Did you say wonky? I was about to build one of these for my small garage shop and was about to buy a pack of filters. I don't know why I didn't think of a washable one. An obvious good idea.
might seem like a good idea at first, but if that filter and housing are truly tight (hardly any air getting through that hasn't passed through the filter material) , it will restrict airflow enough to put more load on the fans motor than it's designed for.. the blades rotate slower while using same amount of energy to make waste heat... and quite possibly fan could also suck air in from the front side around the margins only to blow it back out the center without it ever being passed through filter fit that fan into a box made with 3 or 4 of the sides having filters... much more airflow, easier on the fan... and much more filter surface... capture 3, 4 times as much particulates before needing to replace (or clean) filters
There is still a lot of airflow. I have been using a similar method for several years and so far I haven’t had any issues with overheating or a noticeable difference in air flow.
Thank you so much for a really great construction video that I can actually use and replicate. So much contents on You tube that is so advanced. Only downside is that we (in Europe) use centimeters, so I can't work with inches. But I will try to work around that.
Wonky lol - really cool idea. How much airflow do you lose from the filter being in place? I'm not asking you to test CFM loss or anything, just roughly please. Thanks!
@@ScorpionBuildsWoodworking That's awesome. I'll have to look into these things. I can think of a few outlets where this would make my life so much easier.
WONKY - That box with the hinge is VERY smart, but you're right, the remote is just a winner of an idea. And, I truly appreciate that you show the "well, darn, I made a mistake" and how you fixed it. I look forward to seeing what you make!
Mr. Wonky... nice clean build. would like to know what filter you used I have been looking for a washable one and have yet to find something that works.
Mr. Wonkie, why did you mount the hinge in that direction? Folded the other way would eliminate the gap. I would have also made the speed control easily accessible, just in case. Another consideration, the filter access is on one side and the wiring access is on the other side. This is ok for standing, but if you wanted to hang it, things change. Good job though, and for me, everything in my shop is "a work in progress".
I guess I could’ve mounted the hinge to the top, it just didn’t cross my mind. I chose to mount all of the controls and wiring inside the box because I planned on using a remote to turn it on and off, and I have found over the years. The fan is always on high anyway.
Wonky. I've seen an extremely cheap version of this using 4 1" filters and some duct tape, and putting the fan on top. I like your version better! Need to build this for inside the house.
Wonky... this is a neat build. I like the remote control and washable filter. I was thinking of building an alexa controlled smart switch inside mine. How long can you go between filter washes?
Thanks, and Alexa control would probably work pretty good too. This is the first time I’ve used a washable filter. But I’m sure how often it Hass to be cleaned will depend on the amount of use and dust within the shop, and how good your dust collection system is throughout the rest of the shop?
Why use a solid 20x20 piece of ply for the back if you're just going to cut most of it away? I get box-store plywood is cheap(er), but I'm not wasting that material if I don't have to. If you have a good reason, I'd love to learn something new! Great video
That’s actually the front of the fan, and for a fan to work properly it needs to be around shape. Otherwise it will just cavitate and not pull the air through the filter. I also plan to use the circle that I cut out to make a wooden shield for my kids to play with.
@@ScorpionBuildsWoodworking, he's a character in an Anime called "Cowboy Bebop" from the late 90s. It's a fun show about bounty hunters in the near future. You should watch it if you can. And I agree with Rebecca, your narrator voice sounds just like Spike.
Just to help protect your lungs, those washable filters are great but don't help with the microscopic dust that does the most damage to your lungs, so this is a great additional aid but don't count on it for the entirety of your dust scrubbing! ❤
Thanks for that, I Agreed. It’s just another tool to help reduce the dust in the air. It’s always recommended to wear a proper dust respirator. Even though I wasn’t wearing one in the video lol I also have a 3 micron filter on my dust collection system for the shop.
The only thing I'd done differently is built it so the whole fan sits inside as a unit. That way when the fan dies you can just swap it out instead of having to disassemble the new fan to fit the parts.
Try the new Merv 14 as its 5 inch thickness works 10x better then the inch wide ones without the bogging of the motor… cheers 🎉 great wood work tutorial
I wonder if you could have had more filters for the same amount of fan. When the cdc was recommending building these with duct tape they were putting the fan on one side of a cube and air filters on four others. Would have made it bigger fer sure…
Really wish RU-vidrs would quit telling people to use square box fans without a proper circle shroud for DIY air filters. Half of the air your fan is moving is just recirculating air it's already moved. The shroud you tried to make is still too far in front of the blades to prevent it. Also... Wonky. Still, not nearly as egregious as "The 3D Handyman"'s video that included 4 options using unmodified square box fans.
