I recently purchased a Clear Vue CV dust collector and have spent much time researching and designing my piping. The conventional wisdom seems to be that PVC piping, especially ASTM D or SDR35, is cheaper than metal. Most of those posts are years old, however, so I thought I'd share my current learning.

My son happens to work at a building supply company and found excellent pricing for D pipes and SDR35 fittings. I say "excellent" because the prices are much lower than what I could find locally (Seattle area) from other retailers and distributors. It helps to have my son offering to sell me the pipes on a very thin margin with free delivery.

I also researched metal options, and I found that it is very price competitive with PVC. In fact, I found several options that are cheaper than what my son is offering. Snap-lock piping is particularly low cost, though I found the real expense is in fittings. There are a variety of HVAC-style fittings that can be cobbled together with snap lock metal to create piping solutions that are much lower cost than PVC. I didn't like those options, however, as I want sturdy piping and fittings that work well for dust collection (e.g. long sweep elbows).

I'm moving forward with an order for spiral piping and fittings from The Blastgate Company. They have what appears to be a permanent 35% sale on pipes and many of their fittings, making their pricing less than PVC alternatives. In addition, I found that their web site is extremely complete and easy to work with, and their staff is very fast to answer questions via and . The direct cost of spiral piping, high quality fittings, blast gates, a floor sweep, a custom machine connector, hanging and mounting hardware, tape, etc. is LESS than the cost of the deeply discounted PVC option that my son quoted me, which did not include blast gates, a floor sweep, or mounting hardware. I also really appreciate the fact the parts are purpose-built for dust collection, with long-sweep elbows (1.5x radius), male-to-female joints between pipe and fitting (no extra connector/clamp required), multiple styles and sizes of wyes, a variety of options for blast gates, and dedicated hose connectors that include things like a 4" to 2.5" reducer. In addition to all of this, the company is happy to make custom fittings that you may need. For example, they offered to make me a triple-wye (3 inlets to one outlet) a custom connector to my machine at a price that is not really any different than what I saw for their stock components.

These folks also have quick-fit piping, which they call click together (CT), for about half the price of Nordfab. And it appears to be fully compatible with Nordfab. I almost bought CT piping and fittings, but it was still ~50% more than the spiral option I ultimately selected.

While the quality, pricing, and breadth of catalog from The Blastgate Company led me to choose them, I also explored options with Nordfab, Rockler, and Kencraft:


  • Nordfab is gorgeous but expensive, and to me it would make much more sense to buy a Blastgate Company CT solution than Nordfab. I couldn't find a lot of comparison, but I did see that Nordfab uses a higher-end welding technique that is ultimately more durable in an industrial environment. For a hobbyist or small commercial shop, I don't see the point, however.
  • Rockler was a no-go for me, as its pricing is much higher, and its selection is limited. In addition, there is very little technical data (e.g. precise dimensions) from Rockler. They don't really seem to be trying to compete in this space.
  • Kencraft appears to be a strong budget option. They offer snap-lock piping and a good range of fittings. The connections are HVAC-style with crimped ends sliding into raw pipes/fittings. Pricing is lower than the Blastgate Co spiral pipe, making them the most affordable overall piping solution I found.


And here are some other considerations:


  • For all of these options, shipping cost is definitely a consideration. My PVC offer included free local delivery, which made it more price competitive with the Blastgate Co spiral option. For example, shipping for my Blastgate Co order is about 30% of the overall value of the order. OTOH, you can usually find free shipping from Rockler, so maybe their pricing becomes more competitive as a result.
  • Pay attention to sales tax. I've noticed that some of the small businesses that ship woodworking tools/supplies across state lines don't charge tax, which gives them a nice price advantage.
  • I've seen a variety of opinions on whether PVC or spiral piping is quieter. I still don't know the answer and would love to learn real-world experiences. One camp argues that PVC is inherently quieter as it has flexible walls that absorb vibrations. Another camp says that spiral piping has less overall friction, meaning there is less noise in the first place, and that the stiffer pipes are less likely to make noise. But I can't find any real data on this point.
  • There is a similar debate about the ease of working with metal vs. PVC. Both camps argue that their material of choice is easier to work with and lighter weight. I've worked with both and don't really buy the argument that either is particularly simpler than the other. With the right tools, which are inexpensive, both are easy to work with.
  • I definitely found a much wider range of fittings for spiral/metal ducting compared to PVC. This means that it's easier to find complex wyes, floor sweeps, ball joints, and other fittings with metal than with PVC. In addition, things like long sweep elbows are very expensive in PVC, which means you need to use two 45 degree elbows in sequence to make a 90 degree bend. Not only is this less elegant and less than optimal, it's much more expensive than using a single long sweep metal elbow.