Jay - I use a basic remote to turn my collector on and off. I picked up a setup at Home Depot similar to this and have been using it for 3 years. m.homedepot.com/p/Westek-Outdoor-Wireless-Remote-Receiver-Kit-RFK306LC/202562992 Cheap and convenient. If your collector is 110v it should work fine.
+Jay Bates Yep. It's a giant pain in the rear when you're only making a cut or two or alternating between tools. Also I can't tell you how many times I thought I switched it back to the table saw, only to find a pile of sawdust on the floor behind it and a dust collector sucking dust out of a bandsaw that was turned off. LOL.
A huge advantage not mentioned is the time saving! That back and forth adds up and I bet you save anywhere from 15 minutes to 45 minutes a day (depending how long you're in the shop). More time to work, spend time with the family, adjust cameras, eat..lol, and edit videos! Huge advantage!
+John McNail My dust collector has a built in remote unit. But most often the actual dust collector is closer to me than the remote so I rarely use it.
I agree that an automated system is extremely convenient, BUT, the cost for a shop with a table saw, jointer, planer, bandsaw, router, sanding station, work bench would be very expensive - those blast gates are $125 a piece; plus piping. That is a little outside the budget of most shops.
+Mark Hazlewood I somewhat agree and disagree. When you think about the cost of a $3000 table saw, what's another $125 for a blast gate for it? Of course, I understand that buying it all separately as a package adds up. Thanks for the comments!
+TheGeekPub Well, it seems from the beginning of the video that you weren't planning on spending that much with your own contraptions. I'll admit the system is nice, but it isn't cheap for most home shops.
The ducting with hangers is a rather small part of the total cost. You can keep it the lowest by using cheap metal ducting where you have to fasten the seams. It is also far cheaper to ship than any of the other types of ducting. Of course, it is also the hardest and least convenient to install.
It is the very definition of a myth... Something that gets spouted out as fact, yet there have been no documented cases of it ever happening. Which is the entire principal the show mythbusters operated on.
I have been up close and personal to quite dust explosions. Also lookie here: www.osha.gov/dts/shib/shib073105.html Static electricity is a ignition source. A flow through a pipe builds up static charge. I have seen and felt the discharge from a steam valve open to atmosphere. Google it.
Ronald Allen did you actually read the OSHA report? None of the explosions were due to sawdust. They were all dusts with chemicals in them and the 3rd one was from an initial fire that started in an oven. Show me an incident that happened in a small woodshop and you may change my mind. But this has been disproven already.
You're right. But there are several cases reported by insurance companies of fires. But as I have said in the video and numerous times in these comments, the fact I can touch the pipe without getting shocked every 30 seconds makes this a win regardless of any dangers. Which is exactly what was happening before I installed the grounding system.
Fires, quite possibly. Hit a nail in your wood while cutting it and you might get a hot piece of metal that causes a fire. But that is NOT what you claimed, which was eliminating the possibility of a dust fire/explosion. If you had just left it at "The wire wrap reduces the chance of a static shock when you touch the outside of the pipe." then I would have no complaint in that regard. Your wire wrap explanation also is incomplete. You showed wrapping the pipe and connecting the wire to the dust gate, but you did not show what needs to be done at the dust collector and tool. Do they need a frame ground or not? Also, doesn't the flex ducting going to the floor sweep need to be wrapped and connected?
From what I have read, there has never been a fire that was started by static in a dust collection system. That being said, I ground my dust collection hoses, because I absolutely hate getting shocked!
True, static shock is a thing especially if your have carpet on your shop floor 🤣 I run basically the same setup(video) in my shop w/o any additional grounding. There is no dust particules in or out the pipes. My floor is concrete and I wears adequate shoes, never get a single static shock since my new shop is up (5 years).
Back in the day everything was wired with LV and relay switches with green lights on both gates and a master flow control board. Now I can key up my Ham radio and turn on my neighbor's workshop in the middle of the night.