Thank you, I I have been putting a filter by itself behind the box fan for a couple years. And it actually works really well. I’m hoping this will collect a smaller micron of dust
The piano hinge is on the top, or are you meaning why not have the whole top hinge? If that’s the question, I wanted everything around the fan to be sealed so that it would only pull air through the filter as much as possible
Wonky is good…..right?? Hey Michael, Pat here from the Toronto area, Canada. Just wonderin’ why you didn’t build your box around the metal frame that came on the fan?? I understand taking the screens off front and back, but couldn’t you have slid the metal frame snuggly into the plywood box??? Just askin’. the way I see it - Pat
Wonky... One of these has been high on my list of things I keep meaning to build. The problem is, I only think about it when I'm smack in the middle of a project. Maybe this will be the year of the air filter for my shop. Great job, brother! RU-vid is also on my list, so if I build it, I'll try to record it and give you a shout-out for the design.
A much simpler approach: get 1/2" J channel for vinyl siding. Cut two pieces to 20". Clip to left / right sides 20" filter. Place everything onto "intake" size of fan. Zip tie J channel to fan. The zip ties hold the J channel to the fan. The J channel holds the filter. To replace the filter, slide it out of the J channel, and slide a new one in.
Thanks for the good video. I'm going to build one like this I think. One thing I'm not sure of and maybe some electrician types can chime in on. Will all that extra wire for the fan all bundled up like that create heat and be a fire hazard? I know a guy who almost burned down his house by only using the first and last 3 feet of (admittedly much longer) a 50 foot extension cord that was rolled tightly (and that might have made it more dangerous) on a cord wheel. Melted that thing into a huge glob. I guess a guy could always shorten the excess fan cord if it was bothering him too much. Thanks again!
Thanks, rolling up extension cords when using them is a fire hazard for sure. I wasn’t worried about it with mine figuring it has constant air flowing across it when the fan is running, but if it makes you feel better just run the cord around the inside of the box and secure it with cable ties and screws
Expensive. I did the same thing with a 20" filter and duct tape. Not as pretty but given the price of plywood and the fact that a 20" box fan will only last about one or two years it was a lot cheaper.
Wonky ... great video and build! I would really like to do that some day, right now I just use some bungee cords to keep the filter from sliding off .... actually if the fan stays on you don't even need to secure the filer the fan suction will keep the filter against the filter box grill. I know .... how hillbilly can you get :) Again, great job on the build!
Thanks, well I have not had to clean it yet since I just made it. The old system I used I only replaced the filter once a year or more. But I think it really depends on how much you use it and how dusty the shop is if there’s a dust collection system, you may not need to clean the filter very often. I also have a second filter to put in while the other one is drying or I have time to clean it
Wonky...Great job~! I have a couple of box fans that have followed us around the globe (retired Army). I've used them in this same fashion for years, but securing the furnace filters with cable ties. The cases are pretty well worn, so this looks like a way to remedy that. Love the incorporation of the remote. Thanks for sharing~!!
Wonkee? Wangky, goodness, Michael, how do you spell that? I love that you allow your mistakes to be included as it helps us get over our own mistakes when we blunder. I love your sense of humor!
This was a great idea. I plan on building this! I will pass along the credit for this 100%. I've seen lost of variations of this but yours was the best I liked of them all. I am now a subscriber!
Those cheap box fans are not designed to pull air thru a filter. The cfm is greatly reduced and as the filter loads it drops off considerably. They are minimally effective as a air "purifier"
They may not have been designed for that. But I’ve been putting a filter on mine for quite a while now and it works pretty good from my experience. I also I’m using a washable filter so that I can keep it clean. But if you put too low of a micron Filter on there or you don’t clean it often enough you may have some flow problems, but that goes for any filtration system.
rwonki. the heavy stuff will settle out of the air in a few minutes. This will keep the air stirred up so that they stay in the air longer. The small stuff that gets past your mucus membranes will not be filtered out by that setup. It will still get into your lungs. AND, grossly overbuilt. 2 bungee cords would hold a filter to a box fan.