Well,.gee,...I posted this a day earlier and the same a several years ago,..yes they can work well.
For drywall dust however I would use a portable whole house fan,..(about 50,00 and can be used for lots of things,)..set it on a table about 1 1/2 foot away from an open window,...that makes much more air flow outward as the suction from the sides add to that flow. Open another window in the house to allow a WIND thru the house,..most of the dust will be sucked 0utside,..This works very well if you are working with solvents esp doing urethane floors,..In winter/cold weather it can still be used,..use the fan on low, t will still pull most of the dust out,..
I set this up for the guys that were doing our floors and the guys said they were going to do the same for jobs from then on,.These guys are known to have a lot of health problems esp with their liver,..perhaps this might help.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^************************************************************* Yesterday's post
I'm a nut for clean air and low allergens and can afford HEPA room air cleaners but for people who can't afford them (or don't want to pay for them) I have suggested for years to use a box fan and set in in the room, and put a filttere filter on the suction side. Leave it on 24/7 ,..it only uses less than 2 bucks a month on low. When vacuuming turn it on high for a few hours,..
Not quite as good as a HEPA filter but it only causes a fraction of the cost. You will have less dust and allergens in your living space,..
Esp important in your bedroom or mainroom.
The only Negative I have ever heard is that some people get addicted to the soft white noise of the fan and can't sleep without it. (I have known some people that travel with a small fan because of it)
You change the filter when you see it turn dark or notice the air flow getting reduced. this of course depends on your house, dust ,pet hair/dander etc.
My secretary said she couldn't believe how dirty one of her DIY air cleaners was that she had put in her nursery.
--66.30.xx.xxx