Using a dust extractor may not be a choice anymore. With the new OSHA Crystalline Silica mandate, you may be required to extract any dust you are making. I’ll let you do the searching on the OSHA details, and we’ll talk about the tools. For about $50, the Makita grinder dust shroud, along with a dust extractor (or shop vac), will all but eliminate the dust from grinding concrete. Regardless of OSHA’s rule, I won’t grind concrete again without a shroud and dust extraction.

Check out the line of OSHA compliant dust extractors from over at Pro Tool Reviews.

Grinding and sanding concrete can cause nasty dust that contains the aforementioned crystalline silica. This stuff is bad for your lungs and gets all over everything, hence it creates a real mess. The Makita dust shroud not only protects your lungs and body from exposure, but it also keeps the job site tidy. Of course, you can just install a dust shroud on your grinder and call it done. You need a qualified dust extractor as well. Depending on the work you do, the typical shop vac may not comply.

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Makita Grinder Dust Shroud Features

We tested our dust shroud with the Makita GA7011C 7″ grinder. This resembles the tool we used in the Makita Polisher 7-inch 9237C Video Review, but looking deeper unveils a much different beast. Along with the grinder and shroud, we used the Makita Xtrac Vac to suck the concrete dust from the shroud. Testing on our new concrete pad really told the story. Using the grinder shroudless covered me and the surrounding area with dust in a few seconds. With the shroud in place, we saw virtually see no dust, until we ran off the edge and exposed the bottom of the concrete grinding wheel.

If you think that spending $50 on a dust shroud is too expensive, this is quite silly. We don’t even scoff at spending $150-300 on a new power tool. So, spending $50 for better health and a cleaner shop and job site should be a no-brainer. Check it out from your local Home Depot or from HomeDepot.com. The price is $51.99, and you’ll be happy you did. It’s the 7″ Makita grinder dust shroud.

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