Looking for Shop Vac Recommendations

[pimbi]

Looking to buy a new shop vac. My first one lasted 5 years and the newer models/brands I've purchased 'die' within months. I'm comparing specs for buying a new one and willing to pay up to $250, thought to ask for recommendations on here.
Main use would be for cleaning up after repairs/construction at my home and residential properties I rent out. Also used for cleaning out my car after camping trips.

Thank you!

 

[PelicanPines]

Ridgid ... nice stuff.

 

[matt_i]

I don't have one to give you but if my old 5 gallon Shop Vac ever stops working I'll take a hard look at either a Stihl Corded or a Vac-U-Maid stationary vac.

The other possibilty would be looking for a stainless cannister vac, good-used, with something like an Ametek motor in it. A little heavier but the "duty cycle" its intended for is top-notch.

 

[NUTTSGT]

If they are dying that fast, are you keeping the filter clean so the motor doesn't burn up ?

 

[Firebrick43]

I have a ridgid Wd1450 going on maybe 6 or 8 years now with daily (1hr on average) use. This has been replaced with the hd1400 model.

Unless you step up to a fien or Festool the ridgid is one of the quietest and best value.

 

[Jking24]

I have a small ridged 2.5 gallon that i have put through hell between cleaning up drywall and fiberglass boat restoration work. Not nearly daily use but I've had it for close to 8-9 years now and it's still as good as the day i bought it

 

[WisJim]

I have 5 or 6 all Shopvac except one craftsman, only one Shopvac bought new o er15 years ago. All the rest were$10 to $20 at garage sales and I have had no failures yet I would look at garage sales, Craigslist etc.

 

[nadogail]

Mine is more than 40 years old and still useful, I bought it at Sears in Honolulu.

 

[My Old Tools]

I went with this, portable and strong.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074BR5RV9/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[Lynden]

Have you considered buying a small vacuum and putting it on one of these carts? Adding casters would make it mobile.

With a Dust Deputy you don't need a large vacuum because everything goes into the bucket. Check out the 5 HP Ridgid WD4070. It's highly-rated and reasonably-quiet. It could be removed from the cart and being small would be convenient to use when cleaning your car. Total cost = $154 plus tax.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-...-Filter-Hose-and-Accessories-WD4070/202077241

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YX6P48R/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[Ralf11]

Fein

 

[Jakemedic]

My craftsman is over 25 years old now. 2 filters so I can be drying one while using the other. Other than hoses, it has never done me wrong. Now I don’t mean you should go out and buy a craftsman vac, just whatever you get, take care of it and it will take care if you. I don’t think I would buy anything from Sears any more.

 

[slowtwitch73]

I've got a Craftsman that is 15+ yrs old that amazes me what a work horse it is. Wet/dry..total abuse, and it just keeps going. Parts available many places.

I inherited a Fein from my dad and it was a total pos. I like Fein stuff, but it was joke.

 

[kaymccampbell]

You could buy one of these-
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GJGMP2/?tag=atomicindus08-20
And hotrod the remains of your old shopvac.

 

[4xdog]

Didn't we have almost exactly this thread less than a week ago? To the op -- try the search option. It's not perfect, but it oughta find a few threads that are right on track with what you're looking for.

 

[remagenman]

I bought a Ridgid about 5 years ago, used it for everything and when I had to dig a trench with 2 grounding rods, I used it to **** out the dirt/rocks because the holes had to be deep, worked like a champ and still going strong, using it as a shop dust collector.

I don't usually endorse stuff but that and the Ridgid 7 1/4 battery circular saw are beasts!

 

[olytdi]

My over 20 year-old Ridgid (the one that the top removes and turns into a leaf blower) is running strong as ever. It's been one of the best tools I've had.

I've had to replace the cord, the on/off switch, and twice, the metal motor cooling fan. But parts have mostly been available and I've not found a contender in the price point.

