Shop Vac - need to get a new one - recommendations?

[dr wogz]

So, my little 4 gal, 2hp, "Shop Vac" brand shop vac is finally starting to die. I can tell by: the screaming bearings! And the definite electrical / burning plastic smell..

I guess it is its time, as it is pushing 20 years!

I did buy a replacement about 3 - 5 years ago, a slightly larger 'Shop Vac' brand vacuum, but it only lasted about a month or two. As I pulled it apart, I noticed the little "heat fuse" had heated & did its job.. The local vacuum store nor a call into 'Shop Vac' did / offered any help. Either Shop Vac vacuums are less than ideal these days, or I got a dud. Either way, Shop Vac wouldn't warranty it without the receipt. (Are newer shop vacs prone to being 'crap'?!)

So, what to do:

• Buy a new one? and will it last more than a month?
• Buy a competitor (Rigid)? or another suggestion?
• Short [replace the 'heat fuse' with a piece of wire] the damaged one to get it to work, and use it cautiously? Or wire in a proper fuse..

Am open to suggestions / recommendation / opinions...

I'll run it for about a half hour to an hour as I vacuum our main hardwood floor. We have dogs & cats, so there is a fair amount of hair & crud on the floor after a while..

 

[Donnager]

Most new stuff is prone to being crap.

I have three of these. One small one that is kept in the front garage that my wife uses to vacuum out her car.

The other two are in my shop. The larger is a Rigid with a large hose with a stainless can. This one WORKS. It will suck up stuff you don't want sucked up.

I have a smaller one that (can) hook to my sander. It is a little anemic and a piece of string and a liveoak leaf can clog it.

My larger problem is cleaning up after I dump these things. I feel like I have been caught in some type of loop.

 

[Huxter]

I bought a 5 HP, 12 gallon Rigid vac over 10 years ago from Home Depot. I got it to suck crap out of my basement main drain when it backed up. It sucks water well!

Have not needed any other vac, so cannot compare.

 

[Peartree]

I'll run it for about a half hour to an hour as I vacuum our main hardwood floor. We have dogs & cats, so there is a fair amount of hair & crud on the floor after a while..

Not a ShopVac, but we got a Shark True Pet Professional (I'll post a pic from my phone later) upright, bagless, vacuum for our main floor (fake) hardwood, carpet, and tight weave flat rugs. It's one of the best we've had. We have three dogs and three cats, and we need to vacuum at least once per week, often more. It's light but it gets a LOT of the hair/fur on the first try. The limiting factor on runtime is the need to empty the container full of fur. It isn't especially small, it just picks up a lot of fur quickly. Added bonus, you can detach it from the upright base and do stairs and curtains (though we have another smaller vacuum just for stairs so this almost never happens).

 

[prfesser]

I bought a 5 gallon Black & Decker at Menards just a few weeks ago. It had a 2" or 2.5" inlet but the hose was only 1 1/2". So I wrapped gaffer's tape around the end of the old shop vac hose so it would friction-fit the inlet. Eventually I'll tape around the joint to make it more secure, as the hose occasionally pops out when I forget that I'm not supposed to pull it by the hose.

It works well enough but I haven't had it long enough to determine longevity.

Best-- Terry

 

[rharshberger]

The biggest killers of shop vacs is well dust....but using it as a dust collector kills them even faster. I have both a Rigid (15+ years) and a Craftsman (unknown but older than the Rigid), both work and have worked well. To extend the life of a shop vac use a Dust Deputy Cyclone separator (or any similar) as it will cut down the amount of bearing killing dust that actually makes it past the separation bin and into the vac's bin.

 

[Budro0]

I replaced a smaller ShopVac last year with a Craftsman for my dust collection system. They are rated well and for my use, they have easy to find CFM ratings. Oddly, I do not have any actual experience using it as a vacuum, but it will pull almost all the sawdust from my table saw through about 25ft of 2.5" hose and a Dust Deputy. Link for mine is below. I opted for 16gal because they are pretty consistently on sale and cheaper than similar smaller options. I have absolutely no complaints about it and my local Ace has all the attachments and hoses I could need.

https://www.acehardware.com/departments/tools/wet-dry-vacuums/wetdry-vacuums/2560308

 

[DaHabes]

Not the cheapest, not the most expensive. A shop-vac is a commodity. As long as they suck...

 

[OverTheTop]

I just purchased a new Ryobi 20litre wet/dry vac down here. It was only $99AUD. I also purchased some of the better bags which are almost as good as a HEPA filter I think. 1250W and a 1.8m hose. Model is RVC-1220I-G which is obviously a 240V variant for our region. Happy with the unit so far. Seems like good value.

 

[rocket_troy]

I started with a Ryobi but it was just too darn loud for home, so ditched it for a 35L 25L Fein Wet & Dry. Been very happy with that, but not cheap. Same story with air compressors. On my 3rd attempt now.

