SmogHog PCN · Mobile Source Capture Electrostatic
SmogHog PCN Portable Fume and Mist Collector
The station that only runs sometimes, and the one that keeps moving. The PCN rolls to the work, captures at the source through an arm, and puts the cleaned air back into the room, so a bay that gets used twice a week does not need a ducted system standing idle the rest of it.
Your PCN unit, extraction arm, ionizer and collection cells, mesh prefilters, and HEPA afterfilters ship from us anywhere in the country, with one stated price on your quote.
At a glance
A precipitator on casters that plugs into a wall outlet
Air comes in through a reusable aluminum mesh prefilter, then an ionizer where a series of small diameter charged tungsten wires puts a corona charge on the particles, then a collection cell of alternately charged and grounded aluminum plates, then out through a centrifugal blower and an adjustable outlet grille back into the room.
Nothing in that path is a consumable unless you add a HEPA afterfilter. The cells wash and go back in. An integral power pack makes the high voltage DC from single phase wall power, which is why this unit does not need a three phase drop or a disconnect.
SmogHog rates it up to 1,000 CFM and designs it for intermittent use. That word matters, and it is the honest boundary on this machine.
- ModelsFive, PCN-01N to PCN-12H
- Airflow1,000 CFM, factory set
- Motor0.5 or 1.0 hp, single phase
- EfficiencyOptional HEPA at 99.97%
- CleaningWashable cells, no consumable
- ConfigurationsFive orderable
- Ionizer11,000 VDC
- Collection cell6,000 VDC
- DrainNot published by SmogHog
The models
Five builds, and only three things separate them
Airflow does not change across the family. What changes is the motor, the voltage at the wall, and whether a HEPA afterfilter is on the discharge. That is the entire decision.
| Model | Airflow | Motor | Supply | Current | Afterfilter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCN-01N | 1,000 CFM | 0.5 hp | 115V / 1 ph / 60 Hz | 7.6 A | None |
| PCN-11N | 1,000 CFM | 1.0 hp | 115V / 1 ph / 60 Hz | 14.7 A | None |
| PCN-11H | 1,000 CFM | 1.0 hp | 115V / 1 ph / 60 Hz | 14.7 A | HEPA |
| PCN-12N | 1,000 CFM | 1.0 hp | 230V / 1 ph / 60 Hz | 6.9 A | None |
| PCN-12H | 1,000 CFM | 1.0 hp | 230V / 1 ph / 60 Hz | 6.9 A | HEPA |
Read the current column before you pick the model. A PCN-11N draws 14.7 amps at 115 volts. On a shared 15 amp circuit in an older building that is a nuisance trip waiting to happen. The same motor on 230 volts draws 6.9. If you have 230 single phase anywhere near the bay, that is usually the better order.
Physical footprint. SmogHog publishes the PCN at 44 in. high, 28 in. wide and 42 in. deep, at 400 lbs. It rolls, but it is not light, and the arm adds reach beyond the cabinet. Worth measuring the aisle and the door before it arrives.
What you choose
How the air gets to the unit is your first decision
SmogHog gives the PCN an 8 inch inlet and three ways to feed it. The model number covers the motor, the voltage and the afterfilter. Everything about capture is chosen alongside it.
| Choice | Options | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Capture method | XA extraction arm, flexible hose, or rigid duct | How the operator positions capture |
| Arm length | 8 in. diameter in 7, 10 or 12 ft | How far the unit reaches without being moved |
| Inlet collar | 8 in. collar for hose or duct | Needed when you are not using an arm |
| Motor | 0.5 or 1.0 hp | Static pressure through the arm or hose |
| Supply voltage | 115V or 230V, single phase | What is at the wall, and your amp draw |
| Afterfilter | None or HEPA at 99.97% | What comes out at the grille |
A part number like PCN-12H reads as the 1.0 hp motor, 230 volt supply, HEPA afterfilter. The arm is chosen separately by diameter and reach, so a complete quote names the unit and the arm as two lines rather than one.
Pick the reach with the operator, not the drawing. A 7 ft arm keeps the cart close and holds capture well. A 12 ft arm covers a bigger area but asks the operator to reposition a longer, heavier arm and loses some velocity at full extension. If the work moves around a bench, longer usually wins. If the work sits in one spot, shorter almost always does.
Media and filtration
Three stages, and only one of them is a consumable
The mesh prefilter is reusable aluminum, SmogHog part 33-0001, and it does two jobs: it takes the large particles and it spreads the air evenly across the cell face. Uneven air across a cell is the quiet reason a precipitator underperforms.
The ionizer cell is part 02-0044 and the collection cell is 02-2339. Both wash and go back in. On a unit that gets used a few days a week, those two parts are the whole filtration bill for years, which is the economic case for electrostatic on an intermittent station.
A HEPA afterfilter is available on the H models and takes the discharge to 99.97%. That one is a consumable, and it is the right call where the air returns into a room people occupy all day, or where the process is producing something you would rather not recirculate at all.
Cleaning and ownership
Two schedules, because weld smoke and oil smoke are not the same load
How the cells get cleaned
SmogHog’s PCN manual calls for soaking the ionizer and collection cells in a hot detergent solution, with the wash water not exceeding 160 degrees F. Use an alkaline detergent with a buffering agent, and nonflammable cleaners only.
Everything has to be fully dry before the unit is energized again. A wet cell is a dead short, and it is the most common reason a working collector comes back reading as broken.
How often
SmogHog publishes separate cleaning schedules for welding smoke and for oil smoke on this unit, which is unusual in the line and tells you what it is really aimed at. Weld fume is dry and light. Oil smoke is sticky and loads the plates faster.
