks for sharing your build. I too was wondering where your post on cutting the plastic barrel with your TS sled was headed.
 

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Looks like a nice setup Andy. Anytime you can make something like this yourself it has alot more meaning to it.
Especially good since it works better than expected.
 

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Rick, Sorry I didn't post that. It is issue #55 of Shopnotes. NOTE: If I had thought to build the stand to raise my dust collector first, I would have used the whole barrel but when I started I thought that would be too tall. Greg, The best part is I only have $14.99 in it! (Woodcraft had the 4" hose on sale today). Thanks for the kind words all.
 

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Way to go, Doc. Glad to see you thinking outside the box. There's a non-thien and non-cyclone separator plan that comes with the Dust Right Master kit that is a roll around box baffled much like yours. I almost built it, but decided to be different.
 

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i love it. way to go andy
 

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thnx Andy, appreciate it
 

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works sort of like a septic tank…
I like the clear lid so you can see when its time to empty it.
And we thought it had to be complicated. Thanks for the idea.
 

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I.m in the process right now of putting a d/c system in my shop I can already tell i'm not going to like emptying the bag on my collector I going to build one just so I wo'nt have too as often. Thanks for showing this….....................Schloemoe
 

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So…...if working with a 5 gallon bucket, I guess just down size the dimensions. As has been mentioned, no "cyclonic action". HHHHMMMMMM….........color me intrigued!
 

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Stumpy, I have not tested it with the planer yet but I sucked a BUNCH of sawdust out of my tablesaw base and it worked well. DCs are wierd in that they don't 'suck' as hard as a shop vac but move a lot more air. I can't tell there is appreciable loss of flow but all the potential leaks don't leak. Look it up in issue #55 of Shopnotes for more details.The fact that I couldn't pull the lid off with it running says something about the air tightness. Is that a word?
 

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Excellent. Now if I only had the room to put my dust collector in the same room! I aspire to having a space big enough to walk 10 steps in a straight line.
 

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I built this over the last few days and I'm not sure if I did it wrong or I misunderstood its purpose. I don't really see a loss in suction but a lot of the dust makes it through to the filter. Is yours able to trap all the dust in the bin? I guess I assumed that it would function like a Thien or Cyclone and knock pretty much everything down but looking at your post now I realize you didn't claim that it would.
 

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Mine traps almost all the dust and drops it in the barrel. Did you extend your divider deep enough into the barrel? Mine extends about 8" below the top of the barrel.
 
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