The Importance of Proper Dust Collection for Woodworking Applications

Many professional woodworking companies spend significant capital on production machinery but fail to adequately address dust collection issues.  Proper dust collection has many advantages, well beyond the obvious health benefits.  An inadequate dust collection system can result in a poor quality finished product, reduced tooling life, and can damage your woodworking machinery. 

HEALTH ISSUESWood dust can be very hazardous to workers health.  Inhaling dust can lead to allergies, respiratory issues such as asthma, and worse yet has been known to cause nasal cancer.  Some wood species contain toxins that when inhaled can cause serious respiratory issues.  Inhaling wood dust can reduce your lung capacity which can be either temporary or permanent in some cases.  By properly collecting dust and minimizing the amount of airborne dust in a shop you will greatly reduce these health risks.  Employee health risks can also have an effect on your bottom line due to lost work days and increased health care coverage.

PRODUCT QUALITY ISSUES

Wood dust which is not properly extracted can cause havoc on your finished product.  In sanding applications the dust can build up on sanding belts which can load up the belt.  This can lead to friction between the belt and the work piece, causing heat, and resulting in a polished finish or a broken belt. It can also cause chatter as you are asking the belt to remove more material than it can actually handle thus the belt will skip because it is overloaded.  

On edgebanders it is critical as well.  Laminate and PVC chips can fall on to the panel, tracing wheels will roll over these chips causing a poor banded edge finish.  Also these chips can get into the glue pot and can contaminate the glue.

On moulders and planers inadequate air flow from the collector or poorly designed ducting will result in excess wood chips deflecting back onto the finished work surface, coating feed rolls and being pressed into the wood surface causing small dents in the work-piece. This will force the manufacturer to sand his product to remove the dents or discard the piece.

REDUCED TOOL LIFE

As described earlier improperly extracted sawdust can lead to increased friction which causes heat.  This heat can prematurely wear down tooling which can greatly increase your sharpening costs and also result in dull tools and ultimately a poor finish quality. 

As a wood chip is machined it carries with it the heat from the cutting action. You want to extract this chip so that this damaging heat is kept away from the recalculating cutter.

Sanding belts can clog and in fact not sand after the grit is plugged which causes friction.  This friction is head which will wear down the sanding belt quickly.

INCREASED MAINTENANCE COSTS

Inadequate dust removal can lead to more frequent and serious machinery break-downs. Excess dust can clog drives, gears, and worm/ball screws causing premature wear and breakage. In addition many CNC machines rely on air flow from the dust collector to cool the spindle. Poor air flow can cause premature bearing failures in these situations.

WHAT SIZE DUST COLLECTOR DO YOU NEED

There are a number of formulas that go into sizing a dust system.  Each diameter of dust port requires a certain amount of CFM.  Add up all of your ports and you will then get a rough idea of the CFM required. If some machines are only running periodically you can reduce this figure by installing blast gates to restrict the air flow from that particular machine.

Port Dia.	3"	4"	5"	6"	7"	8"	9"	10”	12"
CFM/Port	225	400	600	900	1200	1600	2000	2450	3500

WHAT OTHER FACTORS SHOULD YOU CONSIDER WHEN PURCHASING A DUST SYSTEM

Other factors to consider when sizing a dust collection system are:

·         Type of dust you are collecting: Rough or fine.  Fine dust requires more filtration than wood chips.  Wood chips require more storage capacity than fine sawdust.

·         Are you installing the system indoors or outdoors. For outdoor installations you need to be aware of heat loss as the dust collector collects dust but also pulls the warm air out of your shop.  A return air system can be installed to combat this issue.   For indoor installations you need to be concerned with noise and local safety/fire codes.  Belfab have a Hummer blower which has twice the diameter of fan than a standard blower and rotates at ½ the RPM.  The result is in a system which has the same CFM but is 50% quieter.   Also in indoor systems some codes specify that you are not allowed to have dust collection systems indoors that are greater than 1500 CFM.  Other codes state that for larger systems they are required to be 15’ from the nearest machine operator and some require the system to be put in a separate room behind fire rated drywall.      

IMPORTANCE OF PROPER DUCTING

Improper ducting can undo any improvements you have made to your dust collection system.   Improper ducting material, poor ducting layout, and improper duct diameter are only a few of the potential pitfalls you can face.

