Legitimate shop vac reviews?

[Alan Heffernan]

We are looking for a general purpose vacuum for a shop. Not looking for a dust collector but just a simple, 12 gallon or larger, robust, powerful vacuum for shop cleanup duty (dust, sawdust, wood shaving, metal chips/shaving, and dirt). I searched for some independent legitimate reviews without too much success.

Links to legitimate (independent) reviews would be appreciated.

Thanks for the help.

[Joe Jensen]

I have the Rigid 1851 from Home Depot. I use it with bags for general cleanup. This is maybe my 4th shop vac in 31 years. I had a Sears ones before and this one is dramatically better. I think with the 2" hose, most in this price point have the same suction. This one is very quiet and the cart makes it easy to move around. I also have an older WAP drywaller vac that is HEPA certified and has auto-start and filter cleaning. The Rigid was like $120 on sale, $150 full price. A new version of the WAP is now branded Alto and it's like $900. I use the Rigid to clean the floors, tools, etc and the WAP when connected to small power tools like sanders, etc.

[Barry McFadden]

I have the Rigid 1680 model from Home Depot and I think it's great...I would highly recommend a Rigid...

[Richard McComas]

Rigid get good reviews but from what I've been reading if you ever need motor brushes your out of luck.

[Joe Jensen]

Rigid get good reviews but from what I've been reading if you ever need motor brushes your out of luck.

Wouldn't you be able to make some out of generic brushes?

[Mike Henderson]

The Ridgid I have has been good. The ShopVac brand I had before that was too loud and I gave it away.

As far as reviews, why not ask people here on the forum? They (we) use those kind of vacs every day. About as independent as you're going to get.

Mike

[lowell holmes]

I have a 6 gallon Shop Vac from Lowes and a larger 12 gallon Rigid from Home Depot.

I'm satisfied with both of them.

[Greg Peterson]

I like my Ridged shop vac.

[Peter Kuhlman]

Depending upon your needs determines the proper vac to consider. Your description would seem to be handled well by the Home Depot Rigid vacs. I have their second largest model and it will do what you describe easily. Not a lot of differences in vacs in this $100-150 price range. All are fairly loud and have good suction. I have used mine to even suck out pool liners. Just wish they could suck and drain at the same time as it will fill up quickly with water due to the tremendous suction. Would never use it as a tool vacuum for sanding and such due to the noise and no variable speed. I use Festool vacs for that.

[Frank Drew]

Can't help specifically except to advise you to buy as good as you can afford; I had an inexpensive 6 gal. shop vac (Grainger?) for many years and absolutely hated it, but as aggravating as it was to use (very loud, very easy to tip over, lousy hose, etc.) it worked so I kept it. Know how enjoyable it is to get a new tool? Finally throwing that thing away gave me that kind of warm feeling all over!

[Frederick Skelly]

I like my Ridged shop vac.

Me too .........

[Alan Heffernan]

Thanks folks for the recommendations.

The few independent reviews I could find leaned toward the Rigid shop vacs. None of the reviews had any real data and they were quite subjective, therefore my post here looking for something more definitive.

Guessing we will just move on and buy a couple of Rigids and be done with it. We will likely equip one with the washable filter element since it will get contaminated with coolant soaked chips from a metal lathe and CNC mill.

[Rich Riddle]

I tend to give a lot of consumer reviews credence over independent reviews. While individuals might have hidden agendas, hundreds or thousands of individuals will not have that same hidden agenda. The problem with an independent review is that the reviewer had one product on one day. The reviewer might have lucked out and reviewed one of the few good products from the assembly line. I use my Fein for duties you discuss. It has the advantage of the filter and also being able to be attached to some small tools when using them. It's the most powerful one I found, but it isn't inexpensive.

[Alan Heffernan]

I like data and good solid comparisons. That is the reason I posted here was to ask if anyone had seen one. I have not been able to find any on my own.

In my shop I currently have Fein, Festool, Shopvac, Oneida and Jet vacuums to dust collectors. I am looking for a robust vacuum simply for shop cleanup as described. We are setting up a new shop and I would not willing to put wet aluminum shavings/cuttings contaminated with cutting fluid and coolant in my Fein for example. The only one I have that I would sacrifice is the Shopvac and it would die quickly if I used it for the service I described. By the way, I have a complete disdain for the Shopvac because of its lack of stability when dragging it around and it stops up almost instantaneously via filter blinding anyway. I have relegated it to the garage for vacuuming cars and empty it often to keep the filter clean.

Yes, folks can give you their opinions and I appreciate them sharing their experience. However I was looking for an independent comparison with some data to support the review. Subjective, marketing ploys are all that I could find and are not interesting to me at all.