I'd buy another in a heartbeat if they're as well made today as they were in the late '90's. Alternatively, I'd pick up used ones if they presented themselves.

 

[acer66]

For a basic shop vac it would be rigid for me.

 

[Negen]

Nilfisk is good too.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[itb45]

I just got this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-...-Filter-Hose-and-Accessories-WD4070/202077241

For dragging around garage its nice, never tips over cause its low and wide.
Comes with a bag and regular filter.
I really like having a bag, keeps the filter clean and the shop vac clean, if I'm doing a lot of dusty or large volume dirt work, I use this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Dustopp...ia-with-2-5-in-Hose-36-in-Long-HD12/302643445

stops the bag from filling up fast and keeps the fine dust out.

I just recently re-did my detached garage, added drywall and grinded the floor for epoxy, with the dust stopper and new vacuum it worked great. I ended up with 2 5 gal buckets of pure concrete dust when I was done. Between dust stopper, the bag, and filter I never once saw any dust make it through and get blown out.

I never use the wet function, so buying a big huge one has never made sense to me. Look at the motor specs, I made sure to get one with the highest amps, as I wanted the most sucking power, shop-vac usually lists the CFM and sealed pressure height on their website too, makes it easy to find one for your needs.

If you want a really small once, since you sounds like you might be transporting it, I jsut got this one for the house and cars, its tiny but has some serious power: http://www.shopvac.com/product/shop...k-hp-all-around-ez-wet-dry-vac-catnum:5895400

 

[e36jon]

No doubt I am off on price but I would second the Fein recommendations. Three things about them stand out for me:

1) They are quiet. I find really loud noises fatiguing and or painful, so not having to put on ear-muffs / ear-plugs to use my shop vac is a big plus.

2) A bypass cooling system. This means the motor is cooled independently of the air that is being used to vacuum up material, so a plugged filter doesn't kill the motor.

3) The remote trigger function for use with other tools. I have dust collection on most of my tools (track-saw, router, sanders, miter saw, etc.) and I really value this feature.

A bonus recommendation for getting a HEPA filter with whatever vac you get. I have an old house and the peace of mind I get knowing that I am not just putting all of the nasty stuff I vacuumed up back into the air is worth any extra money that HEPA costs.

I have had my Fein for 17 years now and it's one of the best tool investments I have ever made.

 

[santagary]

Now I know why my wife has always loved working with and prefers Rigid tools

 

[Brent T]

Now I know why my wife has always loved working with and prefers Rigid tools

Oh my.

 

[67carl]

My old Craftsman 5 gallon is on it's last legs (mostly made of plastic that doesn't fit together very well anymore). Coincidentally I am looking for one when I found this thread. My use is not professional, more odd homeowner jobs around the house. I find the 5 gallon sizes are too big to move around easily and to store, given what I use it for, so I'm going smaller.

I know there's a lot of opinions of Harbor Freight but with the reviews and price, this one seems like a good bet. Maybe it would fit the OPs use as well. Low risk to try given the low cost.

https://www.harborfreight.com/3-gallon-3-peak-horsepower-wetdry-vacuum-64753.html

 

[Granite80]

I like my Rigid. Check out my castor upgrade post. I like it a lot more after that!


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[My Old Tools]

My old Craftsman 5 gallon is on it's last legs (mostly made of plastic that doesn't fit together very well anymore). Coincidentally I am looking for one when I found this thread. My use is not professional, more odd homeowner jobs around the house. I find the 5 gallon sizes are too big to move around easily and to store, given what I use it for, so I'm going smaller.

I know there's a lot of opinions of Harbor Freight but with the reviews and price, this one seems like a good bet. Maybe it would fit the OPs use as well. Low risk to try given the low cost.

https://www.harborfreight.com/3-gallon-3-peak-horsepower-wetdry-vacuum-64753.html

The HF 3 gallon has one fatal flaw for use as a real shop vac. The tiny hose clogs all the time and is a pain to unclog. I took mine back and got the beast.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074BR5RV9/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[Firebrick43]

Now I know why my wife has always loved working with and prefers Rigid tools

She told me you still use 3.5” floppies on your computer

 

[rburke65]

I’m a believer in Craftsman and I buy them and Rigid at swap meets,and garage sales when I find them.