PVC ducting should not be used in wood applications. PVC is non-conductive and can build up static electricity.  An operator could be struck with a static electrical charge and it can be an extreme fire and explosion hazard.  A term which is well known now is COMDUST which means combustible dust.  These fine dust particles can become explosive when in contact with static electricity.

A poor ducting layout can greatly reduce the air flow which nullifies the CFM being generated by the dust collector.  When installing ducting you should not install sharp elbows.  This restricts air flow.  Elbows should be gradual.    Also if you start off with main duct which is too small it will not allow enough air flow through the dust collector.   

Also when attaching ducting to a piece of equipment it is in some cases necessary to have a length of flexible ducting as it may have a moving head or a cover which opens.   Flexible ducting should be minimized in length because it actually greatly reduces air flow in comparison to steel ducting.

WHAT DUST CONTROL SYSTEMS ARE AVAILABLE TODAY:

At Akhurst Machinery we are pleased to offer the Belfab Dust Collection solutions.

Downdraft Sanding Tables

Sanding tables are used when workers are hand sanding where they sand directly on top of the table and the dust is drawn down into the sanding table through a filter thus reducing airborne dust.

BELFAB 3636DT  -  BELFAB 3672DT  -  BELFAB 48108DT 

Internal Dust Collectors

Belfab have a range of standalone and modular dust collectors to suit your dust collection requirements. Their revolutionary modular systems can be upgraded over time by adding larger blowers and more filter modules.  This allows you to grow you dust collector as you grow your business.

Belfab JNBM-OP  -  BELFAB LW  -  BELFAB DW  -  BELFAB NBM-OP

Industrial Air Cleaners
BELFAB BA-1800 industrial air cleaner is a multi-purpose unit for ambient air filtering. This filtering system can be used on a wide range of industrial shop applications involving releases of fine dust into the air. The BA-1800C is designed to be suspended from the ceiling, while the BA-1800G is to be installed on the ground with the discharge going towards the ceiling, to improve air circulation.

Portable Dust Collectors
Our Cantek range of portable dust collectors are ideal for smaller shops or shops with existing dust systems which are at capacity or which can’t easily be modified to add existing machinery.  

If you are considering a dust collection system, be sure to speak with one of our account representatives.  They can help in specifying the correct system and provide you with a dimensioned layout drawing.  We can supply you with a turnkey solution including our K&B snap together ducting.

sales@akhurst.com

Proper Edgebander Maintenance

Edgebanders are one of the more complex machines in operation in most cabinet and millwork shops. The maintenance however is imperative to the performance and reliability of the machine. Without it you can experience a poor edge quality which will result in hand finishing and defects and worst of all significant down time and expense in repairing the machine. There are some basic maintenance tips that can greatly reduce the downtime you experience on your edgebander and keep it the lifeblood of your operation.

Below are a few tips on how to keep your edgebander running:

1) CLEANLINESSIt is very basic but critically important, especially on Edge Banders. The majority of service calls we receive on edgebanders are the result of a machine that has been neglected. The trimmings produced during edgebanding operations are more difficult to collect in a dust system than wood products. The shavings and trimmings can build up on tracing wheels, damage switch components and electrical components. At the end of each day the operator should open up the sound enclosure and used compressed air to clean the machine thoroughly. Ensure there is no build up of chips on the tracing wheels for the top and bottom trimmer and scraping units. This will result in poor edge quality as the tracing wheels cannot follow the panel properly. Periodically you should open up the electrical panel and use a vacuum system to suction off the dirt build up on the electrical components. Dust can cause havoc on electrical contactors and will result in costly downtime.

2) PROPER DUST COLLECTIONProper ducting and dust collection is another item that is often overlooked when installing an edgebander. It is ideal to have the majority of the ducting to your machine as steel ducting and minimize the flexible pipe as much as possible. Flexible ducting causes friction when collecting particles and this will reduce the effectiveness of the dust collector. You will require some flexible piping as the top beam needs to move up and down but keep it to a minimum. Also avoid using PVC piping as this can cause static electricity which will again reduce the effectiveness of the dust collector and worse yet potentially cause a fire hazard.

