Portable Dust Collection Cart with Noise Reduction & Dust Separator using Shop Vac

[Paul Briggs]

This is a dust collection cart that I made for my small workshop that serves multiple purposes:

o It provides a handy portable working surface of various shop projects

o It serves as my primary means of vacuuming dust from the floor and work surfaces

o It includes a dust separator made from a Dust Deputy that separates out 95+% of the wood dust into an easily removable container (and allows the shop vac to continue to produce maximum suction)

o It includes a noise reduction system for the shop vac that significantly muffles the shop vac noise (-10 dB)

o It has power outlets on both sides of the cart (one is switched)

o It allows easy connection of a vacuum hose to various woodworking tools in the shop to suck up most of the dust at the source of dust generation, including:

- Radial arm saw

- Kreg pocket screw jig

- Circular saw

All parts used are off-the-shelf parts. No specialty parts are needed.

I used a Ridgid WD1450 14-gallon 6 HP shop vac (available from Home Depot for $99). It has great reviews and provides excellent suction.

My source of inspiration for the noise reduction came from the following two links by Mr. Schrunk:

How To Silence Your Shop Vac

http://www.startwoodworking.com/post/how-silence-your-shop-vac

Build a Simple Box to Muffle Your Shop Vac (be sure to view the video and listen to the difference the noise reduction system makes)

http://www.finewoodworking.com/workshop/video/build-a-simple-box-to-muffle-your-shop-vac.aspx

The acoustical noise reduction padding that Mr. Schrunk used is expensive, and I decided to use some egg crate foam padding that I had in storage. You really don’t have to have any padding in the box to get a significant noise reduction (I don’t think the egg crate foam padding added that much to the noise reduction). Note that I did not get anywhere near the noise reduction that Mr. Schrunk got, but it is still perfectly fine for my purposes.

More detail for this project can be found at an Instructable that I wrote for this project:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Portable-Dust-Collection-System-With-Noise-Reducti/

[Cliff]

That's cool. Been wanting to build one for myself.

[BKeys]

Slick plan I bookmarked your instructable. Now just trying to figure out how to make it more compact.  Not really seeing anyway to do that though.  Again, cool design. Will be building one for my shop!

[Paul Briggs]

BKeys,

You could make it more compact in a few ways: use a smaller shop vac, use a smaller dust collection bin, and/or eliminate the noise reduction material.  I don't really think you need any padding or noise reduction material to get a significant reduction.  I tested the system before I added the foam padding, and I don't think the non-acoustical padding that I used did very much to improve the noise reduction.  I wanted the cart to be taller so that I could use it as a working surface in my shop - but you might have different needs.

FYI, I've written another Instructable that shows some of the different ways that I connect the cart to my various power tools.  It shows how I use some electrical conduit PVC to extend the reach of the Shop Vac in my shop.  Please see the link below for more info.

Instructable on Dust Collection Ideas for Shop Vacs

[BKeys]

Thanks. This is one of the top items on my to do list.

[Paul Briggs]

BKeys - One more thought.

This tool might be easier to build in two stages: 1) build the shop vac noise reduction box first, and then 2) build the dust separation/collection box (and then bolt or screw them together).

Mr. Schrunk has dimensioned plans for a shop vac noise reduction box here: http://www.startwoodworking.com/post/how-silence-y... .

I would make the following changes to his design, though: 1) run the shop vac intake through a hole on the right side so that it can easily connect to the Dust Deputy in the future, 2) shorten the shop vac power cord and install a power outlet inside the box, 3) add a switch and power outlet on the left side of the box (you may also want to run wiring to the right side if you want a switch/power on the right side in the future), 4) adjust the height of the box to your desired height, and 5) use 3" casters.

Once you've got the shop vac noise reduction box assembled and running the way you want, you could then build a box with the dust separation/collection compartments separately, and attach it to the right side of shop vac box, add a piece of plywood underneath that runs the length of both boxes for stability, and then add the casters.

[BKeys]

Thanks, this is at the top of my project list.  I'm also thinking of adding a removable boom arm to hold the tube up and out of the way.

[Paul Briggs]

BKeys - Here are a couple of additional thoughts:

1) If you can think of some way to improve the toggle latch design, that would be great.  It is critical that the dust collection section have an airtight seal, and the weatherstripping on the wooden flanges with the toggle latches works just fine; however, toggle latches are a bit cumbersome, and stick out over the edge of the cart when latched, and sometimes catch on things.  If you can think of a simpler design, let me know.

2) After using this for a while, I've found that some of the dust goes over the edges of the dust collection bin and collects around the bottom and edges of the dust collection section.  It's not a big deal as I empty the bin only every month or so.  But if you can think of a design for the dust collection section that does not require flanges but will still be airtight, then the dust collection bin could fit the bottom section exactly and there might be minimal dust overflow.

If you'd like to Skype or Facetime me to see more details of my cart as you design yours, just send me a private message.