J. Phil Thien's Projects

A word of warning perhaps about the removal of paint from a 100 year old house.
There may be "lead based" paint underneath all those coats of paint.
Please use all necessary precautions when working around this paint.
Cheers

Hi tvman44, the diameter of the baffle is the same inside diameter as the can, and the baffle is placed approx 100mm below the lid. This arrangement is working very well although I do get some very fine dust through to the vacuum filter when I hook it up to a fine sander. Maybe a fine filter (stocking?) over the inlet to the vacuum may help?? Thanks for your feedback. Cheers

Thanks so much for your reply Jim, some interesting points that I had not considered.
Although I do appreciate the issues you raised I have to add a little perspective however, I write this from the most isolated city in the world, Perth, Western Australia (WA). Some say that the time difference here is directly proportional to the years behind the rest of the civilised world (tongue-in-cheek) and that WA means "Wait Awhile"!
Fortunately we do not have these over-zealous bureaucrats and restrictive laws, yet, relating to venting and filtering externally.
My workshop is in one half of my garage in my residence so it is not a commercial concern and the winters here are not anything like you experience. Min temperatures here in Winter average 8 deg celcius (46 degrees F).
I have found that the separator just works magnificently, I'm very pleased to have come across the design and have been able to construct it so simply and cheaply.
More power to the forum - well worth the effort to join and contribute.
Warren

Hi Guys again - this is a veritable Pandorra's box! Since making my 1st top entry Thien Separator and then read quite a bit of the other related threads, I want to put a question to the forum after a little bit of preamble.
The Thien Separator does a wonderful job and I see no dust or chips entering my wet/dry vac.
1.   Given the separator is so efficient why wouldn't a non-filtered tophat unit be fitted to a can and directly vented to the outside air?
Comments please?

Phil,
I saw your article 2 days ago on how to build a cyclone separator.
It was exactly what I wanted for my shed/garage arrangement.
I was so incensed that I have modified it and built it and it is FANTASTIC!
Thank you so much for making my life so much easier, love your work.
My modifications:
I used 50mm PVC fittings for the lid - none of them are glued as they are a tight fit (for the moment) and that allows for a great deal of versatility. I may have to glue some pieces as it ages, but we will see.
The distance from the top plate to the lid is 120mm, to suit the fittings.
I have used a couple of swimming pool pipe fittings (Australian type) to allow rubber fittings at the tools and the vacuum.
I have also used a 60 litre steel drum as the waste receptacle, these are easy to come by from old oil drums.
The rest is pretty much your design. A great idea.http://www.jpthien.com/smf/Smileys/default/smiley.gif
I have attached a few photos to show how it was done.
I look forward to any criticism or comments and other worthwhile projects.