Dust Collector question

[bloodworthscott1]

I have a 5hp compressor motor and was wondering if this would be ok to use for a dust collector motor that i'm planning to build myself. I'm planning on buying a backward inclined fan blade and making the housing from sheet metal. Has anyone here done this, and was it worth the effort over purchasing a professional unit? 

[Mark J]

A dust collector motor will run for hours at a time straight, while a compressor motor only needs to run for brief periods.  Is the motor rated for continuous operation?

[AJ_Engineer]

Yeah the duty rating should be on the nameplate for the motor. 5hp motor stands a good chance of 100% duty rating.

[bloodworthscott1]

It is rated for continuous duty.

[Tom King]

I would think it would be fine.   The larger compressor motors are built heavy for hard starting conditions.   They are given the heaviest duty rating for their hp.

[Jfitz]

I don't see why it wouldn't work......my only thought is to see what rpm it runs at - not sure if compressor motors are set up differently and use pulleys to drive appropriate RPM (versus the motor itself running at the desired RPM)

[wtnhighlander]

Check the motor's bearing type. Compressors of that size are usually belt driven, and the motor should have roller bearings, at least on the shaft end. Rollers are better at handling the side load of the belt tension.

If you couple that directly to an impeller, beware that bearing life will not be as long as with ball bearings, which are more tolerant of imperfect alignment in a direct-coupled application.  Most hobby machines will still outlast their usefulness, but the DC runs more than any other single machine in the shop.