[Ben Rivel]

Ive never seen such a comparison either. Dont think it exists. Too many models and they are replaced too often with newer model numbers to keep up. Sounds to me that with as many vacs as you own you would know better than most whats been good, what hasnt and why. User opinions like that are about as good as weve got to go off of in the sop vac market.

[Jon Endres]

I'll chime in with another vote for Ridgid. I have an old Shop-Vac that I relegated to wet duty only when I got the Ridgid. It was a $25 Black Friday deal over ten years ago, and it's been running flawlessly since. I only use CleanStream filters in both vacs. I'm planning on getting another larger model (the WD1450) when I move into my new shop/garage.

[Bryan Wiesendahl]

I have a big Rigid and it's taken all the abuse I could throw at it in the past 5 years and it's still going strong. I use filters, not bags. I just take the filter out every time I empty the can and shake/blow it off. For general shop cleanup I'd say grab a Rigid, run it into the ground (if it ever does die, hasn't for me) and buy another when it's done.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

You're probably tired of Rigid reccommendations, but I'll add this: Look for a Rigid that can use the Cleanstream HEPA filter that HD sells. They are really pricey, BUT, I've had the same one for years. Beats changing the cheap paper one every month, or the heavy duty one every 6 months...... The HEPA fliter can be rinsed off, and it works like new. I bought a newer Rigid vac, but I like the old Rigid with the Cleanstream filter way better. The new RIGID is the junk vacuum and water vacuum.

[Pat Barry]

Me too .........
Count me in also. Works wet and dry very well

[Rick Potter]

I saw an article on shop vacs in a magazine last year. Can't remember which one, but I do remember that they liked the Sears big one the best.

[Brian Tymchak]

Rigid get good reviews but from what I've been reading if you ever need motor brushes your out of luck.

I've had a 5HP Ridgid shop vac (1 of 3 Ridgids vacs I own) for at least 16 years and it is still doing fine. If it were to die tomorrow due to brushes, the price is low enough that I wouldn't spend the time to mess with it and just buy a new one.

I have to say though that the last one I bought last summer has a "ridgid" power cord on it. very inflexible, hard to coil, unlike the previous 2 Ridgid vacs I bought. It's the only thing I don't like about it.

[Tim Bridge]

Ignore the hp ratings of all shop vacs. They are way over sized.
A real 5 hp motor on 120 volts would draw 56 amps.

They play games with the testing and call it peak hp.
A 5 hp vac probably has a 1/4 hp motor.

[scott vroom]

Here's a link to a Popular Mechanics review of 6 shop vacs. Their top choice was the Ridgid WD1851 16 gal 6.5 H.P.. They also claim it has the lowest decibel rating among the 6. http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/tools/reviews/g125/6-top-shop-vacuums-tested/?slide=4

I have the Ridgid WD1450, the smaller brother of the 1851 at 14 gals and 6 H.P. It's quieter than any of the Craftsman vacs I've owned over the years. I bought the Ridgid because of it's lower DB ratings and convenient availability of accessories/filters at any of the Home Depots. I'd buy it again.

[Mike Henderson]

Ignore the hp ratings of all shop vacs. They are way over sized.
A real 5 hp motor on 120 volts would draw 56 amps.

They play games with the testing and call it peak hp.
A 5 hp vac probably has a 1/4 hp motor.
I think it's a bit more than 1/4 HP but certainly not 5 HP. You can approximate the HP by calculating the watts (actually the VA) drawn. A HP is about 750 watts but motors are not 100% efficient, so allocate 1,000 watts per HP and you'll probably be pretty close.

If you assume 120 volts and the vac draws 10 amps, the "watts" would be 1,200, or a bit over one HP.

Mike

[Bill White]

Ridgid here. 16 gal, good filter, added the older style muffler. Had it for years, and it is the best big vac I've ever had.
Bill

[John Lanciani]

Very disappointed with the blue Shop vacs from Lowes. I've had several motors fail from bad bearings. Shop vac will replace them if they are under warranty but its just not worth the hassle. I am completely satisfied with my older Fein TurboII, but I'm not sure that the new ones are of equal quality.

[Tim Bridge]

I think it's a bit more than 1/4 HP but certainly not 5 HP. You can approximate the HP by calculating the watts (actually the VA) drawn. A HP is about 750 watts but motors are not 100% efficient, so allocate 1,000 watts per HP and you'll probably be pretty close.

If you assume 120 volts and the vac draws 10 amps, the "watts" would be 1,200, or a bit over one HP.

Mike

Full load of a 1 hp motor is about 16 amps, While not a 1/4 hp, it's more like a 1/2 hp who's full load is 9.8 amps.
Either way, they still overstate the horsepower by calling it peak horsepower which is achieved for a fraction of a second and is not sustained while in use.

