I’m mounting a 2HP Onieda cyclone high on the wall. I’ve taken it down to the smallest components I can, but the motor portion is still heavy (and bulky) enough that I can not safely lift it into position.
Any suggestions on how to get it up there?
I’ll have a second helper and can even wrangle up a third if I need it. But the problem still remains that we’re going high.
Replies
Can you knock together a temporary ramp or stairs to walk it up? I put a beam across my rafters and used a chain fall but that only works if you can get to the rafters.
................................................
Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.
~ Denis Diderot
I had the same prblem with a 5HP ClearVue install up high into a corner. So a 3rd person wasn't all that much help for lifting as there just wasn't enough room for ladders, motor, and bodies in the corner. We ended up making a couple T-braces out of 2x4's so the 3rd person could slip them under the motor mount board while the other 2 were up on the ladders holding it. That took the load off so the 2 on the ladder could reposition themselves and the motor/mounting board into the final position and bolt into place.
If you build it he will come.
I had the same challenge. In my case, the mounting bracket was mounted on a side wall and the cyclone attached to it. I needed to get the motor/blade assembly onto the cyclone. I attached a length of 3/4" pipe to the ceiling, hoisted up the motor, slid it over into position and then lowered it. In detail I did the following:
- Got the following items.
-- Two lag eye-bolts, large enough for 3/4" pipe.
-- A 3' section of 3/4" pipe.
-- An S-hook large enough to fit over the 3/4" pipe.
-- A block and tackle or pullies you can gang together to form a block and tackle
-- Rope rated strong enough for the weight.
-- Two pipe unions to screw on each end of the pipe.
I screwed the eye-bolts into ceiling joists in a line with the center of the cyclone, being sure that one was mounted close enough to the wall so the motor could be slid into position.
I slid the pipe through an eye-bolt, through the S-hook and through the other eye-bolt. I then attached the pipe unions on each end of the pipe so the pipe could not slip out of the eye-bolts.
I mounted the block and tackle to the S-hook and to the motor assembly. I hoisted everything up and slid it over. Because I attached the block and tackle in one bolt hole of the motor mounting plate, the motor tilted to one side. The biggest challenge was holding the rope, tilting the motor into the proper orientation and lowering it into position. I did this by myself but having a second person work the rope as you worked the motor would be a great help.
Once you are done, all you have to do is patch any holes in the sheetrock where the eye-bolts went through.
Can you get a hefty eyebolt into one of the joists in the ceiling? If so, you can truss the motor unit with rope and lift it with a comealong. One person can guide it while the other works the comealong.
I've got an Oneida Pro2000 sitting in the corner waiting to be installed myself. Let us know how it works out.
I was thinking getting two eyebolts to help spread the weight as well as give some maneuverability. It'll be some weeknight next week...
If I get the time I'll to try to document it for the Knots crowd. It could be funny...
Just how high are you lifting this ? If you have helpers you could rent a scaffold for a half day quite reasonably. Lift blower on to the scaffold ,then mount the scaffold and lift in place. I installed my 1 1/2 hp. Oneida cyclone this way by myself. I only had 9' ceilings.
It's 13 feet to the bracket. I'm going to give a pulley system a try, and failing that scaffolding is the next step. Safety is the real concern, and the issue is the top is a little heavy and very bulky.
13'!? Isn't the bracket supposed to be from 60-68" off the floor? Are you suspending your drum on a platform or something? Why so high?
I hope you are shock mounting to the wall. Cyclones are not the quietest nor vibration free tools in the shop. I originally mounted my ClearVue to the wall in my basement shop. When I'd go upstairs for something the house felt like Giant Magic Fingers.I've since taken it down and am mounting it on a free stand in a soundproof closet.Burt
I wonder if your impeller is out of balance. My 3 horse Penn State is lag bolted to the wall and vibration is nearly nonexistent.
................................................
Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
That would be kind of funny... go through all this work only to have to take it down...
I may be installing one of those jobbies in the future too. If all else fails and you have access to some cribbing, you can always go that route. Some thirty five years ago they put an interstate highway where my house was so I had some movers move it a couple hundred yards away. They jacked it up using cribbing and fifty ton jacks in three location.
Tinkerer, would you please 'splain to me what "cribbing" is? Google didn't help much, mostly got horses chewing on wood.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
"Cribbing" - that is when you put this precious new son or daughter in this thing called a crib for the night.
