# Any Info on GrnGate System?



## RonRock (Mar 27, 2014)

I did a search and only found one mention of this system. It was a new member, only 1 post. He was belittled as a possible troll. Personally I think that was rude. But I will try once more in my own quest for information. I am not associated with this company in any way. Just a possible buyer in search of end user opinion.

So here goes. Does anybody use this system? Any input on how well it works? Durability? Anything else on the market similar or better?

http://www.grngate.com/


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## rrich (Jun 24, 2009)

IMNSHO, it looks like overkill for a home / single user system.

It only takes a minute or so to move your dust collector from machine to machine. If one minute of your life is that valuable, I would say to go with it.


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## Gene Howe (Feb 28, 2009)

gotta agree with Rich. It's more than most hobby type shops would need.


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## TimPa (Jan 27, 2010)

looked into them (ecogate) very seriously last year when we were upgrading our dust collector. the advantage is "automatic", no manual closing of gates. I was told that osha will accept an undersized dc on a large shop if auto gates are used to maintain the appropriate fpm per machine. auto gates are expensive. the machine start/stop sensors weren't too bad.

if you are handy, you can do much yourself. you can build the auto gates too if knowledgeable about electronics and/or pneumatics.

read up on them and see if it is worth it to you.


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## toolguy1000 (Oct 4, 2012)

Try the Ivac system They make wireless dust generating machine controllers that activate the dust collector and the blast gates. Great products from a great company.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

TimPa said:


> I was told that osha will accept an undersized dc on a large shop if auto gates are used to maintain the appropriate fpm per machine.


Out of curiosity, who told you this? A salesman? As a 25 year safety guy who has done lots of consulting work and has had numerous meetings with OSHA on the behalf of companies, I'd have to call BS. OSHA might sample to prove dust levels but they would not have nothing to say about dust collection size. It's the same issue as when companies say "this ***XX item is OSHA approved". OSHA doesn't "approve" anything. They just set a standard and leave it up to the company to meet it.

Mark


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## TMA Woodworks (Apr 23, 2010)

At one point I was considering such an option. You can go as far as having a ct monitor the flow of electricity which then closes a relay that then opens the gate. You leave you dc on and the turning on and off the woodworking machinery would control the gates and the dust collection. The argument is that you don’t cycle on and off the dc. (Also it would be cool to have) I also found plans to locate buttons by each station or machine to do the same thing. I found plans to build your own gates but I didn’t proceed as I found out that there is a short life on electronics involved. It was mainly due to the blast gates would get stuck and burn up the electronics. The gates you are looking at rotate to eliminate that problem. It should give you better life of the unit but it will be at a higher cost. I also looked into air systems but the thought of running air lines made that a short lived idea. Since I was lucky enough to be able to turn the garage into a dedicated shop (thank you dear) I solved the blast gate problem by routing the piping around so the blast gate is located at eye level right next to the machine. I also put several start/stop station around the shop to turn on and off the dc. I don’t worry about cycling as I usually leave the dc on while I work through several machines. Some will say it’s a hobbyist shop it’s not needed. Is it overkill??????? It’s your shop. Do what you think will make you more productive and give you enjoyment in your hobby. After all, we are doing this for the enjoyment right. I don’t think there are many members here that have a Lamborghini from all the money they made from their hobby. 
Bob


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## mobilepaul (Nov 8, 2012)

toolguy1000 said:


> Try the Ivac system They make wireless dust generating machine controllers that activate the dust collector and the blast gates. Great products from a great company.


iVAC has been bought out so I am not sure who is left from the original company. I have many of their products (from the original company) and they work great. The auto gates from them probably work well but at $125.00 per gate for a 4" gate, it climbs up the chart pretty quickly. I'd have over a grand in just those gates. There are several paths to go if you want to make your own auto-gates and lots of info out there on how to go down that road. The Grngate system is more affordable than the iVAC system but I am not impressed with their website and, as they say, first impressions and all. 

I also did a search to see if there was any truth to the story for the "rude" treatment that the other person received for asking about this system and, frankly, unless I missed it somewhere, I did not find that rude handling of this question. Not saying it wasn't there, just saying I didn't find it. People on this forum, as a rule, are not rude. Not true on other forums but I have not found that to be the case on this one, ever. Just my personal experiences though.

In my personal view, with regard to the dust collection gates issue, I would tend to want to go with a company that has a good bit of users out there and you could get a good cross section of opinions. I would be anxious if I was putting out 500 to a grand on tech that did not have a good segment of the market. That's me. I would spend more on the better dust collector and ducting and, as money permits, start to replace gates with autos as needed. It's not really a big deal to walk up to a tool and slide a gate open as you turn the tool on. I run my big pipe as close as I can to the tool (6") and just before the pipe meets the tool it goes to 4" so I have no issue with reaching up and sliding a gate open. This works in a hobby shop, I cannot say how effective it would be in a production environment.