 

[67carl]

The HF 3 gallon has one fatal flaw for use as a real shop vac. The tiny hose clogs all the time and is a pain to unclog. I took mine back and got the beast.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074BR5RV9/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I was looking to get away from 5 gallon size because they are ungainly. That one is also 5 gallon but looks a bit more portable/maneuverable. Is that accurate? It has some mixed reviews - how do you like it?

 

[tinmanwpk]

I have used a lot of vacs at my sheet metal shop over the last quarter century. None have lasted and worked as well as the Rigid vacs

 

[BearsFan315]

I have the rigid 1450 and bought several various accessories, and that thing ***** !! in a great way. i love it. i use it weekly to clean up the garage, used it to **** up debris and leaves from around koi pond, one of the best bangs for the buck out there @!! also we have several of them at work and they beat the **** out of those things but they keep going.

 

[mcspeed]

If you vacuum fireplace ashes, virtually all of the vacs mentioned will plug almost immediately with the exception of the Fein. I have a Bosch and it is 17+ years old. Original filters and works like the day I bought it. Only thing I don’t like is it uses a smaller hose that the Craftsman/Rigid etc. The hepa filters work well and keep the dust inside. The other models I have used seem to spread a lot of dust. It was rather expensive but I gave away 4-5 other vacuums that I didn’t like.


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[tatra]

https://www.pulsebac.com/?gclid=Cj0...uWkZR950ivJia7mGb9wodn54KjSRrCaMaAkh1EALw_wcB

Still gathering info on these .

 

[BPrifty]

My former workplace had a few Ridgid 12 or 14 gallon vacs that we beat the piss out of. We keep a HEPA filter and a bag in them and they seem to run forever. We blow through bags pretty quick if we're wood working. For general cleanup they bags will last a while. One must have I found for general cleanup was Ridgid part #VT2575 (search at HD), worth every penny instead of the crappy hose and accessories that come with the vac. They used to sell in store but it looks like you have to order now

 

[Jeffh40]

Have you considered buying a small vacuum and putting it on one of these carts? Adding casters would make it mobile.

With a Dust Deputy you don't need a large vacuum because everything goes into the bucket. Check out the 5 HP Ridgid WD4070. It's highly-rated and reasonably-quiet. It could be removed from the cart and being small would be convenient to use when cleaning your car. Total cost = $154 plus tax.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-...-Filter-Hose-and-Accessories-WD4070/202077241

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YX6P48R/?tag=atomicindus08-20

That cyclones separator is a pricey little thing but looks pretty cool if it works well .

 

[MarkG]

I bought a Rigid and liked it enough to buy a smaller Rigid as well. Seems that all Rigid tools are built very well and the vacs are no exception, at least in my experience.

However, if 'quiet' is what you care about, this isn't them! Think of them as the 'open headers' of the shop vac world! (POWER!!) Doesn't bother me though----put the ear muffs or plugs in/on and sweep.

 

[BaMaDuDe87]

That cyclones separator is a pricey little thing but looks pretty cool if it works well .

Very easy to make your own also

 

[67carl]

All the recommendations for Rigid has got me looking at them now. This seems like the one that would work for me. Double the cost of the HF one but has a lifetime warranty, better accessories and other things.

 

[pbon]

Where do you find bags? Are they made for just some brands and sizes within the brand? Would bags reduce the filter cleaning interval?

 

[kenners]

I've had several Craftsman shop vacs thru the years. They always seem to end up with a vibration rumble when they are turned on or off. I've got an older Dewalt and seems to be a fairly good shop vac. I purchased a Stihl (thinking SE122) a few years ago and I've been very happy with the Stihl. It's very quiet.