O.T. - sop vac recommendations

[Ricc Havens]

My 17yr old dirt devil shop vac decided to start smoking today and bit the dust. Any recommendations on shop vacs? I use it once in a while for sanding on the lathe, but primarily it's hooked to my table saw or bandsaw since I don't have room for a regular dust collector

Thanks
Ricc Havens
rv.havens AT gmail.com

[Roger Chandler]

Rick........I have 3 shop vacs. My first was a 10 gal shopvac brand and it is noisy. My second a 16 gal shopvac brand and while it still runs, the switch has malfunctioned and if one tries to get a new one from shopvac, they want to sell you the entire vacuum head........somehow their lawyers advised them against allowing ordinary Joes to replace a switch......liability issues!

My third is a industrial shopvac brand, 16 gallon with metal canister.......this one is quiet, and has 6.5 hp motor and heavy duty switches, wheels and handle for easy moving, and the hose screws on and does not pop out at an inopportune moment! I got it from our local Lowe's and have had it for two years now...........I really like this one a lot........

Good luck with your hunt!!!

[John Conklin]

My second a 16 gal shopvac brand and while it still runs, the switch has malfunctioned and if one tries to get a new one from shopvac, they want to sell you the entire vacuum head........somehow their lawyers advised them against allowing ordinary Joes to replace a switch......liability issues!

I had the same experience with my 16 gal. Shopvac and when I tried to get a new switch, they said that they wouldn't do that but would send me an entire new motor head, free of charge. Go figure.

[Greg Just]

Craftsman has a new line that are much quieter than other models.

[mike ash]

I had a 16 Gal Craftsman and loved it to death for about 10 years. During this time the switch failed and the price for a new one was $40 so I bought a $2 togle switch and with some very minor mods, it worked like a champ. When the motor burned out last week, I did a bunch of research and ended up buying the HD 16gal Home Depot vac. The Craftsman was redesigned and is now bulky and awkward. The Rigid vac from HD was better designed and for another $10 I got an exhaust muffler that really made a difference. The motor doubles as a blower. And, if you are a Veteran, there is a 10% reduction in price. I'm happy as a clam with my purchase.

[Ronald Blue]

I think the most recent Wood magazine did a shop vac test so you can see how many of them fared.

[Art Mann]

Yes, the March 2014 Wood magazine includes a test of 12 and 16 gallon shop vacuums costing less than $150. They rated two Sears Craftsman models, XSP 12006 and XSP 12007, the best.

[Ricc Havens]

thanks for the replies. I will try to find a copy of the Wood Magazine test article. Sounds like Craftsman may have a decent power tool for once.

Any one else have other brands or models to recommend?

Thanks
Ricc

[Charles Wiggins]

Any one else have other brands or models to recommend?

I'm surprised the Fein and Festool crowd have not chimed in as yet.

I have a Rigid that is somewhere over 10 years old. It's the only shop vac I have ever had and it has served me well. This is the current equivalent model (http://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-16-Gal-Wet-Dry-Vac-with-Blower-WD1680/202554974#). I have no idea how good it is but the reviews seem pretty good. Don't have access to Wood Magazine, so I have no idea what dimensions the rating system examined.

I have tried to set up a portable DC system with a Dust Deputy (http://www.oneida-air.com/category.asp?Id={CC6B6F2A-E3D7-4F18-A53C-B5C357DFE131}), but my containers keep collapsing under the suction, so I am eventually going to have to get a steel barrel and lid to make that work.

[Kelby Van Patten]

About fifteen years ago I bought a 16 gal, 6.5 HP ShopVac at Home Depot. It's still running strong. No problems with switches or anything. It does have two drawbacks. First, it is loud. I wear hearing protection when it is on. Second, the filter clogs easily, so I have started using the bags. I also bought one of those O'Nieda cyclone units for it, but it's now too bulky and too much of a hassle to roll around with that on it. I thought of building a cart. But then I bought a Festool vac instead.

The Festool is a very nice vac. It solves the problems of the ShopVac -- it is quiet enough to use without hearing protection, and it rolls around easily even if you have the O'Neida unit for it (although I have not bought that). The auto-start function is nice as well. The variable suction is nice for sanding. It has a lot of nifty little features and is very well made. But my total investment in the vacuum is over $700, which is a lot of money for some nifty features. I splurged, but I'm not sure it's the most financially prudent decision a person can make.

[Keith Hankins]

I'm surprised the Fein and Festool crowd have not chimed in as yet.

I have a Rigid that is somewhere over 10 years old. It's the only shop vac I have ever had and it has served me well. This is the current equivalent model (http://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-16-Gal-Wet-Dry-Vac-with-Blower-WD1680/202554974#). I have no idea how good it is but the reviews seem pretty good. Don't have access to Wood Magazine, so I have no idea what dimensions the rating system examined.

