WoodstockD4253 Aluminum Blast Gate, 2-1/2-Inch

I use several of the Woodstock blast gates for many years in my home dust collection system to maximize the suction to each machine. The system consists of a 1550 cfm dust collector and a 4" PVC pipe distribution to each machine. Here are my impressions. -- GOOD AIR SEAL: If oriented correctly, the blast gate when closed provides a good air seal. When my dust collector is on and pulling 1550 CFM through the system, the vacuum will pull the flat gate against the round orifice and provide a good seal...........if oriented correctly. -- BE AWARE OF ORIENTATION: If installed incorrectly or backwards the gate when closed many be prevented from pulling tight against the orifice by the small bump at the bottom of the gate that stops the gate from being pulling out of its slot. There will still be a reasonable seal with a small crack opening caused by the bump stop that you would hear as a whistling. Also the sides have a crack that let light through has when opened air will infiltrate there but again this is a trivial amount of leakage for the single gate that is being used. The other gates in the system are sealed of as the gate is closed. -- SELF CLEANING: The open slot at the bottom of the gate allows for debris to escape and even be pushed out by the action of closing the blast gate. The price to pay for this is a small leakage through this crack when that opening is used. Its an insignificant leakage. If one is concerned its easy enough to seal off the opening with RTV. However in that case its likely you will have a build up of debris in the crack ultimately not allowing you to close the gate completely and losing vacuum through and even larger opening. Ive done it both ways and I prefer the self cleaning opening as when a gate does get jammed up it can be a PIA to open up the piping to clean it out. -- GOOD PIPE FIT: With 4" PVC sewer pipe (black plastic coating on the inside) the beveled ends of the blast gates fit snug when pressed in. I use self tapping screws through the PVC and into the aluminum to mechanically secure and keep from coming loose. -- RUGGED: I have 8 gates in my system and never had a failure. Quite the opposite experience with the plastic gates that I first started used, some held together with clamps as the split apart. That will never happen with these gates. -- COULD BE BETTER LOCKING KNOB: The small thumb screw is great to have to keep the gate open in this cases where gravity or vibration cause the gate to close. I do try to orient the gates sideways so I don't have to use the thumb locking screws. The end could be a larger knob vs a thumb flat but that is a triviality. When tightened it does an excellent job of holding the gate in place. -- NICE FINISH: The body has a beaded anodized finish that very durable and hard. The gate is smooth and alodined bydesign to help with a good air seal. -- MORE EXPENSIVE: These were a little more expensive then the other type of gate that has the double long gate but just dont have the room for the extra extension needed and the value is still there for the Woodstock blast gates.CONCLUSION: Excellent blast gates that are durable and provide good air seal.

I am not sure if I am the first to do this, but I have these mounted flush on the floor, using deck screws in place of the screws that hold the gate together. [My system is under a plywood floor with a dust collection channel.] This keeps the gate horizontal so they do not get clogged with dust in the gate channel. They are easy to turn on and off with my foot. And I have them under out feed tables or machines so I do not trip on them. The slight taper of the hose barb really seals with the holes in the plywood floor. In the future, I may try to mount cables to each gate, so they can be controlled from the operator's position of each machine. These gates are perfect for my application.

The blast gate can have some vibration in the closed position. The vibration can be eliminated if you tighten the keeper bolt installed on the valve. I had plastic blast vales before and those valves was just a fight. These are heavy duty and are well worth the price. If you are installing a vacuum system in your shop, the 4 inch pipe and blast valves are a huge improvement over a 3 inch system.

Don't bother w the plastic blast gates. These are close in price and better quality. I suppose the residual gaps, though minimal, are to be expected from an all-metal construction. When installing, make sure you have the side that the blast gate is screwed against, facing the vacuum side. I missed one and the leak is considerable if installed "backward". A couple seconds of inspection will reveal what I mean.

This is an excellent unit for the method I will use to insert it into my dust collection system. The gate's flange fits into a 4-inch pvc sewer pipe with about a 1/32 inch clearance on diameter. I plan to sandwich it between the end of the vacuum sewer pipe and a short piece of the pipe on the side next to the 4" hose. The sewer pipe is cut to length and then the cut surface sanded smooth and perpendicular to the bore with a carbide disc on a radial arm saw in my case. This will make an excellent leak proof joint to the blast gate. (RTV can be used if necessary.) The assembly will be held together by two metal hose clamp straps, one on each side of the pipe pieces. Each hose clamp will be separated by sawing into two equal lengths and clearance holes drilled near the sawn ends for #8 to 1/4-inch bolts. The pvc pipes will be tapped for the bolts and the hose clamps, flattened, are mounted and tightened against the blast gate. A 4" hose to pvc sewer pipe fitting can be driven into the end of the short sewer pipe and a 4-inch hose connected to it . This short sewer pipe will be 4" to 6" long. This method, I believe, will make a very excellent solution to a problem that arises when one is putting a 4-inch hose on the short flange of the blast gate. It does require the fitting to attach the 4" hose which adds a cost. However, this fitting is necessary in any case as one must attach the pvc sewer pipe with a hose on both sides of the blast gate when used in the usual setup.

If you have multiple tools connected to a dust collector you will need this

It did what I wanted it to. Aluminum is heavy enough to be durable.

Gostei da promoção e não gostei que acabou a promoção.

Por la separación entre las placas fuga aire cuando está abierta la toma, fuera de eso, funciona bien, no hay mucha diferencia fuera de eso entre las que están en el mismo precio

I use it as a gate for my wood stove external air intake, to keep the outside cold air from comming inside when the stove is not running. Its doing the job!

Generally very good - but required a piece of tape at the back to seal a gap which was causing a significant loss of suction