CV 1800 Question
- Thread starter CT-Mike
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Looks like you have way less airflow than you should. I would suspect that the impeller (motor) is rotating in the wrong direction. Check the motor wiring with the power disconnected. Another possibility is a major leak (or leaks) in the dust bin connections or the lid.
You don't show any views of the inlet ductwork. The pileup in the chute appears to be the result of a low flow region -- i.e., in an area of turbulence. Does your inlet have the recommended 5 feet of straight pipe into the inlet, or do you have elbows close to the inlet? Turbulence could be the cause here.
A little hard to tell from your initial photo, but is the dust just a coating on the side of the plastic housing or is it in piles sitting on the ramp? If it is simply a coating on the side of the plastic, then it's just static attraction causing the dust to cling there and not of any concern. If it is in piles on the ramp, then there is a problem to resolve.
On a different topic, we have the same Powermatic 8" jointer on order that I see in the foreground of your photo. I'm curious about how effective you're finding the 4" hose to be? I've been thinking of increasing the port size to 6" and bring the full 6" duct to that upsized port.
On a different topic, we have the same Powermatic 8" jointer on order that I see in the foreground of your photo. I'm curious about how effective you're finding the 4" hose to be? I've been thinking of increasing the port size to 6" and bring the full 6" duct to that upsized port.
Here are a couple more photos, showing dust buildup on the ramp (about 1/3 of the way around), as well as dust sticking to the central column and the underside of the top.
I've only used the jointer a couple times (still getting everything set up), but the 4" seems to collect the large majority of the dust/shavings from the machine.
I've only used the jointer a couple times (still getting everything set up), but the 4" seems to collect the large majority of the dust/shavings from the machine.
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This is unusual build-up in my experience. I think McRabbet has the right points of concerns about this. Somewhere, you either have turbulence interfering or there is an air leak.
Perhaps some other CV owners can chime in with suggestions. I've posted a link to this conversation over on the NC Woodworking Forum and perhaps a CV owner there will come take a look and add some additional thoughts.
Perhaps some other CV owners can chime in with suggestions. I've posted a link to this conversation over on the NC Woodworking Forum and perhaps a CV owner there will come take a look and add some additional thoughts.
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The second and third photos in Post #8 show dust accumulated on the central tube and hanging below the top of the cyclone, defying gravity. It looks almost like the sawdust had "stickum" in it to adhere to these surfaces. A few questions come to mind: (1) If you bang on the side of the cyclone housing with your hand, does the material move or fall off those surfaces? (2) The layers show different wood species have accumulated. Were any of these pitch-bearing (or resin-bearing) or were they wet? (3) If dry, is there noticeable static buildup on the PETG surfaces?
This one is a puzzler -- I've seen lots of CV-1800's (mine dates back to 2007) and have never seen buildup like this. I am hopeful that someone from ClearVue can chime in to offer other possible causes.
This one is a puzzler -- I've seen lots of CV-1800's (mine dates back to 2007) and have never seen buildup like this. I am hopeful that someone from ClearVue can chime in to offer other possible causes.
Mike, just fyi... I've received a number of suggestions from members of the NC Woodworking forum, many of whom also have a Clear Vue cyclone. So far, the questions come back to those McRabbet raised at the outset:
- Are you certain the impeller is spinning in the correct direction? The cyclone will suck air even if running backwards, it just won't do so efficiently and dust separation will not be good.
- Have you done a smoke test to make sure you don't have any leaks at the dust collection barrel?
- Any possible turbulence impacting the infeed duct? You have a nice straight line of duct there, so this is not your issue unless something has gotten caught up on the inside of the duct.
Mike, I heard back from Paul Bushey at Clear Vue and he asked me to pass the following along:
Rush,
Thanks for sending that thread on the Clear Vue forum, for some reason it has been so long I forgot my password to get on,
But maybe you can pass this info along.
Mike has a problem for sure. Like most of you guys have thought, either his impeller is going the wrong direction or he has a massive air leak. That being said it could also be our cyclone has the leak, but I put my bet on the impeller turning the wrong way, or barrel leak, Testing it with a smoke test is the only way to get to the bottom of it.
Also, anything above the ramp is considered the “Dead Zone” there is no way we can get an air tight seal between the ramp and the inside cylinder tube, so there will always be a little dust that will end up on the ramp, that is why we have that hole above the ramp, it generates turbulence in the dead zone and pulls the dust back into the cyclone so it doesn’t pile up on top of the ramp which looks a little ugly, the hole also allows you to inject with an air nozzle air to keep it looking clean. It will not hurt anything having the dust up there it just looks bad, in fact all of the dust collectors out on the market if they have an internal ramp, will always have a packed dead zone full of dust its just you cannot see it.
Thanks for sending that thread on the Clear Vue forum, for some reason it has been so long I forgot my password to get on,
But maybe you can pass this info along.
