Q: Anyone use Nilfisk Vacuums?

[diyer999]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone of you have used or owns a Nilfisk Wet-Dry Vacuum and what you think of it? How you would rate it on reliability and durability, or anything else you find significant, good or bad? That is all I'd like to know, but I have some other observations mentioned below, if you care to read it.

I'm not sure how reliable they are because all the current models have a circuit board. I thought a simple device like a vacuum would only have an electromagnetic switch to the motor. It appears that when the subject of warranty comes up, the European manufacturers are always reluctant to offer that up front in the tabs that list the specs. I always have to press them about that subject. I think it is a European thing, like they dont think they should have to provide consumers with much of a warranty period, if any. Perhaps I should avoid that brand. Maybe that is a tell-tale sign of things. But I did find it. The Mfr has it listed separately; however, it is more difficult to find this thru some of their distributors.

The prices on Nilfisk are also astronomical compared to Shop Vacs. For example, Lowes had a 12 Gallon Stainless Steel Shop-Vac for sale on Black Friday reduced from $100 to $40. So, for a $400 to $700 Nilfisk, you could have purchased an entire pallet of the Shop-Vacs and still had money left over. That puts them in a different perspective. I Based on that, I think Nilfisk's are a bad value. Perhaps the import tariffs are the reason.

Oh, I do a need something with a Hepa filter.

 

[Musicinabottle]

I think everyone is ******* in the "Tires to cylinders ratio" thread, for those who like to do busy work math, and also the "Shot gun shell under the packages" thread, a story that is at least a year old. (I'm rolling my eyes)

Anyways, I looked at the Fein brand and others in the same quality range, and it's unquestionable that the cheap shop vacuums at Lowes and the like, are far and away the best value period.

 

[stihlntime]

I believe I am correct stating that they mfg the Stihl branded vac which I own. The Stihl unit is fantastic.

 

[Musicinabottle]

Any photos of it?

 

[davewo]

We have Nilfisks at work for cleaning up lead, graphite, ceramic, etc. machining dust. I wish I had one at home. They are super powerful and very quite. I balked at first because ultimately they will just end up being disposed of once filled, but you just can't beat them.

 

[PaulGreen]

My friend uses it at work. He is satisfied, says it's really powerful

 

[Giddyup]

They are great vac's, the model I used at my last job had a Heppa filter (really fine), similar to Dyson vacs, and could be used to remove asbestos and other hazardous dusts...

Glenn

 

[diyer999]

We have Nilfisks at work for cleaning up lead, graphite, ceramic, etc. machining dust. I wish I had one at home. They are super powerful and very quite. I balked at first because ultimately they will just end up being disposed of once filled, but you just can't beat them.

Hello, uh, what do you mean by they will be disposed of once filled up? You cant possibly mean that. Is that a typo of sorts?

Or are you referring to the FILTER ???

 

[Musicinabottle]

Hello, uh, what do you mean by they will be disposed of once filled up? You cant possibly mean that. Is that a typo of sorts?

I saw that myself and was wondering about it too. I could just imagine.......... "Okay, that one's full, toss it in the garbage and go grab another one in the box from the shelf full of them....

 

[Monte]

Nilfisk made vacuums for Festool in the past....

 

[LawnBoy-5247]

I work for a Stihl dealer, I cannot confirm that their vacuums are made by Nilfisk but I will say that the Stihl vacuums are excellent. I have not used the SE122 professional model but they look very nice. We have a SE62 that we use for the shop and it preforms excellently. It is hooked up as dust collection for our automatic chain grinder it is used everyday for several hours we have had no problems in the two years it has been used.

 

[amac70]

i have a rebranded nilfisk best shop vac i have hands down, (have 2 others) quite, powerful, the model i have also has tool activated start and a pulsing function that turns it on and off so its not running the whole time if you don't want it to be. There fabric bags also kick ***. Mine will also back blow through the filter to clean it, without taking it apart.

 

[6PTsocket]

We had a bunch of them at work. You can get parts because I did repairs. They were hepa but not wet or dry. They are damn expensive. I was never awed by them as being anything super special. We changed the bag when they filled up.....LOL!!

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[bill300d]

I saw that myself and was wondering about it too. I could just imagine.......... "Okay, that one's full, toss it in the garbage and go grab another one in the box from the shelf full of them....

I have heard of this before. It has to do with contamination exposure and clean up if I remember correctly. It was cheaper than trying to contain and clean when emptying.

 

[dnschmidt]

Nilfisk are INDUSTRY STANDARD in the semiconductor industry. We had them everywhere in the clean rooms at STMicroelectronics and they were used to clean the production equipment and were HEPA rated which is mandatory in a Class 1 cleanroom. You can't go wrong when you buy the best and they're the best.

 

[tarbellb]

They are also specific to certain industries, if you are doing general demo and basic DIY look no further then Ridgid.

But if dust collection, HEPA, and Auto Tool Start are on your checklist then the European brands like Nilfisk, Festool, Fein, Bosch, Star, and others are a excellent vacuum.

I bought one specifically for woodworking dust collection and Auto Tool Start that turn on when you pull the trigger of the tool plugged in. Its amazing how clean and quiet these vacuums make things.

But if you are trying to **** 60yrs worth of **** out basements, hog up debris, or just plain beat the **** out of a shop vac then the Ridgids are a excellent value.

 

[BikerDad]

Niflisk makes vacs for a number of other companies, including apparently Stihl and Mirka. I have a Mirka with tool start and it's very quiet. Those two features alone make it worthwhile compared to a regular American style shopvac. Costs of the HEPA filters vary widely on the Niflisk made vacs, so if you're considering one and need HEPA, do your homework.