I'm sitting here waiting for you to come install one of those systems at my shop. Still waiting! Come on, where you at?!😉😆 Ha, just kidding. I am close to installing my DC system but will have to do manual blast gates due to the budget. Either way nice video and thanks for sharing 👍
Great video for an intriguing product. We're definitely looking into getting the IVAC system now for our shop. Question though...What PVC pipe are you using and where'd you end up buying that from? From the video around 02:42, it looks super thin. We've been looking at using PVC meant for sewer/drain but even that looks thicker than this. Anyone encounter an issue with sewer/drain PVC where the diameter is less than the stated value? We went to a local Menards and they have 2 types of PVC - high quality thick material and this thinner sewer/drain material, and they are not the same diameter. The sewer/drain PVC is about a 1/2" narrower in diameter than the thicker material. We're trying to not pay out $50 per piece for our dust collection system, but also ensure that the pipes we end up with actually fit together within the system as a whole.
You had a slight smile of "this is great" when you turned on the table saw and the dust collection came on. I would have the same smile too. Good job and thanks for sharing. I do believe I'm going to do something similar.
I see a lot of people here commenting on should they or shouldn't they spent the money on this system; I guess if you get it for free it motivates you to get one, I personally can do it either way, I would like to work with it but also can do just fine without it; I have a clearvue max and have multiple gates open at one time on certain stations that I use more often, I close my gates manually at the thickness planer, dual outlet drum sander, but keep it open for the miter saw station and the table saws; you kind picked on some here for not investing 500 in this system while investing 3500 or so in table saw, I got news for you, I got two sawstop saws, one industrial and one 3hp professional and a slider, you know that just the two sawstops cost me quite a lot more than you mentioned, still don't feel the need to invest in this automated blast gate system so stop picking on people for that, some of us enjoy couple steps to open and close some of the blasts; one piece of advice.....it would've been better for you to invest in a better dust collector than worry about the blast gates, you will be surprised what a difference that makes, you can afford to keep more than one blast gate open when you have a 8" main running thru your shop. other that, I am happy for you that you get to play with those toys; one of the guys in their comments was right, what are you doing walking around in your slippers in the shop, let alone climbing a ladder in them, that tells me you like more being in front of the cameras that be out there and get dirty and make some money; its so funny when I run into you guys, the ones that like to do these little shows about being a woodworker, yet I don't see any meaningful product done by you guys; I've building staircases and cabinetry for as long as I remember, I never found the time to be in front of the camera like some of you guys are, you guys have too much time at your disposal, lol; don't mean to pick on you, just want to let you know, some of us have no interest in these new gadgets that keep on popping up, if you follow with it, you will never catch up to them, they always pop up new things all the time, just like the Iphone. best of luck to you. Dan
Really a very helpful video with lots of ideas. I have a small shop that I use for making custom hand forged knives. Metal dust and wood dust and other dust is my biggest problem. So I can get a lot of good info from a few different videos. This one is a good one. Thank so much, it was very helpful.
According to Grizzly’s website: “To protect against static electrical build up inside a non-conducting duct, a bare copper wire should be placed inside the duct along its length and grounded to the dust collector. You must also confirm that the dust collector is continuously grounded through the electrical circuit to the electric service panel.” The unit typically produces 80 dB noise levels which can cause hearing damage over an 8 hour period of continuous operation. Switching it off when not in use is an excellent idea.
Running the conductor inside the pipe is a terrible idea. It will collect and hold dust and strings of wood. In addition, it will cause turbulence in the pipe reducing airflow and efficiency. The approached we used where you pierce the pipe with a metal stud (in this case a screw tip) every few feet is by far the safer and most effective method.
The automated wireless is pretty slick.Not sure what to believe about the grounding necessity. Some people say it's complete nonsense, some people say the combustion problem can only happen in much larger systems, and others say there is no risk of spark at all because PVC is not a conductor.I think an interesting experiment would be to place a an amp meter in series between your ground wire and your grounding point. I think that Harbor Freight has been giving them away as free gifts recently, don't know about right this second. If that system really is discharging static, I would think that you would be able to see either current spikes or some small steady state current while the collector is on.I'm actually in the process of building one of these, and would like to know if the threat is real!!!
+Jeff Correia As I can tell you one thing. Before I added the grounding, every time I touched one of the pipes I would get zapped by static electricity. Fire or no fire. It was worth it.
The only issue that I am trying to solve here is that you need at least 3 power outlets per machine i.e., one for machine, one for the gate and one for the tool that goes on the cable to detect current. There should be a better way to do this which I am not aware of.
That system is so nice. Opening the blast gate and turning on DC at the same time automatically is really cool. Then turning it back off automatically. Wow, whenever I upgrade, I definitely want that.