Mike has a problem for sure. Like most of you guys have thought, either his impeller is going the wrong direction or he has a massive air leak. That being said it could also be our cyclone has the leak, but I put my bet on the impeller turning the wrong way, or barrel leak, Testing it with a smoke test is the only way to get to the bottom of it.
Also, anything above the ramp is considered the “Dead Zone” there is no way we can get an air tight seal between the ramp and the inside cylinder tube, so there will always be a little dust that will end up on the ramp, that is why we have that hole above the ramp, it generates turbulence in the dead zone and pulls the dust back into the cyclone so it doesn’t pile up on top of the ramp which looks a little ugly, the hole also allows you to inject with an air nozzle air to keep it looking clean. It will not hurt anything having the dust up there it just looks bad, in fact all of the dust collectors out on the market if they have an internal ramp, will always have a packed dead zone full of dust its just you cannot see it.
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Rushton,
I greatly appreciate the help, both from the NC Woodworkers and from ClearVue. I am absolutely certain the impeller is spinning the proper direction. If you look at my post history my first post was how to reverse the direction because it was running opposite of the big “rotation” sticker on the cyclone.
I have a soft gasket under the barrel lid, I siliconed all around where the starter collar attaches to the lid.
I will do a smoke test next and post my results.
I greatly appreciate the help, both from the NC Woodworkers and from ClearVue. I am absolutely certain the impeller is spinning the proper direction. If you look at my post history my first post was how to reverse the direction because it was running opposite of the big “rotation” sticker on the cyclone.
I have a soft gasket under the barrel lid, I siliconed all around where the starter collar attaches to the lid.
I will do a smoke test next and post my results.
Mike,
I know you've said that you checked the rotation of the impeller in an earlier thread, but to be honest, the consensus among all of those looking at your pictures, including the key folks at ClearVue Cyclones, is that the impeller is not rotating in the correct direction. Please realize we are not being critical -- we are trying to eliminate every possible cause of the poor performance you have observed. A relatively simple way to verify the actual rotation is to look through the clear sides of the blower side adjacent to the outlet and briefly run the cyclone so you can watch it's rotation as it spins back to a stop. The blades should rotate toward the blower outlet. If it does, then we are all wrong as to the cause. If it is rotating in the incorrect direction, there will still be exhaust flow, but it will be greatly reduced, creating the build-up in the inlet ramp as you've shown. You will then need to change the wiring connections at the motor junction box to reverse the motor rotation direction.
If the rotation is correct, then there is either a massive leak somewhere on the suction side or the impeller may not be keyed properly to the motor shaft and it is slipping under load. A thorough smoke test of the bin lid, the flex at the bin lid and any seams in the bin container (handles of galvanized waste barrels can leak.
Hope this helps.
I know you've said that you checked the rotation of the impeller in an earlier thread, but to be honest, the consensus among all of those looking at your pictures, including the key folks at ClearVue Cyclones, is that the impeller is not rotating in the correct direction. Please realize we are not being critical -- we are trying to eliminate every possible cause of the poor performance you have observed. A relatively simple way to verify the actual rotation is to look through the clear sides of the blower side adjacent to the outlet and briefly run the cyclone so you can watch it's rotation as it spins back to a stop. The blades should rotate toward the blower outlet. If it does, then we are all wrong as to the cause. If it is rotating in the incorrect direction, there will still be exhaust flow, but it will be greatly reduced, creating the build-up in the inlet ramp as you've shown. You will then need to change the wiring connections at the motor junction box to reverse the motor rotation direction.
If the rotation is correct, then there is either a massive leak somewhere on the suction side or the impeller may not be keyed properly to the motor shaft and it is slipping under load. A thorough smoke test of the bin lid, the flex at the bin lid and any seams in the bin container (handles of galvanized waste barrels can leak.
Hope this helps.
Well, Doh! I must admit that most of us have the wrong mindset here (me included) and have thought that the pictures you have posted show dust accumulation in the inlet chute when in fact it is accumulated in the dead air space above the chute. Thanks to Alan Schaffter (Alan in Little Washington on the NCWoodworker.net forum) for seeing the "real" picture (and I believe that's the way Paul Bushey of ClearVue Cyclones saw it as well). Your cyclone does have a larger spacing between the ramp and the central tube that extends down past the ramp from the blower intake. The dust that accumulates does not impact the cyclone's performance but it does look a bit unsightly. You might be able to dislodge much of it if you applied a jet of compressed air through the grommet while the cyclone was running.
Here's the link to Alan's post explaining why he doesn't think this dust build up is a problem and does not affect the functioning of the cyclone:
https://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums...n-cv1800-suggestions.72406/page-2#post-675207
https://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums...n-cv1800-suggestions.72406/page-2#post-675207