Extractor fan use

[jgrobler]

Hi,

I can get these fans
http://monterey.craigslist.org/mat/529271605.html

and am thinking of using it for a shop made dust collector / or extractor fan for paint jobs in the garage.

I'd appreciate any comments you'll want to offer, to persuade or dissuade me.

Thanks,

Johan

[jonmulzer]

Depending upon your plans, I would think they would work. Especially for extractor fans. But what about just a simple squirrel cage for a dust collector/air cleaner? I doubt they would work for a chip collector, if that is what you meant. One thing though, in shops I have worked in that use them, they are pretty noisy usually. It is white noise, so you don't notice it all that much, but it will drownd out a radio and make you talk louder.

The air cleaner/air mover that I made for my father's shop uses a simple squirrel cage fan and furnace air filters and does a good job on cutting airborne dust and moving air. It is also so quiet that it is common to leave it running all night from forgetting to turn it off. My Dad jokes about wiring a strobe light into the switch so he does not forget.

If a squirrel cage fans sounds like a better fit for your purposes check with family-owned heating and air businesses. You can pick up used ones for dirt cheap. Usually not more than $20. On hot afternoons you might be able to trade one for a 6-pack of beer.

[jackellis]

I'd also go wtih squirrel cage fans. I picked up two from a local heating contractor for nothing. They're rugged, reliable and more compact than the larger fans you're looking at.

Typically it's the heat exchanger that fails in a furnace, not the blower.

[jgrobler]

Thanks for the advice. I'll see what I can find for squirrel fans over the next few days (so I guess I won't be trading 6-packs). I'm not a fan (no pun intended) of white noise, and I was thinking also about chip collector, not that I have a planer.

[Tom Slick]

Those move ALOT of air but are very noisey. they work well as exhaust fans for moving freely flowing air but don't create much suction so they won't work well for dust collection. think of them as industrial box fans.

[Pappy]

If you use one for an extraction fan, plan on building a housing to hold a trow-away filter on the inside to minimize paint getting to the fan. Filter the exit side too so most of the paint is stopped before it gets to the air outside and can settle where ever the wind blows it.

[LCHIEN]

those kind of fan can move a lot of air but have no ability to put up any pressure (or suction if you measure the other side). Not good for a dust collector driving any kind of load (e.g. ducting and filter material). You can exhaust fumes and dust from a relatively open room.

[jgrobler]

Thanks for all the advice. It sounds like it's a good idea for a finishing room, but not a DC system. And the squirrel cage fan may not be the best for a finishing room.

Since my 2 car garage is my shop (and houses one car when I'm not working on something) and also the finishing room, created with plastic sheets stretched over 3rd hands from floor to ceiling, one of these fans should work (well, maybe kinda-sorta).

Thanks Pappy for the filter idea, I was thinking I'll need to do something like that.

Anyhow, I'll have to think again about this, as the main intent was dust & chip collection.

Thanks for all your collective wisdom. I'm glad I can check here and get good practical advice.

[TB Roye]

I bought a Gable End Fan for my shop. The kind they use to exhaust hot air from the attic. It has louvers that open when the fan comes on. I can be controled by the thermostat that comes with it or like I have mine set on a switch. I use it when I am sanding or finishing, I close the door and open the window at the oposite end of the shop and turn the fan on Works great. My shop is 10 X!2 Tuff Shed Tall Barn and has a loft. The fan is for 2000sqft attic it cost me about $60 at LOWES. On hot day I use it to help move the air. It is fairly quiet and does a good of removing dust and fumes. If you stand in front of the window you can feel the air flowing. When a product say "use only in a well ventalted area" this is the thing to use. It is also great when I am routing or sanding MDF.

Tom