Our shop vacuum turned up a weird stat about dust collection

So I was cleaning out our dust collector filter last week and got curious about how much sawdust we actually produce. I looked up the numbers online and found out the average cabinet shop kicks out about 2 pounds of fine dust per cabinet door. That blew my mind because I always figured it was mostly big chips and shavings. We use a 4 inch port on our main line but now I'm wondering if we should add a dedicated HEPA unit for the finishing room. Has anyone else measured their actual dust output or am I just being too nerdy about this?

3 comments

3 Comments

mark_thomas15d ago

Start by checking the seal around your filter housing, because even a tiny gap lets that fine stuff right through. @victorb17 is spot on about the cartridge filter upgrade, and I'd add that putting a cheap manometer on your main unit lets you know exactly when the filter loads up so you're not running it at poor performance for weeks. For the finishing room, even if you go with the upgraded main filter, you still want positive pressure with a separate small HEPA recirculating unit to keep the dust from migrating in there while you're sanding. And yeah, VOCs are their own beast, so if you're spraying conversion varnish or lacquer you really do need a dedicated explosion proof setup for that room.

the_zara1mo ago

Wait, @victorb17 is saying 2 pounds per door? That's insane. I've been breathing that stuff for years without even thinking about it. I knew dust was bad but that number makes me want to wear a respirator just walking into the shop.

victorb171mo ago

And you're not being too nerdy at all because once you start actually weighing the fine fraction it changes how you think about everything. I mean 2 pounds per door is a lot when you realize that invisible cloud of sub-micron stuff is what gets into your lungs and settles on every horizontal surface in the shop. We did the same thing after I read a study that said the really dangerous particles are the ones smaller than human hair, and our bag filter barely catches those. So we ended up adding a cartridge filter with a higher MERV rating right on the main unit, which honestly made a bigger difference than I expected for the finishing room without needing a separate HEPA unit. The pre-filter bag lasts way longer too because the big chips don't clog up the fine filter as fast. But if you're spraying finishes you'll probably still want a dedicated unit anyway because that VOC gunk is a whole other nightmare to deal with separately.