Make a workshop air cleaner

Dust collectors and vacuums work alright for the shop but if you want to control the fine dust an air cleaner will do a better job.

With some plywood, an inexpensive fan and some filters you can build your own air cleaner for your shop.      

                                                                                         

Here are a few other air cleaner builds that are worth checking out. They are all fine workmanship and each go into some detail about their system. 

Workshop Pleated Dust Filter / Activated Carbon VOC Scrubber Test -Savvas Papasavva

Building a shop air cleaner- John Heisz

Mobile Air Cleaner Cart- Jay Bates

     

Let's begin!                                                                                                

                                                                                        

A box fan can be purchased for around $20.00. The one below is a powerful fan and has three speeds.

I will be using two 20x20x1" filters for the air cleaner.  

The filters are wrapped in these papers with lots of fancy words on them.

The Trueblue is a basic cheap filter. It filters larger airborne particles and  has a FPR 5, (filter Performance Rating) which is a rating for this filter. 

The other filter 3M, is more expensive and says it is a Micro Allergen Filter. It has a filtration level of 1000.

First we must take the fan apart.                                                                         

Take off one of the front panel to gain access inside then with a thin slotted screwdriver pry off the dial knob and the handle. If you inspect it carefully you should be able to see how these parts  are attached. 

I used my large caliper to measure the outside of the fan. It is 20.5 inches square. This will make it easy to cut 4 exact pieces for the box frame.

I will use regular plywood with for the box. I went to the lumber store and got some plywood with one side sanded smooth. I wanted to keep the cost down.

                  On one of the sides a couple of slots are marked and cut for the filters. They are slightly bigger than an inch and the height will be around 21 inches.

                   The best way is to cut what you can first on the table saw then with the jigsaw. Also clamping the piece when cutting with the jigsaw will make things easier.                              

A dado stack was used to make these blind rabbet joints, they are a nice looking joint and are very strong. To make them takes a little bit of measuring but using a test piece makes thing easier.

A front panel was cut first on the table saw then using a jigsaw to do the round edges. The table saw helps keep the cuts nice and straight. If you cut with a jigsaw alone the cut will look wavy!

A hole is drilled into the top piece for an extension for the knob. 
A set a calipers is a good idea when measuring to line up the switch on the fan.

 The brass rod was measured and cut with a hacksaw to the right size to fit the new wooden dial.

I did not to buy hardware so I will make my own. It does not cost anything to make since I used scraps plus it is more fun to make your own. 

The hardware is added. I used four large Robertson screws for the handle. It will have to lift the box so I wanted to make sure it was secure. The dial knob was fitted to the brass tubing and pressure fitted on the fan switch.

Some scraps are used to make the guides for the filter. They are spaced a little over an inch so the filter will slide nicely. After the glue is dry they can be screwed into the box. 

The top and  side of the air cleaner....

                                Another side pic.....

                     

                            The filters are very easy to remove, here is the back showing one filter pulled out a bit. I may cover the side slots if I think to much air is going through it. 

  

Conclusion                                                          

                                                       

Making a filtration system is not that hard, it is basically a box built around a fan with some slots in the back for the filters. 

Keeping your shop and air clean is important for your health especially  if you spend a lot of time in the shop.

I hope you can copy or use some of the  ideas and build your own air cleaner.

Let me know what system you have and how it is working.

See also                                                                

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