I'm confused why you have it programmed to close the blast gate before it turns off the DC. Assuming no gates are open how is it going to evacuate any residual dust? Sounds like it's just putting unnecessary strain on the DC motor.
The cost of this product is horrendous and there seems to be no starter kit, My hobby shop would cost in excess of £800 not including the duct pipe. And if you really think that you need to ground you dust collection system then any piece of wire can be used you don't need to buy a special one.
@@TheGeekPub Not many people spend 3500 on a table saw. Most woodworkers I know have $200 dollar worksite saws they've modified or built a platform for. Going to the local woodworking group here in Portland will show you that 80% of the woodworkers don't have a jointer at all. This kit is neat, but the price is astronomical for what it provides. Hell man, the "grounding kit" is 20 dollars for two fittings, two screws and some copper wire. I know they sponsor the video and you've gotta shill for them and all, but comments like this by you are obnoxious and scream of privilege.
This system will set me back around $800 for my small shop, even higher if they actually offer 6” valves 😳 ..Ahh I think I’ll do it manually for now until competition comes in and drive the price down.
In the end I think its better to make your own system with homemade blast gates and stuff I got about 40 arduinos with rf recivers and transmittors with some wifi and bluetooth modules and some relays. IF you have the experiance to make them yourself you should deffently do so, it will reduce in costs, you'll probaly learn something and you can customize it to how you see fit. Having a 3D printer on hand will also help alot since you can print blast gates and different connectors yourself. But if you don't have the experiance or capacity to do this yourself this is the best way to go! awesome video :)
Hi, neat idea with the wall mounted clamps. Why take a risk, no matter how small, with a dust exposion/fire? However, why not just run the copper wire inside the tubing? Much neater looking. BobUK.
wrong , think ,.......after You turn of machine , blast gate should stay open to clear ALL pipes of ALL dust otherwise You just creating noise no suction , blast gate is closing when dust collector is turning off
That's exactly what the system does. LOL. It keeps the blast gates open for whatever time you program on the dip switches after the machine turns off, and continues to run the dust collector for 20 seconds after that in my case. Pay attention in class boy!
TheGeekPub, you stated in the video that upon shutting down the saw, its blast gate goes closed immediately, while the dust collector continues to run for its programmed delay period. s.v. ALBATROS is correct; running the DC with blast gates closed dead-ends the system - nothing moves.
I have a 220 DC with a Y attached. My system goes up into the attic and connects to eight separate drops. I want to put two blast gates on the Y so that I can close one down and let the other run and vice versa for more suction. My D.C. is in a closet and I would like to remotely control those two gates on the actual dust collector; not the tools. I use the long ranger II to wirelessly turn D.C. on/off. Is there a way to make these blast gates on the actual Y automatically open and close with this system? Thx. Nice video and you did a great job explaining this system. That is except for my question 😊
Not a good idea to close the blast gate so long before shutting down the vacuum pump. Not good for the fittings or the motor, and it won't be able to clear the line effectively which is the only reason to run it after shutting the tool down.
Good video, better than the iVac website! I'm definitely checking it out, sick of not opening a gate or forgetting to close one! Agree with the ground wire. Every time I opened a gate for the jointer or planer I got zapped until I ran a ground. Cost? 25 cents, problem solved. Can't believe the troll comments you got. Thanks for helping the ww community!
Almost 2 years later, are those mountains in the backdrop out of your open garage door? That's beautiful man! I live in Florida, haven't seen a mountain in so many years 😔. Also, if those are french cleats slats, how are they working for you? Nice looking organized wall. Count me as a new subscriber.
Liked the video and subscribed to your channel. This iVac system is exactly what I’m looking for and you did a great job explaining how it works in your video. Thanks for the tutorial. Now it’s time to save money for one of these systems.
An aspiration system will generally consist of three primary components, a fan, duct network, and a filter. The fan will initially pull the excess/unwanted material from a specific starting point into the duct network, which then acts as a "highway" for the dust to travel into. Lastly, the duct will lead into a filter of some sort, which collects all the unwanted material and stores it until someone disposes of the filter. A lot of the inner workings of this type of system can change, for example, the fan between centrifugal and positive displacement blowers. This more critical way of assembling will come down to ultimately what needs to be addressed, which will alter the types of parts you need.