I have tried to set up a portable DC system with a Dust Deputy (http://www.oneida-air.com/category.asp?Id={CC6B6F2A-E3D7-4F18-A53C-B5C357DFE131}), but my containers keep collapsing under the suction, so I am eventually going to have to get a steel barrel and lid to make that work.


I have both a shopvac and a festool ct33e with boom arm. No comparison between the two. I have the crapsman attached to the chopsaw station use it only on occasion and the dust around it is obvious and it is a jet engine when running (horribly loud). Around my other work areas the festool is the one. It gets the dust, and in a lot of instances dont even use a mask (of course thats with festool sander). You pay for what you get. If you want your lungs protected festool. If budget is the issue, crapsman. TM2CW

[Lee Schierer]

After my shop vac died a few years ago, I purchased a Fein Turbo II 9 gallon size and have no regrets. It has great suction, rolls around easily without tipping, and is quiet enough to talk next to it. It will work as a wet or dry vac and has the option built in that will let you plug in a power tool and when you start the tool the shop vac will come on and run as long as the tool does. You can also adjust the suction level. It pulls 116 cfm and has 90 Inches of water suction while producing very low noise levels. Before you decide compare suction levels if the lower priced units even provide the data your ears will enjoy working near the Fein.

[John Schweikert]

I have a Fein Turbo II for several years. It's been perfect and with very low noise levels to boot. When I read the Wood magazine March 2014 article on shop vacs, I just laughed at the 80-87 dB range of all the vacs they tested. The Fein is about 60 dB. I've looked at buying a second vac from any brand and after searching I consistently come back around to just getting another Fein TII.

[Troy Turner]

Ricc - My craftsman just died. Had it about 10 years so I guess it was time (maybe overdue). It had the 2 1/2" hoses and I easily connected it to a lot of tools. Well, I went and bought this one http://www.lowes.com/pd_8487-20097-5866211_0+1z14085__?productId=3260197&Ntt=shop+vacuums&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dshop%2Bvacuums%26page%3D1&facetInfo=Shop-Vac It's more for the wife as I have a decent dust collector now. You're probably looking for 2 1/2" connections and this one is only 1 1/4", but I put it out there to say that I'm glad I bought a shop-vac over the other brands. They're made in the US, and if the 2 1/2" sucks anything like this one, you're going to really enjoy it. Do you have a dust deputy to hook up to it? That thing was a big filter saver.

[Earl McLain]

When i went from a very small shop vac to the HF 2 hp dust collector, the foot print was a problem, but i needed mobility. I built a separator from Phil Thein's design, using a 30 gallon drum and a rolling base just large enough for the drum--compounding my floor space problem. My solution was to build a shelf about 80" off the floor, put the DC on the shelf (the upper bag goes through the truss, otherwise i'd not have had the space). I have a 10' section of flex hose from the DC to the separator and a 21' Dust Rite hose to the tool i'm using at the moment. Works great in a cramped space--and as long as i remember to empty the separator i don't have to empty the DC bag, which would really be a pain!!

earl

[Joe Scharle]

Another Fein booster. I've had mine for 9 years (Model III) and it's still quieter than a Festool. Uses standard 2.5" hoses too.

[phil harold]

I am a firm believer in crapsman shop vacs
lots of power
built to last
lots of noise

I have PORTER-CABLE drywall vac that I use on the chopsaw
quite but expensive bags

[glenn bradley]

A budget would help ;-) On shop vacs I think you either need to go high end or low-mid. I don't see sense spending $200 on a shop vac when a $400 one will do many times better. That being said, I run a couple of sub-$100 Ridgids with plastic Dust Deputy cyclones and Clean Stream filters. So for well under the high end cost I have had two superb vacs that I have run mercilessly for years.

These work well for me since they do not move. If I had the requirement of dragging the vac all around the shop I would seriously consider the Feins and so forth so I could get the performance in a well engineered, compact product. One of my vacs is positioned midway along a long wall and has a long 2-1/2" hose that reaches nearly all the shop. The other sits in the midst of a DP, scrollsaw and small bandsaw and serves them exclusively. With the Dust Deputy I only clean the filter about once a year. With the Clean Stream filters you just toss them out on the lawn and hit them with the hose so all in all, it works out well for me. Your requirements may be different.

[Ricc Havens]

As Glen suggested - a budget would help. I'm on disability so funds don't grow on trees in my yard. I would probably be in the $70-$100 range for vac and then a dust deputy. I just looked at the Fein's that were recommended above. They are very nice but very pricey! anyone have a used Fein for sale at a drastically reduced price?:):)

Ricc Havens
Elkhart, IN

[Mike Goetzke]

Don't know if it was just local to me but Lowe's had a 16 gal. vac on clearance for $49.


Mike

[Ricc Havens]

thanks Mike I will try to get to the local Lowes and see if they have it on sale

Ricc

[Dave Cullen]

I am a firm believer in crapsman shop vacs
lots of power
built to last
lots of noise


Roger that. Mine is still going strong (and loud) after 30 years.