# Can I use a shop vac with my table saw?



## DTrak (May 25, 2015)

I have cabinet maker grade Sawstop table saw with a 4" dust collection port. I also have a shop vac with a 1 1/4" hose. I havent used the table saw yet. Two questions:
-Can my shop vac handle the output from the table saw, or do I need to buy something else?
-If yes, what is the best way to go from 4" to 1 1/4" hose? I have only seen adapter that go down to 2 1/4".

thanks
Dan


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## WoodNSawdust (Mar 7, 2015)

I have never tried to do what you are asking, but my thought is that the shop vac will not have enough power to adequately move the chips. It will get some but not as many as a dust collector will.

The items to consider is suction measured in static pressure and amount of air moved measured in cfm (cubic feet per minute).

Many hobbyists buy the Harbor Freight dust collector. It regularly goes on sale for around $160 then there are 20% off coupons that reduce it even more.


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## johnstoneb (Jun 14, 2012)

Your vac will pull the sawdust off your saw just fine. You just need to get down to you vac hose.


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## BillWhite (Jul 23, 2007)

Reducers are readily available. I bought one a HD (shudder).
Bill


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## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

http://www.oneida-air.com/inventoryD.asp?Item_No=AXD000004&CatId={6EE79B16-EB63-43E7-8F30-1E06240A24A4}

Maybe hook up a Dust Deputy?


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## builtinbkyn (Oct 29, 2015)

I plan on doing the same, however I think a 2 1/2" hose is needed along with a shop vac that has a rating of 5+ HP and the highest CFM you can find. A separator will also help. I used a Ridgid 16g shop vac attached to the dust port on a Bosch 4100 and it certainly made a difference. However I didn't have a separator attached, which I think will further improve the performance. So I wouldn't reduce the size of the collection hose.


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## Knothead62 (Apr 17, 2010)

I have a DD on my TS and it works OK. It throws some sawdust forward from the blade. You should do OK. Beats sweeping up a barrel of sawdust.


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## alittleoff (Nov 27, 2014)

I have a 16 gal. Rigid vac. That I use on my table saw with a 2.5 inch hose and it does fine.I even hooked it up to my 13 in. Dewalt planner and it kept up with it. The planner really through the chips out. I thought it would clog the vac. But it didn't. I don't use it on the planner any more but a vac. Should work on your saw.
Gerald


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## TheFridge (May 1, 2014)

A vac is better than nothing at all and well worth it if you already have a vac.


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## Redoak49 (Dec 15, 2012)

The answers are interesting. IMHO a vacuum with a 1.25" hose will likely not work well. You need about 4000 fpm to move the chips and dust.

I looked up a 6 hp shop vac with 2.5" hose. The spec shows 179 cfm or about 5264 fpm with that hose. Hooking it up to 4" pipe reduces it to just over 2000 fpm and too low.

Of course any vacuum will help but …..


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## TinWhiskers (Oct 17, 2015)

I cut a hole in the top of a 55 gal drum and inserted my shop vac. Works good for my planer and sander.


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## Brouss (Oct 27, 2015)

I'm with TheFridge on that one.



> A vac is better than nothing at all and well worth it if you already have a vac.
> 
> - TheFridge


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## Karamba (Nov 2, 2015)

Some saws are designed to work with shopvacs. For example Bosch 4100 has 2" port. Delta 36-725 has 2-1/2" dust port and shrouded blade with very air little volume to move. Shopvacs work really well with them.
If you go to an enclosed cabinet saw with a lot of ventilation openings you need a high volume dust collection, which shopvac is not.


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## bearkatwood (Aug 19, 2015)

This should work just fine as long as you can adapt the fittings to work. Just remember to always use it when you are cutting, if you don't sawdust will build up in the bottom and when you go to use it again it won't be able to pull through the clog of dust. (ask me how I know)


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## DTrak (May 25, 2015)

Thank you all so much for the feedback. After reading through these and digging more online, I decided that my little shop vac was probably not up to the task. I ordered this instead:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AU0FZPA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

It is pretty cheap for a dust extractor and probably something I needed anyway. 
Dan


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## HarveyM (Nov 11, 2012)

Hi Dan:

The Sawstop (PCS) has a 1.25" vacuum port on the blade guard, so you can still use your shop vac for that. In fact that's how I use mine- a 1hp dust collector on the 4" cabinet port in with a cheapy shop vac attached to the blade guard.