Because it is a portable used intermittently, the honest interval is set by hours of actual use rather than by the calendar. We set the first one from what the station really runs, then adjust after the first two washes.
If the answer is that nobody will ever wash the cells, this is the wrong machine and a media portable will serve you better. We would rather sell you the one your crew will keep running.
Intermittent is a design condition, not a marketing word. SmogHog rates the PCN for intermittent use. If the station runs eight hours a day, five days a week, this unit will be cleaned constantly and will feel undersized even though the airflow is right. That is the point where the SHN or a ducted system becomes the cheaper machine to own.
A hard boundary
Charged plates and combustible material do not go together
SmogHog is direct about it across the SmogHog line: do not collect emissions which are explosive, do not use in explosive atmospheres, and keep flammable materials and vapors such as gasoline away from the unit. We repeat that here rather than softening it.
SmogHog’s manuals also carry a combustible dust notice requiring the owner or user to test their dust mixtures to evaluate and understand potential combustion or deflagration hazards that may exist.
This one deserves extra attention because a portable gets moved. A unit bought for weld smoke at one bench can end up parked next to a grinder, and grinding dust is a different hazard entirely. Metal grinding sits in the combustible category more often than shops expect, and for aluminum, magnesium, titanium and zirconium wet collection is the preferred approach under NFPA 660 and what we recommend, with outdoor dry collection as the recognized alternative.
NFPA 660 took effect January 1, 2026 and consolidated NFPA 61, 484, 652, 654, 655, and 664. NFPA 68 for venting and NFPA 69 for explosion prevention remain separate referenced standards. Your dust hazard analysis has to be reviewed at least every five years and whenever the process changes.
For your DHA, go straight to DHA Report Group and request the intake form. The DHA itself is completed by you or by a qualified third party. We do not author it and we do not stamp anything.
What it is built for
Welding fume, oily smoke, or light mist
That is SmogHog’s own description of what the PCN removes, and the word light in front of mist is doing real work. This is a source capture unit for a station, not an ambient unit for a bay.
It lands most often in welding and metal fabrication at a bench that is not used every day, and in trade and vocational schools, where a cart that moves between lab stations beats a ducted system built around a class schedule that changes every term.
It also does well as a second unit in a shop that already has fixed collection, covering the odd job, the repair bay, or the corner nobody planned for when the ductwork went in.
Fit check
When the PCN is not right for you
The station runs all day, every day
SmogHog designs this unit for intermittent use. On continuous duty you will be washing cells constantly and the economics stop working. A ducted SHN or a fixed system costs more up front and less to own.
You need to clean the whole bay, not one station
Source capture only works when the arm is at the work. If the problem is haze across a whole area, that is an ambient job and 1,000 CFM will not touch it. See ambient air cleaners.
Your mist is heavy rather than light
SmogHog’s own wording is welding fume, oily smoke or light mist. A flood coolant machine putting out real volume is a machine mount job. The MSH sits on the enclosure and is built for it.
Your contaminant is dry dust
Grinding, sanding and dry cutting are dust collector work, and a precipitator sized for aerosol is the wrong machine. The DustHog VP is the portable built for that, and it is on casters too.
Nobody will wash the cells
The whole cost case for electrostatic is that the cells are reusable. If they never get cleaned, you have bought an expensive fan. If your PM program is stretched, say so and we will price a media portable instead.
Shop the PCN online
Order your SmogHog PCN
Every configuration on this list ships as shown, with replacement filters for the unit you already run. Not sure which size fits your machines? Call us and we will size it with you.
PCN questions
Does the extraction arm come with it?
The arm is a choice rather than an assumption. SmogHog lists the XA extraction arm and the 8 inch inlet collar as accessories for the PCN, and the unit takes an 8 inch arm in 7, 10 or 12 foot lengths, or flexible hose, or rigid duct through the collar. We put the arm on the quote by name and length so the unit arrives able to do the job.
How much air does the PCN move?
SmogHog rates it up to 1,000 CFM, factory set. Airflow does not change across the five models; the motor, the supply voltage and the afterfilter are what differ.
What power does it need?
Single phase. SmogHog builds it at 115 volts, where the 1 hp draws 14.7 amps, and at 230 volts, where the same motor draws 6.9. There is no three phase build, which is part of why it works as a plug in cart.
Are there replacement filters to buy?
Not in normal service. The aluminum mesh prefilter is reusable, SmogHog part 33-0001, and the ionizer cell (02-0044) and collection cell (02-2339) wash and go back in. A HEPA afterfilter, on the H models, is the one consumable.
How do I clean the cells?
Soak them in a hot detergent solution with the water not exceeding 160 degrees F, using an alkaline detergent with a buffering agent. Everything must be completely dry before the unit is energized again.
How often does it need cleaning?
SmogHog publishes separate schedules for welding smoke and for oil smoke, because oil loads the plates much faster than dry fume. On a portable the honest interval comes from hours of actual use rather than the calendar, so we set the first one from what the station really runs.
Where does the clean air go?
Back into the work space. Air leaves through a centrifugal blower and an adjustable outlet grille, exhausted vertically. That is what makes it a portable rather than a ducted unit, and it is also why the HEPA option matters where people work near the discharge.
Tell us the station, the hours, and what is at the wall
Those three answers pick the motor, the voltage, the arm length, and whether a portable is the right shape of answer at all. You get back a full part number and a firm price.
More than one station to cover? Book a free system review, or see source capture arms.