[glenn bradley]

One Ridgid going on 13 years (the current version is Model WD1680 but, I am unsure of my actual model) use in the shop BUT, this has been for powered hand tools and not general pickup. I have a couple of smaller Ridgids (equal to the current Model WD1270) that are used for general pickup, wet and dry, of whatever I want to pick up. The only thing I did was spring an extra $35 for the Clean Stream filter which is a blessing. When it needs cleaning you just toss it out in the yard and hit it with the hose.

These are just general use vacuums and Ridgid has a commercial line. I assume you are not asking about Feins and Festools since you state general use. If you were sanding drywall all day or picking up mostly metal debris I would answer differently. Fir a general use vac, $100 buys you a lot of Ridgid.

[Cary Falk]

I have a 12gal Ridgid that I got for $25 after thanksgiving about 5 years ago. It is still running. Best $25 I ever spent.

[scott vroom]

If you were sanding drywall all day or picking up mostly metal debris I would answer differently.

I've sanded many thousands of sq ft of drywall with a Craftsman vac with just the stock filter. I've had it for years, the motor is unaffected by the fine dust, it just keeps on working. I'm curious what your answer would be for drywall?

[Ole Anderson]

http://www.woodworkersjournal.com/shop-vacuum-roundup/
http://www.finehomebuilding.com/tool-guide/articles/tool-test-shop-vacs.aspx
http://www.consumersearch.com/shop-vacs
http://topreviews.best/main-review/best-wet-dry-vacuums?t=Shop%20Vac&gclid=CK6LivrS1MwCFQoNaQodXuYFbA
http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/tools/reviews/g125/6-top-shop-vacuums-tested/
http://shop-vac-review.toptenreviews.com/
https://thoroughlyreviewed.com/tools/wet-dry-vac-reviews/

Can't say which of these are legit, up to date reviews. I bought my 6 hp 12 gallon Craftsman based on a top rating from a magazine review, but I cannot remember which one. Powerful and quiet, under $100. What more do you need?

[roger wiegand]

Very happy with my new Bosch VAC090S. Head and shoulders better than the ShopVac and Sears machines that preceded it. It can roll over its own cord without falling over! I only buy a new one every 15 years or so, so I can't give you any real comparisons, nor have I measured or worry about absolute performance numbers. The current machine is relatively quiet, provides HEPA filtration, and does everything I ask of it (unlike the prior machines). I still have the ShopVac for wet use. I don't know or care how many alleged horsepower each of them has.

[Joe Jensen]

Yes on the Alleged HP :) That hasn't come up but the HP numbers are really meaningless. CFM and suction are the things one would want to compare but they all seem pretty comparable. The bigger difference in my experience is how loud they are. my WAP is like 56 db which I can't hear over a small random orbit sander. Most better vacs are around 72-76 db. a 3 db difference is barely noticeable, a 10 db difference is twice as loud. With my 1980s era Sears vac I had to wear hearing protection even to clean up the shop. With the 2010 era Rigid there is no need for protection, not even bothersome. With the WAP the Radio in my shop is louder.

[Mike Henderson]

Full load of a 1 hp motor is about 16 amps, While not a 1/4 hp, it's more like a 1/2 hp who's full load is 9.8 amps.
Either way, they still overstate the horsepower by calling it peak horsepower which is achieved for a fraction of a second and is not sustained while in use.
You don't specify whether that's a 120V motor or a 240V motor. Let's assume it's 120V. 16 amps at 120V would be almost 2,000 watts. And we know that one HP is 746 watts (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsepower#Electrical_horsepower). So if your motor is really supplying 1 HP at 16 amps at 120V, your motor is only about 39 percent efficient. [Side note: 746 watts at 120 V requires a bit over 6 amps.]

Electric motors are pretty efficient at full load, usually above 80%. Large electric motors are all over 90% efficient. I've never heard of one that is only 39% efficient. Also, almost all of the lost energy (61%) would be converted to heat, so that motor would get pretty hot. (for the electrical engineers reading this, the power factor at full load is close to 1. At less than full load the power factor will be quite a bit less than 1, which is why you don't see the current increase proportionally as the motor loads up).

Perhaps you mean that a 1 HP motor may draw 16 amps at startup.

Mike

[Tim Bridge]

Mike, since I am a master electrician I tend to get my info from the National Electric Code.
They have tables that are used for the calculations of full loads for motors.
I was using the 115 volt single phase columns for my amperage.
I am not sure where they get their numbers from, or the efficiency they use.

From my experience with the motors that I have wired and trouble shot, their numbers are close to the nameplate ratings on the motors that are used in commercial and industrial applications.

Edit: I just started compare the NEC chart for single phase motors and some motors on the Baldor website, I see some motors are inline with the chart and some are way off. I am going to look at this closer.

