I’ve been running my small woodworking shop out of the garage for about three years now, and I’m finally getting ready to move into a proper commercial space. The new lease starts in two months, and honestly, I’m a bit overwhelmed by all the little decisions that come with setting up a workshop from scratch. The biggest one right now is the dust collection system — I need to figure out what’s going to work for the space and my budget, but I keep going in circles.
For context, I do mostly custom furniture and cabinets, so I’ve got a decent mix of tools: a table saw, planer, jointer, and a drum sander. My current setup in the garage is a cheap 1 HP Harbor Freight dust collector that I’ve jerry-rigged with a Thien baffle and a Wynn filter. It works okay for the small stuff, but it chokes badly when I hit the planer or sander. Not sure if this matters, but I also live in a dusty area with a lot of dry air, so fines have been a real nuisance. I’ve read a lot about the Laguna C|Flux and the Oneida Supercell, and I keep going back and forth. The price difference is significant — the Laguna is almost double the cost after you add the remote and canister filter. But I’ve also heard the Oneida is loud, and noise is a concern since the shop will be in a mixed-use building with neighbors above.
I have about $1,800 set aside for this, which is pretty much all I can spend after covering the deposit and first month’s rent. I’ve considered ducting everything with 6-inch PVC rather than flex hose, but I’m not a plumber and I’m worried about static buildup or just messing up the layout. I’ve also looked at building a dedicated cyclone from a kit, but that feels like a project that could eat up a weekend I don’t really have. I’m leaning toward the Oneida just because it fits the budget, but I keep reading that the filtration on the Laguna is way better for fine dust, and that’s the stuff that really worries me long-term.
So here’s my question: for those of you who’ve made a similar move from a hobby setup to a small commercial shop, what did you prioritize in your dust collection? Did you go for a name-brand system or build your own? And if you’re in a shared building, how did you handle noise complaints? I’m trying to balance cost, performance, and not getting evicted before I even get started.
For context, I do mostly custom furniture and cabinets, so I’ve got a decent mix of tools: a table saw, planer, jointer, and a drum sander. My current setup in the garage is a cheap 1 HP Harbor Freight dust collector that I’ve jerry-rigged with a Thien baffle and a Wynn filter. It works okay for the small stuff, but it chokes badly when I hit the planer or sander. Not sure if this matters, but I also live in a dusty area with a lot of dry air, so fines have been a real nuisance. I’ve read a lot about the Laguna C|Flux and the Oneida Supercell, and I keep going back and forth. The price difference is significant — the Laguna is almost double the cost after you add the remote and canister filter. But I’ve also heard the Oneida is loud, and noise is a concern since the shop will be in a mixed-use building with neighbors above.
I have about $1,800 set aside for this, which is pretty much all I can spend after covering the deposit and first month’s rent. I’ve considered ducting everything with 6-inch PVC rather than flex hose, but I’m not a plumber and I’m worried about static buildup or just messing up the layout. I’ve also looked at building a dedicated cyclone from a kit, but that feels like a project that could eat up a weekend I don’t really have. I’m leaning toward the Oneida just because it fits the budget, but I keep reading that the filtration on the Laguna is way better for fine dust, and that’s the stuff that really worries me long-term.
So here’s my question: for those of you who’ve made a similar move from a hobby setup to a small commercial shop, what did you prioritize in your dust collection? Did you go for a name-brand system or build your own? And if you’re in a shared building, how did you handle noise complaints? I’m trying to balance cost, performance, and not getting evicted before I even get started.
