# Polution / Air Quality concerns when venting dust collection outside



## JonCrafting (Aug 12, 2020)

I have recently upgraded my DC from a 1hp Delta to a 2hp Grizzly G0548 dust collector and am currently in the design phase of redoing my setup. The DC has a 1um canister filter on it, but I am contemplating venting it outside the workshop instead of using the filter as this would save space in my small shop.

The Details:
- I am in southern California so weather is not much of a concern and I would be fine with this setup year round.
- I would be installing a super dust deputy (5' or 6', undecided) or similar 1st stage separator
- My shop size is half of our 2 car garage
- The vent out would be either through an existing vent near the base of the garage wall into a very narrow (6') wide yard enclosed by a 6' wall, or I could create a new vent in the wall higher up although this would likely exacerbate any air quality issues.
- When in the shop, typically both the the garage door and the back door that open to the patio between the garage and house will be open.
- The house is 12' back from the garage

What I am trying to understand is if I am venting out the sidewall of the garage how much of whatever gets past the first stage separator will stay airborne and possibly come back into the shop via the open doors,infiltrate the house, dirty parked cars and piss off neighbors, or any other concerns for anyone walking by.

-Jon


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## cut50 (Feb 9, 2010)

Really the only way to know, is to try it, and see what the neighbors think, do they use a clothes line?
Bylaw folks may come around cause of dust?
I just changed my cyclone DC from a bag filter to a canister, and I get hardly any dust in the bag below the canister,
which is making think about venting outside. Ah but I can not because I heat with wood and the DC pulls the smoke out of the stove in to the shop, not nice. 
Old story, don`t know till you try…...


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## Jim2020 (Jun 26, 2020)

I just set up a modified HF 2HP collector in my shop. I bought a 14" cyclone for it, and attached the fan to the wall, and vented it outside. I can see no evidence of sawdust in the garden below my vent. Now working by myself, I have not had the opportunity to stand and watch the air coming through the vent while someone else produced sawdust, but I don't think there's much. It would seem that a properly set up cyclone takes any sawdust you can see out of the air.

I'm sure you are aware of the benefits of venting outdoors without a filter. Any filter reduces air flow, takes up space, and can cost a lot. The wind will dissipate the airborne dust like smoke, and no harm will come of it. Jim


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

A good cyclone catches about 90%. It may be technically illegal in your state, but I would not worry about that unless someone complained.


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## splintergroup (Jan 20, 2015)

I also see cyclones as very efficient and doubt that much "problem dust" will get out and annoy anybody. Be aware that the filter imparts back pressure and many cyclones are designed for that, otherwise the motor load can go up significantly.


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## CWWoodworking (Nov 28, 2017)

I just did this today. Haven't done much with it yet, but the first thing I noticed was how quiet it is and the air quality seems to be much better


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## tomsteve (Jan 23, 2015)

beings how california now labels wood dust as cancer causing, i wouldnt vent outside. lawsuit waiting to happen.

WARNING: Drilling, sawing, sanding or machining wood products can expose you to wood dust, a substance known to the State of California to cause cancer. Avoid inhaling wood dust or use a dust mask or other safeguards for personal protection. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/wood.


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

You're worrying about something you shouldn't be worrying about


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## BroncoBrian (Jan 14, 2013)

There are a lot of writeups on this. I just took my canister off this morning for garbage day on my Jet 1100. I'll be exhausting outside in a couple of days and I am in CO with some cold days ahead. There should be enough leakage on garage doors to pull air in, a heater will run more (obviously) but that is a lot better outcome than clogged filters, poor suction, and fine dust in your lungs.

From what I've read, there is no visible dust that escapes the system if done right. People on this site have exhausted dust to their shrubs for months/years without seeing any impact outdoors.


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## BroncoBrian (Jan 14, 2013)

What's funny is that I logged in this morning to ask everyone what they did the rest of their dust collector system parts. I am tossing the canister filter (so tough to clean without making a huge mess). I was shocked again how much fine dust was in the top, lost a lot of airflow and the paddles are not that helpful.

I guess I will dump the base and stand/vortex parts as well. Yay floor space!