I should add that my home shop time is generally after 10pm... hence the noise constraints.

TP

 

[Zbench]

Infinitely more expensive, but if you want a vacuum to last consider the Festool. It is the last vacuum you will ever buy. The mini might be a good choice. I have a 26 and the sustainer model. Both have their uses and are extremely high quality tools. Be careful though, if you get one you will then want more of their tools and that is beyond a slippery slope.

 

[Woody's Workshop]

I had 3 or 4 5 hp Ridgid shop vacs in my wood shop. I put prefilter bags over the finned filters to keep fine dust out of the expensive finned ones. I never had a problem with any of them. I sold all but one of them, which is now in storage. Not sure I will ever need it again. I also have several of those little Zinggers Shop Vacs, which I hooked up directly to sanders like belt sanders and orbital sanders. (See Avitar) Most are in storage, but I have one here at the apartment for small clean ups.
I would recommend the Ridgid, although I don't know how the new one's are since they moved production over seas. I bought mine in 2002 and were USA made. Darn good vac's, or use to be.

 

[OverTheTop]

Infinitely more expensive, but if you want a vacuum to last consider the Festool.

Every time I have used Festool tools they have been fantastic.

 

[RobertH3]

+1 for the Rigid. Loud but if you are married, recycle the old lady's old hose to put over the paper filter. No cost dust catcher. Mine is over 10 and has done some dust collector duty, general cleanup, and when clean and reverse hooked up, as an air dryer for my motorcycles. Not a grand for sure.

Cheers / Robert

 

[KilroySmith]

Well, I don't have a recommendation for you; but when I went through this a few years ago I learned a few things.
1. Most vacs use bronze bushings for the motor bearings, rather than sealed ball bearings. I don't know enough to knowledgeably argue which is theoretically better, but...
2. Most vacs blow air through the motor to cool it. If that air is loaded with abrasives (like the concrete dust I was sucking up after doing some cutting), the unsealed bushing will not last long. Some vacs will use air from after the filter, so most/all of the abrasives have been removed. Others will simply put a fan on the motor, and suck in environmental air and blow it through the motor - depending on the amount of abrasives in the air, this may or may not be preferable. Think about your usage, and choose accordingly. Personally, I'd pay $5 more for a vac that uses $0.50 more expensive sealed bearings in the motor, but I couldn't find that option.
3. I didn't realize it when I bought mine, but it DIDN'T HAVE A USABLE EXHAUST PORT. I don't know about you, but I blow about as often as I suck (wait, that doesn't sound quite right....). Realizing after I got home that the vac had a diffuser slot to exhaust air rather than a round port was quite disappointing. Just something to look for if it's important to you.

 

[RICHARD COLARCO]

I have had a Craftsman forever. Over 30 years. I use it all the time and have sucked up many bags full of nasty crud. Still going strong. Of course Sears outsources these, so they may not make them like they used to.

 

[Peartree]

2. Most vacs blow air through the motor to cool it. If that air is loaded with abrasives (like the concrete dust I was sucking up after doing some cutting), the unsealed bushing will not last long. Some vacs will use air from after the filter, so most/all of the abrasives have been removed. Others will simply put a fan on the motor, and suck in environmental air and blow it through the motor - depending on the amount of abrasives in the air, this may or may not be preferable. Think about your usage, and choose accordingly. Personally, I'd pay $5 more for a vac that uses $0.50 more expensive sealed bearings in the motor, but I couldn't find that option.

This is especially important if the dust in the air contains conductive components such as grinder dust from grinding welds or sharp edges, etc. That conductive dust then finds its way into the windings of your motor with the cooling air. In a perfect world, the wires in the winding of your vacuum motor are insulated, but we all know that our world isn't perfect and often the insulation isn't either, especially when your vacuum gets to be a few years old.

 

[ContrailRockets]

I am a sucker for a Rainbow Vacuum. They have a water basin not a filter. Are great for graphite dust or anything else even wet pickup. Changed out original hose to two inch central vac hose and increased air flow while reducing clogging of hose. Used ones can be found $50 or more if running good deal.
I sold and serviced Vacuums for 15 years. Shop vacs have their uses. Rainbow/Rexair has been around since 1936 anything 1986 or newer parts are still available. Out of that business for years both of my shops have Rainbows oldest one is 1986 model at my fuel processing shop.
Air flow for cleaning in one compartment motor and cooling fan on separate compartment.

 

[DES]

A worthy addition to the ShopVac is the FilterPal prefilter. This is a fleece cloth bag with elastic collar that slips over the pleated HEPA filter. Protects the filter, and prevents clogging with fine dust. The pre filter bag is durable, cleans easily, and with much less mess that the pleated filter. It is washable, but I just slip it into a small trash bag, close the bag and shake the heck out of it. Available in different grades and sizes.

