I saw an ad for a battery-powered cordless blower, where they said “clear dust without a bulky compressor.”
They show the cordless blower being used to clear a lot of wood dust and shavings off a woodworking workbench.
I use cordless blowers on wood chips and sawdust, but not like in the manner depicted in the ad.
First of all, that’s a lot of shavings and sawdust. Where’s it going to go? In the air, around the workshop, and then the floor. Congratulations, you now have a lot more cleaning to do.
Even if you’re not worried about clean air, or you’re already wearing a dust mask, think about how much more you need to clean!
When I use a blower on sawdust or shavings, it’s usually to clear grooves or parts of tools and equipment that are otherwise very difficult to clean. Everywhere else, I use a dust extractor or shop vacuum.
A good vacuum, whether a corded shop vacuum, cordless jobsite vacuum, or even a consumer or household model in a pinch, would make quick work of that mess. It won’t fit in your pocket, of course, but is that really an issue here?
This seems like one of those tasks that looks great in an ad, but works out poorly in real life.
Or at least that’s my take.
Even a brush and dustpan might be a better option than blowing that mess all over the place. Probably quicker too, and that’s not even talking about the mess on the floor and other surfaces that will need to be swept up or vacuumed.
How would you deal with a woodworking mess like this? Is there any reasonable scenario where you’d use a cordless pocket blower?
