Good morning all. Quick question re. dust collection setup. I’ve recently built a new shop and had 6 inch PVC sewer pipe installed under the slab. This is the green pipe that has a bell end to hook two sections together. I’ve found that I can use the white 6 inch PVC pipe from the home center to connect to this pipe, but I have only found fittings with female couplings. My goal is connect 6 inch white PVC to the green sewer pipe coming out of the floor for a short ways, then switch to 6 inch and 4 inch metal pipe. Couple questions; Are 6 inch PVC male connectors not made? Has anyone come across a company out there that makes an adapter that can be used to easily go from plastic to metal for dust collection? Thanks all.
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Replies
Not sure about PVC adapters, but Fernco fittings are the ultimate in connecting pipes of varying sizes. I bet they have at least one option that'd work for you. https://www.fernco.com/products/flexible-couplings/stock-couplings
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "female fittings"? Fittings is a general term for connectors for pipe. I'm assuming you have SDR-35 green pipe which is intended for in ground drainage use primarily but works fairly well in dust collection systems, it's what I use, but fittings can be a bit finicky. One of the problems you are dealing with is that sch-40 drain pipe has a larger outside dimension (6"is a nominal measurement not exact), thicker sidewalls and a smaller interior dimension so for the most part sch-40 fittings don't work. So you need to make sure you are getting SDR-35 fittings (I'm told sch-20 fittings work but that pipe is not widely available anymore and I haven't used them myself)
Back to the "female fittings" problem. Fittings that have male ends are referred to as "street" as in street-el which is a 90° bend with one female connection and one male. I have found these at Lowe's and Home Depot if you live in the states but selections can be limited.
This link may be of some assistance.
https://drainageproducts.us/6-sdr35/?page=2
Thanks. As you can tell, I'm a bit out of my comfort zone here. Not sure what the tech specs are for the green pipe, but I do know I can take a left over piece to HD and a white 6" PVC coupler will slide over the end and fit nicely. Was hoping to find a fitting that would slide INTO the 6" green pipe which may not exist. Also, will want to go from plastic to metal to take advantage of the adjustability the metal elbows offer. Thanks again for your insights.
Why do you need to slide into the pipe? Has it been cut off flush with the slab? Even street fittings only match the pipe diameter nothing is made that goes inside it. What type of metal pipe are you using? Standard 30ga home center fittings are not recommended for dust collection systems.
If you truly must have something that slides into the pipe, I'm imagining it cut too close th the slab this could solve your problem, but at a cost.
https://drainageproducts.us/6-pvc-sdr35-internal-coupling-fabricated/
Keep in mind any lips or protrusions inside the pipe on the tool side will increase the likelihood of of a clog as the chips travel from the tool to the collector. With 6" pipe you are probably safe, assuming your collector is sized for that volume probably 3hp or more depending on the length of run and number of elbows and turns.
Esch5995, you are correct. One of the pipes coming from the floor is flush (but just the one). If I could find a pipe to go into this one, that could solve my problem. If not, the best option may be to cut/chip out enough concrete around this pipe to get a 6" coupler to slide over it.
As for the metal pipe, your comment has me wondering if it is not rigid enough to hold up. With this in mind, am thinking of staying 6" PVC and then use the 24 or 26 gauge 4". Could do spiral pipe if this is not substantial enough. Thanks again for your time and thoughts. Much appreciated.
Regarding the 6 inch pipe that is cut off flush with the floor.....
I wonder if someone makes a flange that you could bolt to the concrete right overtop the duct? I've added a picture of what I'm thinking but I have no idea if the one in the pic is the exact same diameter as your green pipe.
I suppose you could make your own flange as well.
Mike
Did you follow the link in my previous post? There is a 6" internal coupling with will let you join two pieces of pipe together and get you above the slab level. It's not cheap at $45 for a 6 in piece of plastic but it solves your problem.
I just use a short section of pipe to connect two female points. I have also cut sections out of pipe to reduce the size if that is what you want to do.
GeeDubBee
Your first suggestion doesn't apply to the OP's problem, but you second suggestion could work. Take a 6-7" length of pipe and cut a section out of the length to permit the pipe to be squeezed enough to slip inside the pipe imbedded in the concrete. This would create something similar to the Internal connector I linked to above, but won't cost $45. The potential drawback is it will be more difficult to make air tight, especially if too much material is removed. With liberal use of solvent cement and careful material removal, bandsaw would be my tool of choice, it should work. Unfortunately when solvent welding PVC pipe you often only get one chance, although I have successfully removed pipe with use of a heat gun and needle nosed pliers it's not a particularly easy task and I don't know what impact the one pipe being imbedded in concrete would have.
I think if was me I'd spend the $45
I have found flex drain pipe connectors work pretty well with 4" dust collector fittings; use a hose clamp to connect the pieces together. Cost less than $2. I am sure you can find them in larger sizes too. For example...
https://www.menards.com/main/plumbing/pipe-fittings/corrugated-pipe-fittings/flex-drain-reg-pipe-connector/adp53302/p-1444426624658-c-9568.htm?tid=-1&ipos=29
In cases where you need something a bit more custom, you can make your own adapters using epoxy and fiberglas as I did here with a dust shroud that I needed to connect to a shop vac hose. Not hard to do, tho you need to get the right supplies -- either fiberglas cloth or tape, and epoxy or vinyl ester resin.
If all else fails, you can always make adapters from wood. For larger diameters, cut plywood using a circle template or guide for the right diameters.
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