I won't be using my Mirka for wet applications, that role will remain the provence of my Craftsman.

 

[bullnerd]

We had the explosion proof ones at work. They run on air pressure, not electric. VERY nice! And no static charge in the dust, so it slides right out of the collection pan with out puffing all over the place.

We had one electric one also. Also a very nice machine. The hose was a little stiff and could get annoying, but machine never broke and it was used all day long to clean up VERY fine diamond turned machine dust.

 

[ultgar]

I'm a Nilfisk dealer and have been using their "blue line" vacuums since the late 90's before WAP was purchased by Alto and then Nilfisk. Their Attix series (30, 33, 44 and 50) are commercial grade and should last a lifetime. You can still purchase units without circuit boards....the basic models without autostart and speed control are wired from the switch right to the motor (no board).

Their best units right now (in the Nilfisk/Alto blue line) are the Attix 33 and 44.

 

[diyer999]

. . . I won't be using my Mirka for wet applications, that role will remain the provence of my Craftsman.

Good idea. I should be doing that as well.

Then what would be a good dedicated Nilfisk dry vac model ?

 

[diyer999]

We had the explosion proof ones at work. They run on air pressure, not electric. VERY nice! And no static charge in the dust

How common are vacuum explosions ? I need to vac up some silica dust -- obviously no hydrocarbons there, but I have recently learned that virtually any fine dust creates an explosion risk if concentrated enough, and then all it takes is a spark . . . imagine working in a corn silo and then being blown to bits because you lit up one of your lucky [unlucky] strikes.

 

[diyer999]

I'm a Nilfisk dealer and have been using their "blue line" vacuums since the late 90's before WAP was purchased by Alto and then Nilfisk. Their Attix series (30, 33, 44 and 50) are commercial grade and should last a lifetime. You can still purchase units without circuit boards....the basic models without autostart and speed control are wired from the switch right to the motor (no board).

Their best units right now (in the Nilfisk/Alto blue line) are the Attix 33 and 44.

I think the Attix 33 44 are not a good value, when compared to the entry Alto line. I like the Attix "if" it can be purchased as the three way filter system. But one apparent problem I find with Nilfisk is that their product specifications and features listed in their literature does not match other Nilfisk literature sources. For example I looked closely at the Danish web pages, then Canadian, then usa, then the owners manuals, then the service manuals, then some distributors web sites, and I honestly cannot tell what you really get and what you don't. The last thing I want to do is have to send something back to the seller just because the company did not edit their data competently. Seriously, I have read Amazon reviews where buyers have talked about how much of a hassles that is -- and the buyer often pays the return shipping cost. I can easily fathom some customer service person saying that feature you claim you did not get is not listed in "our" usa version, ergo, it is your fault. And they talk about how something was listed as having this and that feature, only to receive something different. that's bait and switch. I had talked to a few people interested in Nilfisk vacs but they backed off for this reason -- they couldn't tell what features the models they liked really had. I mean the photos themselves show it different from the literature.

The other issues are that even though I like the Attix line, it costs twice what the same gallon size plain vanilla Alto can, yet what do you get for twice your money? Not twice the warranty, not twice the amperage, not twice the HP, not twice the material thickness, not twice the number of filters (this ), not twice the cfms, not twice as quiet. It is as if you only get a tiny bit of each spec more, another bait and switch feeling to me. I do still like the product, but in the end, I wasn't sure what literature source was the most accurate, the least inaccurate ???

 

[ultgar]

I think the Attix 33 44 are not a good value, when compared to the entry Alto line. I like the Attix "if" it can be purchased as the three way filter system. But one apparent problem I find with Nilfisk is that their product specifications and features listed in their literature does not match other Nilfisk literature sources. For example I looked closely at the Danish web pages, then Canadian, then usa, then the owners manuals, then the service manuals, then some distributors web sites, and I honestly cannot tell what you really get and what you don't. The last thing I want to do is have to send something back to the seller just because the company did not edit their data competently. Seriously, I have read Amazon reviews where buyers have talked about how much of a hassles that is -- and the buyer often pays the return shipping cost. I can easily fathom some customer service person saying that feature you claim you did not get is not listed in "our" usa version, ergo, it is your fault. And they talk about how something was listed as having this and that feature, only to receive something different. that's bait and switch. I had talked to a few people interested in Nilfisk vacs but they backed off for this reason -- they couldn't tell what features the models they liked really had. I mean the photos themselves show it different from the literature.

The other issues are that even though I like the Attix line, it costs twice what the same gallon size plain vanilla Alto can, yet what do you get for twice your money? Not twice the warranty, not twice the amperage, not twice the HP, not twice the material thickness, not twice the number of filters (this ), not twice the cfms, not twice as quiet. It is as if you only get a tiny bit of each spec more, another bait and switch feeling to me. I do still like the product, but in the end, I wasn't sure what literature source was the most accurate, the least inaccurate ???

The Attix 33/44's have all the latest tech but I personally use 2 Wap SQ10's that I bought back 12-15 years ago. I sold Festool vacs for years and their engineering and performance is on par if not better than Alto. I used to do my own testing of noise levels and suction with a B&K spectrum analyzer and a digital vacuum gauge because the printed specs were all over the place.

 

[tarbellb]

I believe Nilfisk has a very comprehensive literature breakdown (table) on the nomenclature for model # = features.

Found it on their website once, seemed to help me figure out whats what.

Also- Listen to Ultgar, its what he does...