Vacuum Attachment for Adjustable Dust Control

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Vacuum Attachment for Adjustable Dust Control

Tired of sawdust covering your workbench and woodworking tools? This adjustable vacuum hose holder attaches to the shop vacuum and can be rolled into position exactly where it's needed.

By the DIY experts of The Family Handyman Magazine

Vacuum Attachment for Adjustable Dust Control

Tired of sawdust covering your workbench and woodworking tools? This adjustable vacuum hose holder attaches to the shop vacuum and can be rolled into position exactly where it's needed.

By the DIY experts of The Family Handyman Magazine

Cut and assemble the pieces

Trust us—this shop vacuum hose holder will serve you well. Use it to hold the orbital sander dust hose at workbench height and you won't have to constantly drag the hose over the bench edge while you sand. Or connect an attachment to the hose and position it next to just about any dust-producing power tool.

The inexpensive project will take you just a few hours to build. Rip and cut to size any 3/4-in. plywood or solid wood for the parts. All the materials are available at home centers except the T-Track parts, which are sold at woodworking stores.

The trickiest part of building this is cutting the lower brackets and fitting them to your vacuum. Modify our bracket design as necessary. We cut the 2 x 5-in. bracket pieces with a compound 5-degree angle and a 10-degree bevel to fit the curve of the canister. A band saw or scroll saw will cut both these angles in one pass. Experiment until the pieces fit tight and the upper board rises vertically.

Saw or rout a 3/4-in.-wide dado for the T-Track, centering it on the T-Track board; mount the T-Track with screws; then screw and glue on the angled bracket pieces. Mark and drill holes through the canister and attach the assembly with mending plates and 1-1/2-in. No. 10 sheet metal screws.

To make the yoke for the top board, temporarily screw together the yoke pieces. Then cut a 3-in.-deep U-shape in one end with two widths—2-1/8 in. at the bottom for the vacuum hose to fit in snug, and 2-1/2 in. at the top for the pipes. The varying widths allow you to press-fit either the narrower hose or the wider pipe in the yoke.

Figure A: Hose holder

Figure A: Hose holder

Figure A: Hose Holder

Cut the parts to length following the key in the List of Required Materials in the Tools and Materials tab.

Additional Information

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Required Tools for this Project

Have the necessary tools for this DIY project lined up before you start—you’ll save time and frustration.

    • Miter saw
    • Cordless drill
    • Circular saw
    • 4-in-1 screwdriver
    • Adjustable wrench
    • Drill bit set
    • Jigsaw
    • Router
    • Safety glasses
    • Shop vacuum
    • Table saw

A band saw or scroll saw may also be helpful

Required Materials for this Project

Avoid last-minute shopping trips by having all your materials ready ahead of time. Here's a list.

    • A One 3“ x 24“ x 3/4“ lower T-Track board
    • B One 2-1/2“ x 30“ x 3/4“ upper board
    • C Two 2“ x 5“ x 3/4“ bracket boards
    • D Two 5“ x 7“ x 3/4“ boards for the yoke
    • E Two 4“ x 1/2“ mending plates
    • F Two 2-1/2“ x 1/4“ carriage bolts, nuts and washers
    • G Four 1-1/2“ No. 10 sheet metal screws
    • T-Track hardware:
    • H Two 5/16“ x 1-1/2“ T-bolts
    • I One 24“ mini aluminum T-Track
    • J Two 5/16“ styrene knobs

Shopping List

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Comments from DIY Community Members

Share what's on your mind and see what other DIYers are thinking about.

1 - 5 of 5 comments
Show per page: 20   All
Mathew

January 08, 11:57 AM [GMT -5]

To secure the vaccum hose/wand, you can use a velcro strap or bungee cord. Or you can build small wooden "L" or "C" that will clamp over the fork that is holding the wand.
If you don't want to drill holes to mount to the vacuum can, you can use Velcro or belt straps. One to go around the top of the can (below the motor housing) and one for the bottom (above the wheels).

Oliver-David

November 28, 2:49 PM [GMT -5]

A nice idea for exact dust control, but I honestly wouldn't want to bore holes in my vaccuum unless it's an older model. Could secure it to the vacuum with a clamping system, or even duct tape and save your good vaccuum. Many other less destructive possibilities. Just my thoughts.

Thomas10100

March 02, 3:40 PM [GMT -5]

One *ell of an idea and it moved right up to the top of my what to build for my shop list! I will be using a small light-weight spring screwed into the hose holder to lock it down!

Greg92761

November 22, 1:05 PM [GMT -5]

I thought of using this setup for something different. Instead of a Vacuum assistant I thought of adapting it to by prep table edge with a rolling pin or those little outfeed attachment balls. Having the ability to raise and lower it out of the way. As for the hose for the vacuum not being fastened by anything. It appears to me in the photo that it is a snug fit which would prevent from falling over.

GarD53

November 05, 9:30 PM [GMT -5]

The idea of an adjustable dust control is a great idea and the drawings area very specific.

There is one problem that I can see if the drawing, it lacks a method to "lock in" the vacuum cleaner wand with the dust attachment as it is shown in the drawing. Since there is no lock for the wand, it would appear that the wand and dust attachment would fall over.

Without a locking mechanism for the wand, the wand w/attachment would become top heavy and could possibly fall over off of the of the would stand; or worse, topple the vacuum cleaner over if it did not have sufficient weight in the tank to keep it upright.

Perhaps this idea could use some re-vamping.

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