A couple of years ago, before I found these, I had some broken glass shards punch through a worn HEPA filter, tore the impellor on the vacuum turbine to shreds in an instant. Embedded glass and aluminum shards in the turbine housing, and died while screaming and convulsing. Was about $90 for a new turbine and motor assembly. I considered buying a whole new vac, but this was one of the nicer stainless steel contractor models.

So cautionary tale. New filters are cheap, and they stay new if you use a prefilter bag.

 

[caveduck]

I also have a circa 1990 Craftsman 6-gal vac. I'm about to change the pleated filter *for the first time in its life*, and it has seen massive use for everything including general garage vacuuming, slurping water off the floor, sawdust, fiberglass dust, and aluminum machining chips for the last several years. The original filter was uber-heavy-duty and after many cleaning cycles has finally developed a couple of small tears. They are out of production so I ordered a couple of import filters because I suspect they won't last as well as the original. Probably getting a FilterPal - that looks like a great idea! I'm not sure what I'd buy today if the old one bites the dust. It is noisy and lacks a round exhaust port, but I'm probably going to use it until it croaks. Festool is tempting for sure...

 

[Woody's Workshop]

I was back the WEN website yesterday to tease myself.
I noticed they had a 5HP shop vac.
WEN has been around a long time and has a history of reliability and decent prices.
Might be worth checking into.

 

[alexzogh]

I have a Milwaukee wet vac which uses their battery pack system, I believe most brands do too. I find it very handy, and just as powerful as the plug in version.

 

[Huxter]

My shop vac ALWAYS get caught on it's cord! Frustrating. I wished many times for a cordless vac. Maybe it's time to look into battery technology again?

 

[Hobie1dog]

Infinitely more expensive, but if you want a vacuum to last consider the Festool. It is the last vacuum you will ever buy. The mini might be a good choice. I have a 26 and the sustainer model. Both have their uses and are extremely high quality tools. Be careful though, if you get one you will then want more of their tools and that is beyond a slippery slope.

+1 the older I get the more I resist buying cheap stuff. The Festool stuff has a tremendous reliability history, I just cannot afford it on social security.

 

[rharshberger]

A worthy addition to the ShopVac is the FilterPal prefilter. This is a fleece cloth bag with elastic collar that slips over the pleated HEPA filter. Protects the filter, and prevents clogging with fine dust. The pre filter bag is durable, cleans easily, and with much less mess that the pleated filter. It is washable, but I just slip it into a small trash bag, close the bag and shake the heck out of it. Available in different grades and sizes.

A couple of years ago, before I found these, I had some broken glass shards punch through a worn HEPA filter, tore the impellor on the vacuum turbine to shreds in an instant. Embedded glass and aluminum shards in the turbine housing, and died while screaming and convulsing. Was about $90 for a new turbine and motor assembly. I considered buying a whole new vac, but this was one of the nicer stainless steel contractor models.

So cautionary tale. New filters are cheap, and they stay new if you use a prefilter bag.

View attachment 467497

Another worthy addition is a cyclone dust separator even if it just goes on a 5 gallon bucket, Dust Deputy being one brand.
I have two shop vacs one a Craftsman (vintage at least 20+ years, it was my wifes grandfathers), and a 20ish year old Rigid, the Craftsman I use for collecting the dust off my thickness planer, the Rigid for shop cleanup. I also have a Harbor Freight dust collector that is hooked up to most stationary shop tools (especially the table saw), but it can also be adapted for use with shop vac hoses.

 

[beeblebrox]

A worthy addition to the ShopVac is the FilterPal prefilter. This is a fleece cloth bag with elastic collar that slips over the pleated HEPA filter. Protects the filter, and prevents clogging with fine dust. The pre filter bag is durable, cleans easily, and with much less mess that the pleated filter. It is washable, but I just slip it into a small trash bag, close the bag and shake the heck out of it. Available in different grades and sizes.

A couple of years ago, before I found these, I had some broken glass shards punch through a worn HEPA filter, tore the impellor on the vacuum turbine to shreds in an instant. Embedded glass and aluminum shards in the turbine housing, and died while screaming and convulsing. Was about $90 for a new turbine and motor assembly. I considered buying a whole new vac, but this was one of the nicer stainless steel contractor models.

So cautionary tale. New filters are cheap, and they stay new if you use a prefilter bag.

View attachment 467497

Seriously, How did I not see those before, I need one big time. Super thanks for the tip. I get tons of fine dust from sanding fiberglass and machining graphite... Considering all the abuse I have put my Ridgid shop vac thru, I am satisfied with it, it is at least 25 years old. 6.5 HP 16 gallon. (Note those standard sized vac tops fit onto a standard 35 gallon barrel)