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## JonCrafting (Aug 12, 2020)

Thanks for all the responses. I finally made my choice on cyclones and ordered the 5" Super Dust Deputy. Once that arrive I will be able to get more precise measurements to figure out spacing and ducting. One of the other reasons pushing me towards venting outside, apart from improved CFM and no more filters to worry about, is that the space I would like to position the dust collector is near the front of the garage and the garage door rails limit the vertical height as it is too narrow by a few inches between the rails and the garage wall for the canister filter to fit. By my rough estimate, if I kept the filter and pushed it as high as I could against the garage door rail, I would not have enough space underneath to fit the SDD and the 30 gal barrel I plan to capture the dust in.

I will update this thread as things progress.

-Jon


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## JonCrafting (Aug 12, 2020)

You know those posts were the OP stops posting and you're left with a cliff hanger? Well my apologies for not getting back to this sooner, but life happened, progress stalled, but now I'm back at it and while not complete. It's getting there. I'm still waiting on some parts for the ducting I have on order, but my Grizzly his haxed, boxed, and mounted to the wall via some French cleats.

The run from the exhaust down to the vent at the base of the wall will be done with some 6" flex into a 12×4" register. The actual vent hole is larger than 12×4" so I will be creating a wooden frame and filling the gaps with spray foam as necessary. I am also considering to purchase the 4" Rockler dust right system for now, even though the dust port in the SDD is 5". Would love to run 5" fixed piping, but I have plans to remodel the garage in the future and do not want to have to redo the ducting.

Wish me luck.


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## PCDub (Sep 24, 2017)

Thanks for reporting back! I always appreciate when folks let us know what happened & what they decided!


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## JonCrafting (Aug 12, 2020)

Well my box of 6" HVAC parts arrived from HD, as well as a 10' section of 6" flex hose from Amazon. Only needed 4-5' but the 10' section only cost $3 more than the 5' section so the bargain hunter in me pulled rank and yeah… I now have 5-6' of 6" hose I'm not sure I will ever need.

So far I have crafted another rectangular wooden gasket which I could connect the 6" HVAC take off adapter to via the self adhesive tape and some screws and then mount to the Grizzly elbow. I forgot to take pics of this apparently, but I did get pictures of the 6" to 4×12" HVAC vent adapter which I framed with 3/4" ply caulk and screws. Previously the inside section of this garage air vent had a screen and the outside had louvers. I was able to remove the screen but needed to cut out the louvers with an angle grinder. The screen section I was able to reuse on the outside to prevent larger curious critters from haunting my dust collection. I still need to clean this up a bit and make a small awning for to protect against rain.

I used expanding foam for the first time in an attempt to seal up some areas in the wall framing, and now have traumatic fear of this freak of nature substance. I used my fingers to shape/move some of it around right after spraying it, and geeze! getting this crap off your hands is ridiculous. I washed my hands with warm soapy water for about 15minutes before giving up. I rubbed my hands in some fine sawdust and finally got rid of the stick, but then had the oddest discoloration going on where the sawdust was permanently glued to my skin. I resorted to wiping it off the best I could with acetone which yeah also sucked, but at least my hands look clean for the most part.

Next on the list of things to do is to connect the SDD to the blower, then using 2 more 6" HVAC take offs and some 6" flex hose connect the SDD to the collection bucket.

Oh and I still need to decide whether to get the Rockler Dust Right 4" hose to connect to my machines or go with something else…


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## MrRon (Jul 9, 2009)

I use a two-stage dust collector ducting to the outdoors. I don't notice any dust exiting to the outside. My shop is on an 8-acre lot, so dust pollution is not a concern.


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## EricFai (Sep 30, 2018)

I would vent outside, of course my neighborhood is made up 1 acre plots, so it's not an issue for me


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## JonCrafting (Aug 12, 2020)

Here is the 6" take off connected to the grizzly elbow.


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## JonCrafting (Aug 12, 2020)

SDD is now attached to the barrel lid, and 6" diameter flex hose connects the dots. Still need to pick up some 4" flex hose (because 5" doesn't exist for some reason) and a 5" to 4" reducer so I can finally connect it to my tools. Somewhere down the road I hope to put some walls around the DC system and water softener to make it look a bit nicer and to reduce noise, but for now it'll get the job done.


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## wapakfred (Jul 29, 2011)

Home Depot seems to have 5" flex hose.


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