3) LUBRICATIONThe glue pot is the heart of any edgebander, without the proper lubrication it can lead to catastrophic results. Some edgebanders like our Bi-Matic series do no require lubrication. Bi-Matic use a high wear and heat resistant Teflon bushing instead of bearings on the glue spindle. The advantage to this system is that it does not require regular maintenance. For other brands you typically need to lubricate the glue spindle with high temperature grease to guard against the bearings wearing prematurely. If the bearings go in a spindle you typically need to replace the complete spindle assembly which can be very costly. Regularly lubricate the chain track of the machine. The glue spindle is typically driven by a chain and sprocket and this is located underneath the glue pot in the base of the machine. This should also be regularly lubricated. For frequency of application you should refer to your owners manual but typically twice a week for lubricating the chain track and spindle sprocket and chain. It is important to follow the recommended type of lubrication specified by your machines manufacturer. Mixing lubricants can cause them to break down in some cases as the chemical makeup can counteract each other. Also regularly check the air regulator to ensure there is oil in the reservoir. If your machine does not have this then you should weekly take off the air lines and put a few drops of air tool oil in the fittings to keep the pneumatics running properly.

4) COMPRESSED AIRMany of the components on an edgebander are controlled by pneumatics. Water in air lines can cause havoc on pneumatic components. It is strongly recommended that you have an air drier and use water traps before your machines. Most machines come with a filter regulator with an air trap but this is not adequate enough to catch all of the moisture before it gets into your machine.

5) PROPERLY MAINTAINED GLUE POTAs discussed earlier the glue pot is the heart of any edgebander. The glue can be messing and when applying too much it can get pulled through the machine. It is important to apply the right amount of glue. You should not have any excess glue on the top or bottom of your edge. After a piece comes out of the machine go and pull of the banding to expose the glue edge. There should be good consistent coverage of glue without any gaps. The hot melt glue in the glue pot heats up and cools down throughout the day. Most modern edgebanders have automatic temperature lowering systems built in to guard against over-cooking the glue. Bi-Matic machines employ this feature and also use a lower temperature for pre-heating the glue and only head a small amount of glue to the full temperature before going into the spindle. When glue is heated at a high temperature for too long it can discolor and over time it will build up a carbon wall inside the glue pot. Each day you should take a wooden stick (like a wooden paint mixer) and scrape the walls of the glue pot to remove any build up. Do not use metal as the inside of the glue pot is typically coated with Teflon. Semi-annually it is a good idea to purge the glue from inside the pot and give it a good cleaning. The best method for removing the glue from the glue pots is to heat up the glue pot and put a few wooden sticks in the pot and let it cool down. Once it is cool and the glue is solid turn the glue pot on again. The walls of the glue pot will heat up the edge of the glue and then put the sticks out. You should be able to remove most of the glue this way. Once you most of the glue removed then some good old elbow grease can do the rest. If the wall of the pot is dificult to clean, remove the complete glue pot and glue spindle from the machine.

6) GLUE QUALITYThe proper glue selection is critical to the quality of your edgebanding operation. There are many different qualities, viscosities, colors, and operating temperatures. A poor glue selection can result in a poor edge bonding and make a good edgebander look very bad. Discuss this with your equipment supplier as they will typically have a recommended glue specification that works well with their machines.

7) TOOLINGThis one is quite straight forward. Sharp tools provide clean edges. Sharpen or replace the tooling when it gets dull and rotate and change the buffing units when they are worn or clogged with residue.

8) TOUCH SCREEN CONTROLSTouch screen controls are becoming more prevelant on woodworking machines. There are many advantages of this control such as memory storage capacity and quick adjustments. The one downfall is that they are a touch screen. If pushed too hard or hit with a panel you can crack the screen. A new screen would need to be supplied from your equipment supplier.

If you follow these suggestions you are sure to have an edgebander that runs consistently and constantly. Put together a maintenance schedule and post it to the machine. Computers are another tool to help with scheduling. Outlook has the capacity to alarm yourself for scheduled appointments. Put the maintenance schedule in Outlook and never miss a scheduled servicing.

Should you have any further questions please contact our service department and they would be happy to speak with you or book an appointment for one of our technicians to go through your machine.

Akhurst Machinery Introduction - English

A video introduction of Akhurst Machinery Limited.