Definition #2: I wish I could draw a picture and send it like some of you do. I will try this, pretend the # sign is made of square logs, place two logs on the floor parallel to each other, then another two on top of the first pair parallel to each other but perpendicular to the first ones. Continue the process until you get as high as you want. You no doubt have done this with dominoes when you were growing up. For something like a cyclone you might need two sets of cribbing to stabilize it or surround the cyclone if your logs are long enough. Put a jack betweem a top log and a support of the cyclone and raise it a little at a time. When you get to the end of the jack, put another jack on a new next level log and up you go. I wish I could send a picture of my house sitting on the cribs.
Believe it or not, vast areas of the surface of West Virginia is supported on cribs like this. As they take the coal out they put cribs in to support the overburden. I visited a mine a couple years ago that was seven hundred feet deep. After years, these logs start to rot and the surface actually sinks. Of course by then the miners are long gone so no one is harmed. Hope this is understandable.
Edited 10/28/2008 7:45 am ET by Tinkerer3
I think I get the idea, thanks Tinkerer. Must be one of those "guy things" I'd never heard of. forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Probably regional. In the coal mining area here. you hear of it all the time. Often called mine props and see the trucks hauling them to the mines.
Wikipedia has a pretty good explanation of cribbing. Also used a lot in the crane and rigging industry. Check it out at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Box_crib
Thanks for the link, agibson, I didn't think about checking out Wikipedia. I'm always interested in ways to ease the job of lifting or moving something heavy.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I installed a 2 1/2 hp Oneida Super Dust Gorilla in my basement workshop. I used Oneida's steel stand and the motor had to go into a space between two floor joists. I have about 2" clearance vertically to the floor above. There was no way to rig an attachment point to pull it up so I ended up doing it by the Armstrong method. It took myself, my son, and 2 adult grandsons to grab the top housing with the motor attached and lift that heavy assembly to the top of the rack. It was not pretty with 4 guys trying to hang on to it without getting in each others way. But we managed to get it on top of the 1 by material I had laid on top of the foam gasket and slide it to the approximate position. It was then just a matter of lifting it one side at a time to gingerly pull out the 1 by slat and setting it down in place. After that wiggling it to align the bolt holes was pretty easy. Now this was not "high on a wall" as you are going to do, we were able to stand on the floor and lift it into position. It was still a lot of dead weight to pick up and position.
I don't know how high your installation is going to be, but maybe this narration will give you some help in your installation. Take care, don't get hurt. I know it will be worth the effort when you are done. That Oneida unit of mine is a real "sucker."
Bruce
Buster:
When I installed my 2HP Super Gorilla on the wall, I installed it in pieces as there was only my wife and me. The hard part was lifting the motor into place as there was about an inch of clearance below the ceiling.
Anyway, I just bear-hugged the motor and plate and lifted into position with a stepladder. I had the wife there for moral support and to dial 911 if all went cuckoo-baba.
I am not particularly strong and it has been a couple of years, but I don't recall that it would warrant that much effort. Surely a friend and two decent step-ladders would do the trick?
Good luck. You will enjoy it when it all gets going - just don't let it back up as it's a real pain to have to clean the filter.
Regards,
Hastings
Mounting a Cyclone - doesn't that require the services of a dustidermist? ;-)
If I were going the block and tackle / lifting device route then I would lift the entire assembled cyclone from the horizontal rather than put it together up on the wall. You just need a buddy or two to man a couple guide lines to keep it from swinging into the wall.Have you checked out equipment rental places to see if they have any portable lifts like this. For $45 or $50 it might be worth it.http://rentalzar.com/web/tsc/equipment.asp?action=category&category=42&key=4979
Wellll.....playing on the words from a more earthy point of view, one might want to be careful - very, very, careful - when attempting to mount a cyclone....
I don't know if I'd go so far as to mount a cyclone, but I have had a whirlwind romance or two.
I don't know if I'd go so far as to mount a cyclone, but I have had a whirlwind romance or two.
I know it sucks. But a man has needs.
Some guys don't even wait till they can afford a cyclone. Link
................................................
Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
I hear you! Always trippin' over my shop vacuum hoses!
Try a contractor lift (aka duct jack) from your local rental store. Expect to spend about $50 to $70. You'll need a pickup to transport it.
