dust extraction for foam

**charlieuk** · 14-10-2014

i am looking idea for a dust extraction system for my cnc that will be cutting large amounts of polystyrene foam. With the foam being so light i huge amounts of power is not needed so would like to try and get a system that is as quiet as posable but suitable to be run for long periods. I have looked at the systems that you can get from machine mart but they are all quite large and noisy so wondering if anyone has any idea for something that maybe a little quieter. One of the other factors is i need it to have a large capacity. would the cyclone things mentioned in the other threads be suitable, i have never seen them before?

many thanks

**gavztheouch** · 25-10-2014

I made a giant cyclone for my machine and it worked well when I came to machine some foam. I would say with the sheer volume of dust you are going to produce you will def need a cyclone as a filter based system is going to clog up fast.

Have you seen theses

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Omni-Dust-...item27eec01dd7

Might be too small for your application? Worth a try

**firetrappe** · 25-10-2014

Attached are a few pics of my dust extraction / cyclone system using one of the ebay units : http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DUST-MITE-...item4add951f46

It's mounted to an opaque 25L fermenting bin : http://www.wilko.com/homebrew-access...82a6756d2f3eda

The lid of the bin is reinforced with a disc of MDF which the cyclone bolts to. I also have 3 MDF rings inside the bin to prevent the bin trying to implode! You can see in the photo that I started with one ring in the centre of the bin which wasn't enough (see the stress marks!) 3 rings equally spaced works perfectly.
I could have used a stronger container, but couldn't find anything stronger that was transparent or opaque. I like being able to glance at the bin and see if it needs emptying.

The system is plumbed using standard waste pipe and fittings from B&Q. I also used a couple of these : http://www.axminster.co.uk/numatic-stepped-hose-reducer for connecting the flexible hose to the rigid pipes.

The fitting on the end of the Henry hose is a really nice push fit into the waste pipe. I have a short piece of pipe mounted parallel to the spindle which this pushes into to connect to the dust shoe. If I just want to use the vacuum then I can pull the hose out of the pipe use it manually, I also attach the standard Henry accessories for general cleaning the work area and floor.

I've been using this system now for 4 months and although i've emptied the bin 3 times Henry is completely empty apart from a few specks of dust inside.

So far the dust shoe and extraction has worked really well when cutting MDF, Fibreglass, Cast Acrylic and Foam. The only material it has struggled with is Plywood, this is due to the small diameter of the hose getting clogged with the long spirals of waste material.

My brother asked me if i'd cut a plywood sign for him a few weeks ago (i'd never cut plywood before). I said i'd give it a go and film it for him as he hadn't seen the machine working before. I wasn't going to make the video public as there are some mistakes and it's a bit boring, but as it's relative to what i've written above then here's the link : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20atRRHclbM

I regularly run Henry for 2 hours at a time. It pushes out some heat (keeps the shed nice and warm :) ) and isn't going to last as long as a proper dust extractor. It is quieter than an extractor though and is holding up nicely for the type of jobs I do.

Si

**Clive S** · 25-10-2014

That looks like a nice machine have you built it yourself? ..Clive

**firetrappe** · 25-10-2014

Thanks Clive. Unfortunately I can't take the credit for the machine, it's a 'Dean Special'. I did the electronics and Dean built the machine to the specs I requested. I'd built a wooden CNC machine years ago and knew my limits

**charlieuk** · 25-10-2014

many thanks for that the dust mite was what i was looking at using, how did it perform with foam? i was worried very light foam may stay airborne and just run all the way to the vacuum? do you think the cyclone drops the power of the vacuum? is your henry have the high and low settings?

best regards charlie