*
I’m ready for a new wet/dry shop vacuum. There seem to be two dominant brands – Sears and Shop-Vac. Anyone had experience with both to know which works better? I’m looking at models toward the top end of each brand.
My own experience has been with Sears. I get exasperated with what seems like constant clogging of the filters when I clean up nasty stuff like drywall dust and debris.
Replies
*
They all clog with dry wall and other fine dust, get into the habit of "knocking" the filter off every few minutes to clear it. Great results with the Crapman 16 gallon unit, I think its a 6.25HP with a detatchable 200mph blower/vac. get it, you wont regret it. Also NEVER let the filter get wet, buy a muffler for it and get an extension hose for it as your first acccessory. Its nice leaving the vac sit and cruising around the room without having to pull the whole unit with every move you make, besides its hard on the hose. The Rigid vac is nearly identical, have good luck with theirs too. If nothing else, dont get one with less than 5.5 HP you get what you pay for.
*I got tired of my ancient Craftsman "screamer" (it drove me nuts even when I wore ear plugs), so I went for a new Fein. It is supposedly the quietest of the shop vacs at 58db so should give my ears a rest. It has received great reviews from various places, but it's not exactly cheap - I paid about $200 for mine - but looks like a quality machine. Also has a power activated switch built in that starts the vac when an attached power tool is started. Fein also makes a smaller one that was about $130, but didn't have the power activated switch. A HEPA filter is an option, but at $70 extra. Haven't used it yet, so can't say how well it actually sucks...There is a discussion of shop vacs in the archives at: Bryan "Shop Vacuums, what is the best?" 10/14/99 1:07am
*FEIN, All you need to know about shop vacs. Nothing with the name shop-vac or craftsman on it even comes close.
*I'm very pleased with my Milwaukee shop vac. Powerful and easy to clean. I use the optional bags to keep cleaning filter to a minimum. But would have to look at Fein if I was to ever buy another.
*I bought an upright shop-vac brand a couple years ago, and really like it. It was about $200, but it was worth it. It has a stainless steel tank, and a dolly - sort of like you would move a refridgerator on. I got it from "Tool Crib of the North.
*"You get what you pay for." Milwaukee has a whole line reaching into the stratosphere on price. I doubt Sears makes theirs, they look like Shop-Vac variants.I've been using an inexpensive 12 gallon Shop Vac, it's fine for occasional use although I do usually wear earmuffs to dampen the noise. You can buy disposable bags for fine materials, a lot easier than cleaning the filter. I also like the gore-tex cleanable filter they sell. And a broom is often the best clean-up tool....I wouldn't mind a nicer unit, esp. if I used it every day, but this one is doing fine after a couple of repairs.
*We use the old R2-D2 Craftsman vacs. The wheels fall off, but they just don't die.Ed. Williams
*I got a Fin wet/dry and couldn't be happier: 1st, it is quieter than any other Mac I found, 2nd it has an outlet for the power tool which turns the Mac on when the tool is activated. The Mac continues to run for about a minute after the tool is turned off. Use in on my Radial arm and chop saws and sanders.
*
Fine homebuilding has named Fein the Mercedes of vacuums. My Fein is time tested (4 years) works awesome and is now the favorite of my wife for house cleaning. What more could I say.
*Wap is also a Cadillac brand. As for clogging filters, I always use a collector bag inside the vac, and gore-tex filters.
*
I'm ready for a new wet/dry shop vacuum. There seem to be two dominant brands - Sears and Shop-Vac. Anyone had experience with both to know which works better? I'm looking at models toward the top end of each brand.
My own experience has been with Sears. I get exasperated with what seems like constant clogging of the filters when I clean up nasty stuff like drywall dust and debris.