# Sawdust Concern Entering The House



## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

For those of you with attached garage shops and or barndominium's with 
shops combined, I am curious if ever dust works its way into the house?

Not anytime soon but within the next 3-5 years I plan on moving out of the city onto land and having a barndominium built and need to figure if I need a stand alone or have the shop included in one building, cost may be a factor. I currently have a stand alone shop away from the house in the back yard.

Thanks


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

I'd suggest putting the living quarters above in your barn and the shop below. I have my basement shop in our house and don't get dust upstairs but it does float in the family room down stairs.

Jim


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## clin (Sep 3, 2015)

I think the main thing is to not share ventilation and not have the house furnace in the shop area. Seal the shop as well as possible. Even if it is an interior door, between the house and shop, treat it like an exterior door door. Weather stripping, and solid for noise reduction.

If you have a well sealed door between the two and no common ventilation, I don't think it matters much if the shop is attached or not.

After that, you have to start thinking about not carrying the dust in on your cloths. I make a point to vacuum myself off. Seems to work.

One other thing I can think of is if you exhaust your DC outside, you'd of course want to make sure that dust will not get sucked through an open window or other vent and into the house (or back into the shop either).


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

Thanks Jim and Clin.

Clin you make a great point on the D.C. System I have my D.C. Now outside of the shop in its own closet and everytime I open the door dust comes flying out.


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## Boxguy (Mar 11, 2012)

Blackie, after several years of working in an attached garage I moved my shop to a building 50 or more yards away from the house. It was a great idea.



















Buy some acreage and make the shop twice as big as you think you need. Include a separate room for finishing. Add a bathroom if you can. I use the walk-out basement for my tractor and mechanical and welding needs. The upstairs has plenty of light. Give it a 12 foot ceiling and use the upper levels for sliding doors and the lower wall to back tools up to. Heat it with plastic pipes in the floor so you don't have grills filled with sawdust. A water heater and a small circulating pump will be enough to heat it. Insulate well.

It is wonderful working in natural light. The big door means that when you leave for the nursing home some rich guy will buy your house and have a great place to store his RV and his boat.

Think big, build it yourself. I watched you build your current shop, so I know you have the skills. Start now…you aren't getting any younger.


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

Thanks Alan

I know I'm not getting any younger and only if it were so easy, I still have 2.5 years to go before my current mortgage is paid for then I'll be able to sell this house.

Thing is I'm in Austin, Travis County if you've been following any news you might know how crazy it is living in this county. Also we still have our parents with in 5 miles of us they we are looking after so where ever I go I'll have to keep it as close as possible to them.


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## DocSavage45 (Aug 14, 2010)

Randy,

Jay Bates on YouTube might be worth looking at.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJSMSz1eVPSHtPGs2ZtjTjA

I've been looking into dust , health and costs. I now subscribe to Jay as he had some great info on Dust Collection. I'm thinking that Austin has great real estate values and your shop/out building would be a plus for many. And moving out when real estate values are up puts more cash in your pocket?

I understand about older parents, took care of mine.


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## Carloz (Oct 12, 2016)

Not a problem here but I am very paranoid about sawdust I have a HF dust collector and Jet air filter, and I clean the place every time sometimes several times when I work there.


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## Cheapguy82 (Dec 9, 2016)

I work in my garage and track in dust all the time via foot and clothes. Drives my wife nuts. That's the only way that it gets in right now, though…and I have basically nothing for a dust collection system - which I plan on addressing sometime soon (as soon as I can afford it). I recently got an air compressor and try to blow the dust off of me and clean my shoes before I go inside the house.

I agree with Doc - check out Jay Bates. There are a few others on youtube that have awesome dust collection videos, too…


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## sawdustdad (Dec 23, 2015)

Separate building if you can manage it. Mine is 75 feet from the house. Still bring dust in on my clothes occasionally.


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

As for as my current dust collection, I too have the HF collector but it's outside of my shop in it's own separate room so all dust gets pipped outside, I have about a 30' walk from my shop to my house and always do the slap dust off clothes dance outside first before entering my house, no problems with dust in my house.

From the replies seems a stand alone is the way to go, as for as land goes I'm only looking at buying an acre or two.


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## jonnybrophy (Sep 22, 2016)

I eat, breathe, sleep sawdust

its makes my family mad, Im going to let it go on until they justify the expense of a dust collector


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## Desert_Woodworker (Jan 28, 2015)

1. Dust- this is not a hospital and Bill Penz could be wrong
2. Don't have a wife, for there will always be a dust problem
3. By not having a wife, you can turn the family room into a section of the woodshop. While running the CNC there is time to develop culinary delights. The kitchen is in the next room. Seriously, this is a true story.
Desert
Seriously, fine dust and wives are everywhere, treat them both with respect


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## Woodwrecker (Aug 11, 2008)

I have an attached garage/shop like a lot of other woodworkers.
And, I try my best not to track sawdust into the house.
But what does manage to get in, gets cleaned up with all the other dust and debris that are a normal part of our house cleaning.
Any other alternatives- in my category at least- are cost prohibitive.

(Plus, if I do a little more then my share of cleaning management doesn't mind too much.)..hah

Good topic brother.
Thanks


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## Tooch (Apr 6, 2013)

I have a slightly different situation- I make most of my dust at my school shop, which is 22 miles away from home. That being said, every day I come home like PigPen from Charlie Brown, with a cloud of dust surrounding me.

Most of my own projects I finish in my integral garage shop at home, which includes a final sanding, staining, and top coats of poly/lacquer. The wife will complain of the finishing odors coming into the house more than anything dust related. I can never really tell, mostly because I'm right in the middle of it, but she'll actually turn off our Heat/AC to avoid recirculating the air.

I always thought she was crazy until last summer while I was spraying a table top. I had a de-humidifier in our garage to expedite the drying process, and the poly dried into the filter, clogging it and burned up the motor. I guess all those small particles travel further than what we can see. I assume dust acts the same way.


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

I'm prob going to wand up making home and shop out of one single slab, Since I am engineering and building most of the inside, I'll come up with ways to combat the dust and smells that may enter. Maybe a double wall with ample storage between the house and shop with a double door hall way such as a mud room between the two.


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

A quick "air shower" with compressed air will do the trick.

Be sure you're not tracking in on shoes.


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## wapakfred (Jul 29, 2011)

Tooch, if it's that bad I think I'd change clothes in the garage before entering the living quarters. that's takes a little forethought, like putting fresh clothes in the garage…..or even changing at the school to keep it out of the car.


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## Kentuk55 (Sep 21, 2010)

I think no matter how or what we do, there will always be some dust. What you're talking of doing should do what you're looking for. Good luck, Randy.

Oh, how bout an exhaust fan of sorts the farthest from the house??


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

I have a 2 car attached garage. More than average dust collection. No HVAC/heat/ac/ducts shared between house and garage. I have the man door closed when it gets dusty. I have a wipe feet thingy on the floor so not to track dust into house. I've never had a problem with dust getting into house.


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## Unknowncraftsman (Jun 23, 2013)

I have my shop very close to my house.I do very little sanding maybe that's why I don't see a problem in the house.I do track handplane shaving from time to time.
And I do consider that a good sign.


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## MrRon (Jul 9, 2009)

Fine dust can be controlled by utilizing positive/negative air pressure. If the air in the house is kept at a positive air pressure in respect to the shop negative air pressure, then opening the door between the house and shop, will cause air to flow from the positive to the negative pressure. This is the basis of "clean room" management.


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

Great comments thanks once again everyone one.


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