A cyclone pre-filter offers multiple benefits to your dust collection system. One of these benefits and easiest to observe is extending filter life.

How Do Cyclone Dust Collectors work?

Cyclone dust collectors remove dust by using centrifugal motion.  The airflow enters the cyclone and spins around until it reverses and leaves the cyclone through the center of the vessel.  As the airflow spins, centrifugal motion pulls the dust towards the wall, leaving cleaner air in towards the center of the vessel.  So when the airflow reverses, the dust falls into the hopper while the clean air leaves through the center of the cyclone.

The larger and heavier a dust particle is, the greater the centrifugal force on it and the more likely it is to move towards the walls.  What this basically means is that the larger the particles the greater the removal of those particles in a cyclone.

A cyclone pre-filter will remove the larger particles from an airstream.  Often times this can be as much as 80-90% of the dust loading in the airflow.  Installing a cyclone pre-filter could decrease the loading on the filters by 80-90%, which in turn will allow a longer time between cleaning of the filters.

“Pulse-Jet” Baghouse   

In a “pulse-jet” baghouse the filters are cleaned by blasting compressed air through them.  This causes the filters to expand off their support.  The expansion causes the top layer(s) of dust to fall off the filters, thereby cleaning them.  Now each time the filter expands, the filter is weakened.  Over time, holes will develop in the filter, thereby allowing unfiltered air past.  This lowers the removal efficiency and could cause the system to be out of compliance.

Dust Built-Up Over Time

Another issue is over time, the top dust layers might not fully fall off.  So the total dust on the filters increases, making it harder for air to pass through.  This causes the pressure drop across the filters to increase, which will result in less air being collected at the collection points.

Installing the cyclone pre-filters decreases the dust getting to the filters, thereby requiring less cleaning (weakening of the filters) and lowering the amount of dust that builds up on the filters.  Together this can extend filter life by many months to a few years, which will lower your maintenance costs.

5 Signs Your Dust Collection System Needs a Pre-Filter

Watch the video from the Dust Efficiency Clinic discusses how using a pre-filter will optimize your dust collection system. 

If you prefer this valuable information in white paper form, get our whitepaper, Top 5 Reasons to Use a Cyclone as a Pre-filter.

To learn more about which dust collector, please contact our experts at 440-543-7400 or visit our website: www.dustcollectorhq.com.

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