Replies

1. 
   Brian | Sep 19, 2006 04:20am | #1

   Tig - if you search the archives, this one has been talked about extensively. 

   All the ones I've seen use the 2" thinwall pvc, but some folks advocate using schedule 40 & sweeps instead of elbows.

   I am personally not fond of central vacs, but others sing their praises.

    

    

   Treat every person you meet like you will know them the rest of your life - you just might!
2. 
   gb93433 | Sep 19, 2006 04:22am | #2

   I have been told not to buy the typical whole house vac unit but rather a shop vac instead mostly because it is cheaper and works well.

3. 
   joeh | Sep 19, 2006 05:33am | #3

   You can use a shop vac, you'll need a transformer & relay to go with it.

   I used  a 24V transformer and a 24V relay, 12V would work as well I suppose.

   The 24V goes to the contacts in the vacuum outlets, the relay turns on the vac when you insert the hose.

   As long as it's outside the house the shop vac noise is the neighbor's problem so you can even use one of those old Sears vacs,.

   You can buy the parts on line, the outlets are less than $10 apiece.

   Once you have it, you'll never want a house without one.

   Joe H

1. 
   saulgood | Sep 19, 2006 11:08am | #4

   I've been thinking about installing a central vac in my house. I'm wondering what brand or type of motor to use, and how a shop vac might measure up in terms of peak HP. Noise levels, etc. With space at a premium around here it would be nice to power the system with the shop vac I have to store anyway. Also, are "real" central vac's usually wet/dry?

1. 
   Brian | Sep 19, 2006 02:27pm | #5

   I used a shop vac for the system in our last house - its very powerful, and much cheaper.  The hose was ~$250 at the local vac store, the fittings I bought at the electrical distributor.

   But the central vac hose is 30' long, and our new vacuum cleaner is lighter than that  (thats my real beef with the c-vac

   This house - no system, just an Oreck.

    Treat every person you meet like you will know them the rest of your life - you just might!

2. 
   bobl | Sep 19, 2006 05:15pm | #6

   "Also, are "real" central vac's usually wet/dry?"no.how you route the pvc is important, check out how they recommend routing. especially since this is being added to an existing house and you may be putting it on more than one floor.think the Beam site has their manuals so you can see how they recommend routing.placement of the outlet needs some thinking, and drilling holes can be an experince. some units require the outlet be near an electrical plug to drive the head on the wand. 

   bobl          Volo, non valeo

   Baloney detecter    WFR

3. 
   joeh | Sep 19, 2006 05:38pm | #7

   Any decent shop vac should do, wet or dry NO.

   Joe H

    

1. 
   Sungod | Sep 19, 2006 07:17pm | #8

   Disadvantage of shop vac is that they are not "bagless" or "cyclonic" which do not plug up, cause it has no filter.
   Not all CV are bagless, but those that are can suck up some water too, but their metal can may rust.

1. 
   RSmout | Sep 20, 2006 12:44am | #9

   We just installed a CV by Aqua-Aire; it's a wet/dry CV with commercial attachments.We haven't had it long but it's really working well. It comes with wet cleaning attachments for hard floors, carpet and upholstery.One of the things I like best is instead of sweeping then mopping, we just use the wet cleaning tool and do both at the same time. The whole unit then drains all the dirt down the drain to the sewer.It has a net in the housing unit to catch hair and other objects you don’t want going down the drain. My wife absolutely loves it.Here's a link to a story on it. http://www.hometoys.com/htinews/dec04/articles/aquaair/aquaair.htm