Hey everybody I just thought I'd update you on the progress. So I mounted the bracket on the wall then realized how impossible it was to get the cyclone up. Contacted you guys and got so many great responses. So thanks.In the last week I reinforces the bracket. I was a little worried that with only 4 bolts through a 3/4" sheet of ply may not hold (I did hang from each side... 13' of the ground...). Anyway I add a few bolts to it "just to make sure".On Monday night I added two i-bolts to my newly finished ceiling. I foolishly though that I could just hoist it up with rope. Even with two ropes it was hopeless. Without an actually pulley at the i-bolt the friction was greater than the gain from the ropes. It was a minor victory, I was able to get it off the ground. I considered just adding a pulley at the eyebolts, but pulleys it turns out are only $3.Finally tonight I made the big push, I called my buddy to come over. One way or another we were getting it up there. I used 2 pulleys per side to construct a poor mans block and tackle. The rope was tied securely to the i-bolt, ran down to the cyclone where I attached a pulley, then back to the i-bolt where I had mounted another pulley, then down t the puller. I did this on each side. It was an immediate improvement. I was able to lift one side while on the ladder. When my buddy arrived we were able to hoist it too the ceiling... only to find out they i-bolts were in the wrong position! Down it came, move the i-bolt (another hole in the new ceiling), and try again.. in position. In the end it turns out it was good that I had the pulley configuration. The force need went up as I got closer to the ceiling as the force was pulling as much to the side as up.In the end the cyclone is now mounted, and I just have to source the DC pipe. I'll post a few pictures of the newborn shop on a separate thread.
Edited 10/30/2008 1:32 am by Buster2000
For DC ducting, I like Duct Incorporated, http://www.ductincorporated.com/The ducts clamp together making future modifications easier. I found it a bit difficult to decipher some of the part dimensions so you may need to call for clarification. They will make custom parts too. They aren't really set up to sell directly to end users but will do so if payment is sent before shipment.
i like your calender ;)
I'm just sayin'
Buster- Are you going to place the drum on a stand? Why so high?
I've got htis question multiple times. The clclone is high for a couple of reasons. Saves me a few feet of wall space allong my only usable wall is the main reason. The second is that I need to get up to ceiling height anyway, to avoid the garage door. By mounting it that high, I avoid two 90 degree bends.
I e-mailed oneida support*, and I can extend the dust chute with hard pipe with no effects on the dust collection. I only have a 35 gallon fiber drum, so I may just build a cabinet underneath.
* As a side note, I'd avoid e-mailing Oneida in the future. They added me to a mailing list. Drives me nuts.
If you extend with pipe, keep the following in mind. When the drum of my Gorilla is near empty, the vacuum lifts the drum off the ground and it swings around while the machine is running. If fact I know to empty the drum when it no longer gets lifted off the ground. So if you extend with flex tubing, your drum will likely swing so wildly it will be bouncing off the walls. If you extend with solid tubing, secure it with sheet metal screws to prevent the drum swinging from pulling the solid tubing off the cyclone. At that, I think there will be a lot of stress where the tubing meets the cyclone.
I have never seen that with my Oneida. Am I missing something in the setup?
Better life through Zoodles and poutine...
I'm not sure. There is nothing special about my setup as you can see in the attached photo. I have something like 6-9" off flexible plastic ducting connecting the drum to the cyclone. At that, I have put 2" thick pieces of wood below the drum to minimize some of the swinging. The vacuum will be applied equally to the bin and ducts in the shop. It seems the less air flowing through the ducts, the more the drum will be lifted off the ground. The ducts in my shop are 6" and I carry the 6" duct to the tools, except the table saw. I have modified the tools to have either a 6" port or two 4" ports. I typically only have the ports to one or two tools open at a time, although I leave the 4" port to the table saw open at all times. Do you leave a lot of ports open at at time? FYI, the reason the table saw is still a single 4" port is because I had a trench built in the slab when I built the workshop and all I can fit in there is a 4" duct. At the time, I thought that was enough. Live and learn.
Thanks for the advice when we were testing it, my buddy was holding the bin into position and when we turned it on it sucked it up and out of his hands... I'm really thinking about going the hard pipe method, but I'll probably find a way to attach the bin to a mobie bas of sorts. That should hold things down.
If you use a rigid duct to extend it, you could build a standoff or two to anchor the duct to the wall. That would eliminiate the stress on the joint where the duct attaches to the cyclone.
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled