The first woodworking machine I bought (apart from a circular saw, drill etc) was a table saw, based mostly on recommendations from other woodworkers. Looking back now, with experience and wisdom under my belt, and if I had to start it all from scratch again, the first tool/machine I would buy next time round would be a dust extractor, or rather, a range of dust extraction machines. Why? Because your health should be your number one priority! Without your health, you have nothing!
I have since invested in numerous dust collection machines to reduce the amount of airborne dust in the workshop, plus they save a lot of cleanup time.

I have owned a 2HP 1200CFM dust collector for some years now, but only recently acquired a pleated filter canister to add to it to replace the coarse 30 micron filter bags that came supplied with my unit. This is something I should have added many years earlier!

The Sherwood PFC-2160 Pleated Filter Cartridge
A pleated filter cartridge is a good investment and upgrade to your dust collector. There are many reasons, but two main reasons come to mind. Firstly, they filter dust down to much smaller particle sizes than most standard bags that come supplied with the unit. Secondly, they allow much more air to pass through the system, resulting in improved dust extraction. We'll look at these in a little more detail below.

But first, let's examine the physical makeup of the pleated filter cartridge. Firstly, the model number unit I have is the PFC-2610, designed for many standard-sized 2HP dust collector units with a 500mm diameter center drum ring. There are other models to suit both 1HP (370mm ring) and 3HP (500mm ring) dust collectors as well. You can check the Timbecon website for full information and availability of all pleated filter cartridges. The PFC-2160 cartridge has a top-to-bottom height of around 690mm, so it will likely use less space than the default bag filter did height-wise on most machines.

So why have a pleated filter in the first place?

Well, the advantages are many. Firstly, the special V-weave of the filter material itself provides up to seven times to filtering surface compared to a standard filter bag. This in itself will ensure much better filtration capacity resulting in higher airflow. In fact, your dust collector may say it has a 1200CFM air flow rating, for example, but with the standard bags fitted, it might not even reach this figure. Add a pleated filter to your collector and you can notice the difference immediately. I don't have the test equipment to scientifically measure it, but there is a pronounced and noticeable difference in airflow with the pleated filter added to the setup. My 1200CFM unit is probably at last working at its 1200CFM capacity! The larger filtering area of the pleated filter also ensures you do not lose airflow as quickly as the dust builds up on the filter surface. A standard filter bag can become saturated with dust relatively quickly, and once it does become saturated and blocks holes in which air would normally flow through, the total airflow through the unit gradually becomes less and less, affecting dust and debris-pulling ability.

The second major advantage of these filter cartridges is that they are rated to a much smaller micron value than the standard filter bags. A micron is the measured size of particle that can egress through the filter surface. The larger the micron value, the larger the size of particle. A standard dust filter bag might have a rating of 30 microns, meaning it can filter particles equal to or larger than 30 microns in size (approximately). If you read up on respiratory health and workshop dust, you will find many researchers/authors recommend using filters rated to 5 micron or less. In fact, the smaller the micron rating the better as these finer filters are able to stop much smaller particles traveling through the filter medium and back into the air. The Sherwood PFC series of pleated filters are all rated down to 1 micron. This will greatly reduce the amount of airborne dust sent back into the workshop air during use. The filter itself is made from a bonded polyester material which is stronger than paper-types used on some canister filters. The polyester surface can also be safely washed through with water if you need to clean the filter out thoroughly, although we will see next why this might not need to be a regular duty to be undertaken. The whole pleated filter material is encased by a metal mesh protective cover to protect the filter from knocks, dings, or accidental damage etc.

The third major advantage of using this filter type is ease of cleaning and maintenance. The pleated filter forms a ring around the outside of the cartridge "drum". In the middle of this drum is where the airflows, and is also the location for a rotating flapper cleaning system. Two rubber flappers positioned at different heights in the drum rub against the inside pleats of the filter. These rubber flappers are attached to a central internal rod which extends out the top of the drum and is attached to a handle. As you turn the handle, the flappers rub (or flap rather) over each pleated point of the filter, agitating the filter material to shake loose dust from the filter surface. This dust then falls back down into the collection bag. You only need to rotate the handle a couple of full rotations to "clean" the filter surface, and it is an extremely effective and safe way of cleaning the filter surface. I'm sure many of us have wrestled with standard filter bags where you inevitably send fine dust everywhere as you try to empty them or turn them inside out the wash them thoroughly. The pleated filter cartridge puts an end to this tedious task, saving you plenty of time and effort, that's for sure! Naturally, after a lot of use, you might need to remove the filter and clean it more thoroughly with water, however, you will need to do this much less frequently than with standard filter bags.

Setting Up and Using the Filter
As mentioned above, there a different sized pleated filter cartridges for different sized/rated dust collectors. The drum replaces the top filter bag on your dust collector.

Out of the box there is minimal assembly needed. All you really need to do is attach the handle to the flapper rod with the hardware provided and you are pretty much ready to go.

You will need to remove the top bag hanging rod that may be installed on your filter already. It will not be needed with the filter cartridge. Remove the top filter bag from the dust collector as well.

Adding the pleated filter drum is extremely simple. You simply sit it on top of the middle drum ring on your dust collector, then use the four turn screws provided and thread them through the screw points on the filters base so they push against the dust collector's central metal ring. This simply holds the filter drum in place with friction, gravity providing most of the pressure. Rest assured, it's going nowhere! You wont be chasing a projectile when you turn your dust collector on. Adding the drum is child's play really, just as things should be. No one likes a complicated assembly procedure. That is all there is to adding the pleated filter. Foam strips located around the circumference of the filter canister base provide an seal to keep the filter connection air tight.

There is a catch to this whole setup however, the use of a canister filter that is... Well, it's not really a catch, it's more of a benefit really. When using a pleated filter cartridge on your duct collector, you really want all the air coming into the dust extractor to be expelled through the pleated filter itself. Obviously, if you keep a standard canvas or higher micron rated collection bag on the bottom of your collector, air will escape through that surface as well, meaning your 1 micron pleated filter is not much good if 30 micron particles are being expelled through the lower bag's material surface! So, when a pleated filter is fitted, you must also add clear plastic collection bags to the bottom of your dust collector. These plastic bags do not allow dust through, forcing all air to be expelled through the top pleated filter, so it can do its job properly of filtering dust down to that 1 micron rating. So, what's the catch I hear you say? Well, the clear plastic collection bags come at a cost. Although inexpensive, they are a cost nonetheless. But, this small cost is well worth it in my opinion. Not only are the plastic bags clear, so you can see exactly how full your collection bag is at any time, and without needing to remove a regular opaque bag to check, but once a plastic collection bag is full, you can simply remove it from the extractor, tie it up tightly and throw it straight into the bin. There will be little risk of dust inhalation as you will not need to shake all the dust out of a regular bag to use it again. Sure... you could reuse the plastic bags too if cost is a concern, but they are only a dollar or two each, and much cheaper than a week's worth of coughing, spluttering, or having a reaction to fine inhaled dust. I find the clear protection bags a god-send. Again, I should have added all this to my dust collector many years ago.

Overall Effectiveness and Value
Anything that decreases your exposure to harmful elements is a good thing in my book, and when it comes to protecting yourself from dust, I don't think you can spend too much. After all, can you put a dollar figure on your lungs? I can't...

I often had the problem of settling dust over all my machinery and tools after a long day of wood cutting. A portion of this fine dust probably came from the air expelled by my old dust collection bags. Now with the new 1 micron pleated filter fitted, I am noticing much less dust settling after a woodworking session, not just because of the better micron rating of the pleated filter, but also because it allows my dust extractor to pull air more efficiently, thereby catching more of that dust at the source.

In conclusion, I am extremely happy with the Sherwood PFC-2610 pleated filter cartridge. It has solved several issues in the workshop relating to dust collection, and the workshop air is so much cleaner than it was before. For the price of AUD$275 for the PFC-2610 pleated filter cartridge model and AUD$29.90 for a pack of 10 plastic collection bags to suit, I believe this a very small price to pay to reduce your exposure to airborne dust, plus save many hours of work cleaning the workshop or your old filter bags. I highly recommend adding a pleated filter to your current dust collector if you haven't done so already. I think you would be hard pressed to find a pleated filter owner who would disagree with me.
 

Sherwood PFC-2610 Photos
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Protective metal mesh surrounds the filter canister.

A look inside the canister. Note the V-weave pattern providing up to seven times the surface area of a standard filter bag.

Foam padding around the circumference of the canister provides the air seal when fitted.

The two flappers inside the canister which agitate the pleated filter to remove dust and clean the filter.

The screws to secure the canister filter to your dust extractor.

A plastic bottom collection bag must be added for efficient performance.

The whole pleated filter shown mounted to my 2HP dust collector.
It makes a good difference in the shop to my dust collection efforts.