I figure that I would need a 20-ft hose in order to link a shop vac in
garage to the boat deck. And then I need to cut a hole in my garage
wall to pass the hose. That doesn't sound like something that I want
to do.

The muffler-like attachment that I bought for my Ridgid shop vac
doesn't do a thing in term of cutting down noise. I still have it
attached to my shop vac -- not to reduce noise, but to redirect the
exhaust air down toward the floor.

Yes, I may end up buying a quiet (and expensive) Fein shop vac. But I
would like to try the low cost solution first (boxing the vac in)
before committing to the costly solution. Moreover, I can put the same
box over the Fein shop vac to further cut down the noise; therefore,
the investment on building the box will not be wasted.

Seem like no one can tell me if boxing-in the shop vac will cut down
the noise significantly. I guess I will have to try building one and
see what will happen.

Jay Chan


mac davis wrote:
On 16 Aug 2006 13:56:01 -0700, wrote:

The best thing a box or wall will do is deflect the noise in a different
direction, usually up, which can help quite a bit....

You might also try a long hose and using your garage for the "box"...

I bought a "noise reducer" from Craftsman that goes in the "blower" port and it
seems to make a bit of difference without any noticeable loss of suction...

Bottom line is that if there is much cost involved in building the box,
including vents, cooling fan, etc., it might be more cost effective to buy a
quieter vac...

I want to box in a noisy shop vac (from Ridgid) to minimize its noise
to _very_ low. I have come across many designs like that in books and
in this newsgroup, and I believe boxing in a shop vac should cut down
the noise significantly. I have a couple questions though:

- How quiet should I expect to get from boxing it in? Will it be
quiet enough that I can use it at 6:00 o'clock in the morning on my
boat (parked on my driveway) inside the boat cover? Please note that I
live in a 1/4 acre property and my neighbor's house is practically next
to my driveway. What's the dB level that I can cut down to anyway?

- Will the motor run hotter than it should if it is enclosed inside a
box with air vent on the side of the box? How much room I should leave
on top of the motor to allow enough cooling? I am asking this because
I need to run it with my sander to sand the boat deck flat, and this
may take longer than 10 minutes; therefore, I am afraid of overheating
the motor.

Yes, this is not a strictly woodworking question. But I figure people
into woodworking should be the expert in this area.

Thanks in advance for any info.

Jay Chan

Mac

https://home.comcast.net/~mac.davis
https://home.comcast.net/~mac.davis/wood_stuff.htm