Just my opinion,

Paul


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## TimPa (Jan 27, 2010)

Burb said:


> Out of curiosity, who told you this? A salesman? As a 25 year safety guy who has done lots of consulting work and has had numerous meetings with OSHA on the behalf of companies, I'd have to call BS. OSHA might sample to prove dust levels but they would not have nothing to say about dust collection size. It's the same issue as when companies say "this ***XX item is OSHA approved". OSHA doesn't "approve" anything. They just set a standard and leave it up to the company to meet it.
> 
> Mark


over the last two years i have been working at bringing our dc system into nfpa 664 compliance, and spoke to many people. as you must know, the dc must be sized to handle the equipment it serves. my recollection was that they would "accept" a smaller sized dc with auto sensing/gates, if they were to perform a dust collection inspection of your facility. I believe that our insurance loss consultant told me. could be bs - don't know but it makes sense. we didn't go that route anyway.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

TimPa said:


> over the last two years i have been working at bringing our dc system into nfpa 664 compliance, and spoke to many people. as you must know, the dc must be sized to handle the equipment it serves. my recollection was that they would "accept" a smaller sized dc with auto sensing/gates, if they were to perform a dust collection inspection of your facility. I believe that our insurance loss consultant told me. could be bs - don't know but it makes sense. we didn't go that route anyway.


It sounds like your headed in the right direction. Most companies don't worry about what you're trying to do so I commend you. 

I was merely getting at that OSHA doesn't look "care" how you do something as long as the end result is the same. Now I'm paraphrasing here so don't beat me up too bad. 

If you end up meeting NFPA standards then there is no reason you should worry about OSHA requirements as it will meet by default as the NFPA standards are incorporated by reference to OSHA.


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## TimPa (Jan 27, 2010)

Burb said:


> It sounds like your headed in the right direction. Most companies don't worry about what you're trying to do so I commend you.
> 
> I was merely getting at that OSHA doesn't look "care" how you do something as long as the end result is the same. Now I'm paraphrasing here so don't beat me up too bad.
> 
> If you end up meeting NFPA standards then there is no reason you should worry about OSHA requirements as it will meet by default as the NFPA standards are incorporated by reference to OSHA.


i appreciate the info.


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## RonRock (Mar 27, 2014)

mobilepaul said:


> iVAC has been bought out so I am not sure who is left from the original company. I have many of their products (from the original company) and they work great. The auto gates from them probably work well but at $125.00 per gate for a 4" gate, it climbs up the chart pretty quickly. I'd have over a grand in just those gates. There are several paths to go if you want to make your own auto-gates and lots of info out there on how to go down that road. The Grngate system is more affordable than the iVAC system but I am not impressed with their website and, as they say, first impressions and all.
> 
> I also did a search to see if there was any truth to the story for the "rude" treatment that the other person received for asking about this system and, frankly, unless I missed it somewhere, I did not find that rude handling of this question. Not saying it wasn't there, just saying I didn't find it. People on this forum, as a rule, are not rude. Not true on other forums but I have not found that to be the case on this one, ever. Just my personal experiences though.
> 
> ...



Thanks Paul. I probably should not have mentioned that previous post. It was a bit of a thoughtless moment on my part. Apologize if I offended anyone. I likely took the post wrong.

I agree with you on first impressions and their website could be much better. Leaving me with the impression that they are an upstart company. Maybe even a guy in his garage. Which I have a bit of concern with the longevity of their product. I'd hate to drop $500.00 and have an issue or need more of their product and find out they are not available. Part of the reason for posting. Thought I'd see if there is a user base. From what I have found here, not many users. Oddly Google don't bring up much either. That in itself says something.

I too have my gates within easy reach of my machines. With one exception, the table saw. The gate is low and behind the saw. Probably typical of most. 

I'm still undecided on the system. I do wish I would have found more user experience reports. But it would not be the first time I took a chance on new product. I'm also reconsidering some type of "homegrown" control system. Micro switches on my existing gates would be a pretty simple approach. Not fully auto, but maybe close enough.


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## mobilepaul (Nov 8, 2012)

RonRock said:


> Thanks Paul. I probably should not have mentioned that previous post. It was a bit of a thoughtless moment on my part. Apologize if I offended anyone. I likely took the post wrong.
> 
> I agree with you on first impressions and their website could be much better. Leaving me with the impression that they are an upstart company. Maybe even a guy in his garage. Which I have a bit of concern with the longevity of their product. I'd hate to drop $500.00 and have an issue or need more of their product and find out they are not available. Part of the reason for posting. Thought I'd see if there is a user base. From what I have found here, not many users. Oddly Google don't bring up much either. That in itself says something.
> 
> ...


No problems Ron, I don't think anyone took anything personally. As to the one tool you have issues with, if you add the overhead/overarm DC solution to the saw, you could have a double gate like this one http://www.clearvuecyclones.com/supporting-products/39-6-to-4-transition.html or a homemade version. With that type, you could have the gate up and to the side of your table so that you can slide it open when using. Or, you could just bring the gate up and to the side of your saw even without the overhead DC. Another option would be to have an auto on just that one tool. You could make a long pole that would allow you to slide the gate open and closed even from down low like a dowel rod that attaches to the slide part of the gate. Of course, you'd have to fix the gate so it doesn't move while operating the extend-a-hand rod.

Just a thought

Paul


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## TMA Woodworks (Apr 23, 2010)

Hey Ron

If the only blast gate that really needs modifying is the table saw how about this idea. I had this on mine before I redid the piping. I used a auto choke cable and mounted it on the rail of the ts. Worked pretty good.


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## RonRock (Mar 27, 2014)

I like that. 

Thanks


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## bonesbr549 (Apr 14, 2014)

Hey, I have the grngate and did a review on youtube. I like it. I've got 6 gates total 4 automatic and 2 manual. 

I did two vids. If you just want to see it working just go to the 2nd one. Have a good one. 


http://youtu.be/CUIQCs8o9AY


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