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## JeffP (Aug 4, 2014)

I currently use exactly the setup you describe (sawstop pcs and shopvac with 1.5 inch hose).

It seems to me that the dust extraction on this saw is poorly designed in the first place. With either the shop vac or a 1 horsepower DC, there is almost zero airflow getting sucked down through the zero-clearance plate. I think they made the shroud around the bottom of the blade assembly too small for good airflow.

I find that because of the small opening in the shroud, the shop vac actually works better than the under-powered DC on this saw. That's not to say it works well, just better.

I'm planning to eventually upgrade to either one or two of the HF 2 horsepower DC units eventually, and hopefully with that much suction the DC with this saw will work ok.


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## DTrak (May 25, 2015)

I was actually planning on getting an adapter for the 1.25" vacuum port on the top of the table saw and sending that one into the main dust extractor also with a splitter. Doesnt the filter on the shop vac clog quickly otherwise?


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## clin (Sep 3, 2015)

I have a SawStop PCS and currently use a shop vac with a Dust Deputy. I don't recall the vac model, but it is a typical size Ridgid with something like 6 HP peak. It uses the 2 1/2" hose.

I think it works pretty well in terms of collecting most of the dust. I know it's NOT collecting much of the very fine dust. Experts (I.E., Bill Pentz) suggest 1,000 CFM at the saw to get the fine dust. A shop vac is nowhere close to that. But something is better than nothing.

I'm actually of the opinion that the SawStop seems very well designed for dust collection based on how well it works. Nothing is going to give you high airflow around a zero clearance insert. I especially think it works well with their blade guard. Occasionally I space out and forget to connect the shop vac to the saw. In that case the dust sprays out the dust port. So somehow the saw itself is working to move the dust.

I use the overarm collector with the shop vac, still connected to the main port with a reducer. There's very little airflow with the overarm. But the way the blade guard is designed, it practically throws the dust in the port. So the vac just needs to draw it away. But a lot of dust will stay in the overarm. So when done I make a point to stick the shop vac on it to be sure it's cleared.

It's night and day difference between using the blade guard and not concerning the amount of dust throw out the front of the saw. It's another reason I use the blade guard any chance I can.

No doubt a full size dust collector would work very much better, but a shop vac is still better than nothing.


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## clin (Sep 3, 2015)

> I was actually planning on getting an adapter for the 1.25" vacuum port on the top of the table saw and sending that one into the main dust extractor also with a splitter. Doesnt the filter on the shop vac clog quickly otherwise?
> 
> - DTrak


Concerning shop vac filter clogging, a Dust Deputy is amazing. It really does catch almost all of the dust. However, I also put a bag in my shop vac and then a HEPA filter. There is essentially zero visible dust on the HEPA filter and I doubt I'll ever need to change it.

While the Dust Deputy certainly makes a shop vac even more awkward to use, it will not plug up and therefore it keeps sucking at essentially 100% all the time.

If you don't use a separator, I'd at least use a bag. Otherwise the shop vac filter is going to clog early and often. A fine filter like a HEPA wouldn't stand a chance. With less fine filters a shop vac will collect the large dust, but it will become a dust pump for the fine stuff.


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## HarveyM (Nov 11, 2012)

Hi Dan:
I just checked my Shop vac- it doesn't have much in it. I'd say the 1hp dust collector catches the majority, maybe 80% in the dust collector bag, 20% in the shop vac.

(I have a dust deputy on my other vac and love it, but I'm thinking of adding a Thien baffle to the dust collector)


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## DTrak (May 25, 2015)

Great tips and I will definitely look into a Dust Deputy. Thanks all!


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## Awlsome (Oct 1, 2015)

That is what I have been doing for some time now - no cyclone separator either. I don't have the money or space to have both a dust collector and a shop vac. It isn't perfect, but it isn't horrible either. I do have to vacuum my shop about every 3 days of use if that gives you a picture of its efficiency with this particular model (I use a shopvac "superpro" - why can't you find good ones in hardware stores anymore?).


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## Tugboater78 (May 26, 2012)

My 12gal shopvac connected to a dust deputy does a great job. Though it has a 1 7/8 hose, i just adapted down.


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## jmartel (Jul 6, 2012)

You can also put panty hose around the outside of the shop vac filter to act as a pre-filter and prevent the filter from clogging with dust.


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