Only problem I see and mostvpeople neglect opps your talking about it now I ran stranded copper wire inside my PVC.if you go to metal pipe no wire needed
This an easier way to get an automated dust collection system. I was reading an older book which talked about making your own auto dust collector relay switch, but it was very tedious. So much easier and safer lol
This is a great system and I am super jealous on your dust collection system!! However, looking at Rockler and the cost associated with hooking up 4-5 tools, do you have any recommendations on how to get this type of system for less than $1000?
Dust fire like a wheat grain elevator. I think I would not use a large system like this in my home location. To each his own but don't want to chance it.
Correct. The energy potential that can build up depends on two major factors, the dust velocity and the interior diameter of the ducting. Even 6" duct is far too small in diameter - there are not enough joules of energy to cause a dust explosion in sawdust, even under ideal laboratory conditions.
@alphasxsignal The health risks of breathing dust far, far outweighs the remote possibility of fire in a well designed system. If you do a lot of woodworking, you would be wise to have an adequate dust collection system.
The chances of an actual fire from static electricity are pretty much Zero. The chances of a fire from dust floating around your shop and being lit by the pilot light on your water heater are probably much greater. The chances of getting lung cancer or some other nasty disease from breathing the dust is much, much greater. There is really no chance of starting a fire and the only reason to ground the system is to keep from getting shocked when you touch it. Companies like Rockler do like to use these myths to sell gullible people over priced wire. P.S. Double check reviews of Rockler products on Amazon before buying them. They have some good products, but they have a reputation of deleting negative reviews on their branded products.
Great video and explanation of the parts. That's the quite a dust collection system. I just purchased an entry level (750 CFM 110V 1HP General) for my table saw and CNC. Now I need the gadgets. :)
Don't they sell a kit that lets you use the dust collector as a vacuum cleaner? That'd be my personal preference over a broom. I've got the in house central vac equivalent of those floor sweeps (Vacpan) in the house, but I find I just use a hose and floor tool on the bare floors rather than using a broom to sweep it into the vacpan.
So this whole system basically requires an entire shop to run all the components, and it probably costs about $6000 to have all that. Totally unreasonable for me, and way out of budget.
I'm seriously considering this for my workshop... however i'm investigating at this point if the dust collection will be on when my CNC mill is turned on (but not necessarily milling anything) or if it'll be nice to me and avoid being on until it actually has something to do.. the cnc could be on, and initializing, or me setting up the part.. but not necessarily generating wood/aluminum chips ... and even more importantly... when the cnc finishes its job.. the mill turns off, but the machine is still technically on.. thats where the 6 second delay for the vac turning off is good... otherwise it could be running all night if i fall asleep on a long milling job (yeah i know... dont leave the machine alone.... be quiet i already know this! :) ) has anyone done this setup with a cnc mill in this way? with ivac? 1. machine on.. DC not on... 2. machine starts to mill, DC Goes on.. 3. 5 hours later when i fell asleep after the last tool change... DC goes off automagically.. 4. CNC still technically on.... but not making noise either...
I don't uses a remote unit ,I installed a metal ext cord to the wall .And plug all the equipment to the ext cord.Than i plug the ext cord into to the switch.So when i turn on any equipment the dust collector come on,and when i shut the equipment off in 7 second the dust collector shut off. With no remote to carry in your pocket
It is silly to use induction sensing and then require a power source for the sensors. Why not just use a current activated switch and eliminate the need for the UBS charging bit?
There's a video someone else did on that topic. Every turn equated to roughly .05% reduction in flow. It might matter in some commercial setup. It's a non-issue in my setup.
looking to get set up and I have a few basic DC questions: -do I need a blast gate for each tool or can I run two (or more) tools off of one blast gate? -did you use any basic guides to help lay out your system?
I love my iVac system. I just use the dust collector switch with a couple tool switches. Very nice product. I never went with the blast gates because I thought I needed a tool switch for every blast gate. Thanks for explaining their gate system.
+Rich Eklund I have to be honest. Their website needs better explanation. I had to download the manuals and read them before I could figure out what components I needed. It's really cool once you realize all of the capabilities.
I was trying to look up arduino, which seems to be a DIY IC board that can be used for many things. Is there already a solution using arduino for this?
If my ceiling was as tall as yours I would do a raised floor and run the dust collection across the ground. Great for electrical runs as you can pop them up right near your stationary tools. Another added bonus is insulation and greater anti-fatigue over concrete.
