Airflow vs. Pipe Diameter

Dust collectors are designed to move a high volume of air at low static pressure levels, typically in the 3-6 inch WC range. In order to effectively capture waste generated at the tool, this typically requires an air velocity of 3,500 - 4,500 FPM (feet-per-minute).

While many factors can affect your system's overall airflow performance, pipe diameter plays a crucial role as smaller sizes increase air resistance, requiring higher velocities to maintain an equivalent CFM rate. The table below outlines the relationship between those two variables.

Green cells represent the recommended FPM for adequate dust collection.
Pipe Dia.	3,000 FPM	3,500 FPM	4,000 FPM	4,500 FPM	5,000 FPM	5,500 FPM	6,000 FPM
4"	262 CFM	305 CFM	349 CFM	393 CFM	436 CFM	480 CFM	523 CFM
5"	409 CFM	477 CFM	545 CFM	613 CFM	681 CFM	750 CFM	818 CFM
6"	589 CFM	687 CFM	785 CFM	883 CFM	981 CFM	1,079 CFM	1,178 CFM
7"	801 CFM	935 CFM	1,068 CFM	1,202 CFM	1,336 CFM	1,469 CFM	1,603 CFM
8"	1,047 CFM	1,221 CFM	1,396 CFM	1,570 CFM	1,744 CFM	1,919 CFM	2,093 CFM
9"	1,325 CFM	1,545 CFM	1,766 CFM	1,987 CFM	2,208 CFM	2,429 CFM	2,649 CFM
10"	1,635 CFM	1,908 CFM	2,181 CFM	2,453 CFM	2,726 CFM	2,998 CFM	3,271 CFM
11"	1,979 CFM	2,309 CFM	2,638 CFM	2,968 CFM	3,298 CFM	3,628 CFM	3,958 CFM
12"	2,355 CFM	2,748 CFM	3,140 CFM	3,533 CFM	3,925 CFM	4,318 CFM	4,710 CFM
13"	2,764 CFM	3,224 CFM	3,685 CFM	4,146 CFM	4,606 CFM	5,067 CFM	5,528 CFM
14"	3,205 CFM	3,740 CFM	4,274 CFM	4,808 CFM	5,342 CFM	5,877 CFM	6,411 CFM
15"	3,680 CFM	4,293 CFM	4,906 CFM	5,520 CFM	6,133 CFM	6,746 CFM	7,359 CFM
16"	4,187 CFM	4,884 CFM	5,582 CFM	6,280 CFM	6,978 CFM	7,676 CFM	8,373 CFM
17"	4,726 CFM	5,514 CFM	6,302 CFM	7,090 CFM	7,877 CFM	8,665 CFM	9,453 CFM
18"	5,299 CFM	6,182 CFM	7,065 CFM	7,948 CFM	8,831 CFM	9,714 CFM	10,598 CFM
19"	5,904 CFM	6,888 CFM	7,872 CFM	8,856 CFM	9,840 CFM	10,824 CFM	11,808 CFM
20"	6,542 CFM	7,632 CFM	8,722 CFM	9,813 CFM	10,903 CFM	11,993 CFM	13,083 CFM
21"	7,212 CFM	8,414 CFM	9,616 CFM	10,818 CFM	12,020 CFM	13,222 CFM	14,424 CFM
22"	7,915 CFM	9,235 CFM	10,554 CFM	11,873 CFM	13,192 CFM	14,512 CFM	15,831 CFM