[Mike Henderson]

Mike, since I am a master electrician I tend to get my info from the National Electric Code.
They have tables that are used for the calculations of full loads for motors.
I was using the 115 volt single phase columns for my amperage.
I am not sure where they get their numbers from, or the efficiency they use.

From my experience with the motors that I have wired and trouble shot, their numbers are close to the nameplate ratings on the motors that are used in commercial and industrial applications.
Those numbers don't make sense, Tim. Check the mathematics I gave you in my previous post. It's clear that a 1HP, 120V motor should not draw 16 amps at full load.

A 1 HP, 120V motor operating at 80% efficiency would draw about 7.8 amps. At 70% efficiency it would be about 8.9 amps. Electric motors, even small ones, are generally at least 70% efficient. We know that electric motors are more efficient than 40%. The problem with very low efficiency would be heat. All those excess amps would turn into heat. So if the motor was drawing 16 amps, while only needing 6.5 amps to produce 1 HP, those other almost 10 amps would be heating the motor. 9.5 amps times 115V is a bit over 1,000 watts. That's a lot of heat for a motor the physical size of a 1 HP motor to dissipate.

The motor in a shop vac gets cooled by the air flow but you'd feel the exhaust air to be pretty warm. 1,000 watts are essentially a blow dryer. And that amount of heat generated inside the motor would really affect the life of the motor. Blow dryers use resistance elements to generate that much heat.

Mike

[Energy is conserved. A 1 HP motor puts out 746 watts of mechanical power, by definition. Any additional power input to the motor turns into heat. A motor is a device to turn electrical energy into mechanical energy. A generator is a device to turn mechanical energy into electrical energy.]

[Joe Jensen]

The motor also has to dissipate heat at full load amps in order to be rated at a HP level "continuous duty" The ridiculous ratings on small tools is "rational" because they ignore the heat dissipation, and they consider the rotating mass too, so it's kinetic energy plus the max current you can draw before tripping a breaker.


Also for giggles, put your 6.0HP shop vac on a circuit, and also a sander. Both will run without tripping a breaker so that 6.0HP is drawing less than 120V times 15A or less than 1800 Watts.

I can't believe that the Feds who love to regulate everything let companies use BS ratings like this that only serve to mislead consumers. The power of political donations I suppose.

[David L Morse]

Mike, since I am a master electrician I tend to get my info from the National Electric Code.
They have tables that are used for the calculations of full loads for motors.


Those numbers don't make sense

Mike's right, from the point of view of an end user who needs to know the actual current usage.

Tim's right, from the point of view of someone who has to make a safe wiring installation.

Those tables are used for determining the required ampacity of circuits supplying power to motors. An induction motor can apply a lot more stress to wiring than would be indicated by it's full load rating. The numbers in that table are larger than rated FLA to force a larger wire gauge to safely tolerate that stress.

BUT, shop vacs don't use induction motors. Like routers and most other hand held power tools they use universal motors. Those two types of motors have different operating characteristics as well as a different set of rules for labeling. Those rules (actually the lack thereof) helps account for the bogus HP claims on both shop vacs and routers.

[Curt Harms]

but, shop vacs don't use induction motors. Like routers and most other hand held power tools they use universal motors. Those two types of motors have different operating characteristics as well as a different set of rules for labeling. Those rules (actually the lack thereof) helps account for the bogus HP claims on both shop vacs and routers.

I was wonder if someone would bring this up. From what I recall - can't cite data offhand - universal motors are less efficient than induction motors but they're smaller, lighter and turn faster than induction motors. All desirable traits for a shop vac.

[Jim Dwight]

I googled shop vacuum reviews and found ones by Woodworkers Journal, Popular Mechinics, and Consumers reports. I only looked at the Woodworkers Journal one and it was mediocre. Basically they liked everything. but it did summarize features.

I use a Rigid on a cart with a dust deputy, quasi HEPA filter, and auto on switch. It works for me. The filter keeps me from blowing fine dust all over. The cyclone prevents frequent filter cleaning and makes the size of the shop vac dust compartment irrevalent (nothing goes there). The auto on is for use with sanders and other tools. If I need it to slow down, I use a router speen control.

[Mike Henderson]

I was wonder if someone would bring this up. From what I recall - can't cite data offhand - universal motors are less efficient than induction motors but they're smaller, lighter and turn faster than induction motors. All desirable traits for a shop vac.
Yes, you're right about the efficiency. In doing my calculations, I was thinking of induction motors.

It's clear that tools using universal motors have fake HP ratings. For example, a 2.25HP router would output about 1,678 watts of mechanical energy. The input power is listed at 115V at 12 amps, which is only 1,380 watts. So if it really put out 2.25 HP, the efficiency would be over 100%.

I wonder what the real HP rating of a router would be.

Mike