+Kenny Garland I considered that, being a technology guy. But I liked the stability of a concrete floor. Tools perform better when they sit directly on concrete.
+Jose Duran I have one, and you'll notice I use it in many of my videos. However, it is generally considered a safety hazard to wear loose cords around power tools and equipment.
I've seen videos on this Dust collection before and in the comments section almost all have said the system stops working after a couple of months so I didn't think about using it and the price would have been $1400. Too far out of the price range for me
Not if you designed your system correctly. But you can google it. Dust collectors with the correct plumbing actually use the least amount of electricity when all gates are closed. It will not damage them.
Just curious; Doesn't the ivac system ensure one of the automatic gates is always open to protect the DC? So, are two gates then open when you use the floor sweep?
+FireMouseHQ Good question! It is programmable. I turned that off, because I have a manual blast gate at the far end of the run that is always half open.
That is SWEET! I sure wish there was something like that for steel dust! Metal fabrication is so much more of a PITA than wood! BTW, is that you on the box??? Naha!
Hopefully someone can explain how static electricity generated by swirling sawdust in a plastic pipe will channel itself to earth ground. The idea seems a bit sketchy to me. It is my understanding that static build up can result in a net positive or a net negative charge. A net positive static charge would move to a lower potential such as ground. But if the system were to become negatively charged - the earth ground would have to release protons in order to neutralize the effect of static build up. Food for thought right? So unless someone can shed some light on the subject I'm going to have to call bullshit on wood and PVC generated static electrical fires and static grounding...
There have been scientific papers written on this topic. Bullshit it is not. There's even an OSHA paper on it: www.osha.gov/dts/hib/hib_data/hib19880930.html
Great Explanation in that Video, trouble is I live in England and can't get Rockler stuff without paying over the odds for postage. I have been on their website and I love it, maybe one day they will think of opening a store in England.Anyway great video well explained, I just have a normal shop vac with a cyclone that does the job just need a bigger and better system. Take Care, Barry from England.
+Gary Lee The iVAC switch will be available in the UK and Europe this summer, further details are available on our web site. Buyers can register their interest in advance of stock arriving with the 'email me when back-in-stock' function, we will email you when we receive our shipment. Martin (Toolovation)
@@TheGeekPub It is important to connect the grounding system at a single point. with it grounded at both ends you can set up an inadvertent "Ground Loop" such at in a situation when you have a fault on one of your machines it could send a surge of current in that ground loop. All grounding systems should only have a single tie to ground. You can use a "Star" configurations with spokes that go out from a single point but only ground it at one point. Especially in a shop when different machines are powered off of different circuits these ground loops can be significant especially in a fault condition. EE101
to waste money pretty much. suppose to prevent static buildup that could cause a dust fire. this has never been seen to have happened and is only a loose theory.
i think this could have been simplified a little better. by adding another wire to the grounding wire, to power the gates, i dont see those gates needing much power to open and close, doesn't needing to plug in every gate limit placement to reach a outlet?
That's not how the system works. The gates are powered independently from the sensor that detects the power. This is because the gate in many cases will be a long distance from the tool it associated with.
and having a wire run along the tube wt=ith the ground wire, could power the gates still, they are controlled wirelessly from the cord sensor on the tool, and those gates cant take more then 4 volts, means one outlet gets used to power every gate, with power cord daisy chained along with the ground wire, it would free up the other 6+ wall outlets youre using to power the gates. its just my opinion on how i would do it, this wa im not limited to placing the gates close enough a power cord can reach a outlet. using wires simular to this www.diago.co.uk/adaptors/daisy-chains.html since the ground wires already there, wouldnt take any extra paths, not sure how else i can explain it simplier, so hopefully you can see what i mean, otherwise, just ignore me. :) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daisy_chain_(electrical_engineering)
According to the specs the gates run 12v and pull 1 amp at peak (motor turning). So if you wanted to upgrade the wire to a thicker gauge you could probably get something that would work. Just seems to me like a lot of extra trouble to save a few outlets. I put in six-gang wall outlets at every tool, so its just not something I struggle with.
i understand what you mean, but for me i only have 4 outlets in my garage, but 12 tools, so to me every outlet saved is worth the trouble.also, 12 volts aint to bad, im sure i could get it to run on a lower voltage, and is the 1 amp peak, consent? or is it just the in-surge current from motor starting?