What Vacuum for garage?

[NO1SMAD]

It makes me happy to see the Beam in TheShrines post. I put the beam in my home 10 years ago and it is by far the best peice of equitment that my home owns. Water heaters (****) furnace (****) washer and dryer (****) you get the point....The beam is american made and it shows. My wife sweeps our house and everything in it including me and the dog. I cant say it enough one great peice of equitment.

 

[Bojans]

So after a few months how are you guys still liking the Vac Master? I haven't picked one up yet but am feeling the urge again.

 

[67pete300]

Yup. Still like it.

 

[rao]

I bought one and am very happy with it.

 

[heffneil]

I bought the bissell yesterday. I haven't had time to hang it up yet but I liked the longer cord given that the cars are rarely in the garage. The thinner tube (someone said 1 1/4") makes sense given the length. Plus what will I be vacuuming up from the car that I should be sucking up that is larger? Usually its just a pile of cheerios or the cereal of the morning!

Neil

 

[unimog1300]

My building is 30' X 60' with a 16' ceiling. It also has a 13' deep 60' long second floor over the one bay. It's really more like a mezzanine. I was using a Craftsman shop vac to pick up saw dust, dirt, leaves etc. It got real old real fast dragging that thing around behind me, not to mention the cord wanting to get caught on stuff. That's when I decided I needed a central vac unit in my building. I did a lot of looking around on the Internet and ended up buying 2 units from Central Vacuum Stores out of Florida. Here's the link (hope it works), https://www.centralvacuumstores.com/
I sent them an email on a Saturday morning about "closeouts" they mention on their website, describing the size of the building and what I would be picking up with it, then went on about my business around the house never expecting a call until the following week. Within an hour they called me back and left a message on my cell phone. When I returned the call they said they had some units that would work great for what I was after. The units were taken out of new homes that never sold and still had the manufacturer's warranty. They recommended the garage kit for attachments and 50' of hose to make it to each end of the building and upstairs. I ordered 2 of them, each with the 50' of hose and attachments, the other one went into my wife's shop. Each unit was $175 shipped to my door. I don't have the invoice in front of me for a price on the hose and attachments. My vac unit is mounted in the bathroom that's about in the middle of a wall. I mounted it and hung the hose and attachments inside the bathroom and plugged it in. I did not vent it outside or put a muffler on it. I did add a muffler on my wife's and it is just fine (not vented). It has been one of the best things I have spent money on for either one of our buildings. The noise for me isn't really an issue in my building. It's not any louder than my shop vac. If it gets to be annoying then I will get a $13 muffler from them like I did for my wife.

I personally don't think there is any comparison using a shop vac after going with a central vac unit. I pull the hose off the hook and go to town. It doesn't get much easier than that. I don't see any "dirt or dust" in the bathroom because of not venting to the outside. They said this unit does not need to be vented. My Vacuflo in the house has to be vented outside.

YMMV
Steve

 

[Distinctive-Garages.com]

Probably a good time to remind everyone that we have our Electrolux Garage Vac on sale for GJ members....$275 with free shipping. (reg. $299 + shipping)

The GARAGE VAC includes:
- Powerful 550 air watt power unit with bagless collection receptacle
-32' stretch hose to clean up to 1,000 sq.ft.
-Crevice tools and car detailing kit
-Rec. Max Sq. Ft. - 3,500
-Motor Size - 5.7
-Suction Power (water lift) - 138”
-Airflow (cfm) - 122
-Maximum Amps - 14.3
-Voltage - 120
-Dirt Receptacle Capacity - 4 gal
-Venting Option - Yes
-Built-In Utility Inlet - Yes
-under 70 decibels
-5 year limited-lifetime warranty.

Quick and painless sale through Paypal as well.

__________________

 

[ket-tek]

Been looking for a decent wall mount vac that didn't cost a ton, so I finally went ahead and ordered the Vacmaster since costco still has it on sale for @ $99 ($30 off) for one more week. And everyone seems pleased with it so far.

It should be here soon.. Costco's killer return policies make it worth a try..

I like the idea of a central vac unit, but at the extra cost and not being able to be used as a wet vac pushed me back to a standard shop vac. I've had a few roll arounds of different brands over the years and been happy with the performance of all of them. They are great on the jobsite but just get in the way on the floor for home garage use.

 

[Stargeezer]

I picked-up a Shop Vac ultra quiet model: 6 HP/14 Gallon roll around. It is way quieter than any normal shop vac type. Put a wall mounted shop vac in the utility room in the house with an extra hose. Easy to get to any room fast with that. But for the garage-I went old school but quiet and bought a car kit and extra goodies and filters for it. Seems fine for that: plenty of power and the toned-down DB's of that model make it decent to use. I have outlets along each wall down low just for using vacs etc. Picked it up on sale at Rockler.

 

[ket-tek]

I finally got the ol vacmaster deal. I read up on it and comparible models, but for $99 this came out ahead. I installed it fairly quick and tried it out. It's very powerful and much quieter than I though it would be after reading other posts about how loud vacs can be. And the remote has come in real handy to have around..

For $99 I recommend it. If your range is over that , then maybe look more at real central vac systems out and peice together something that will work for you.

 

[Jason B]

Cool! I looked at some of your other pics and saw you had some lighted mounted under your Cabinets? Where did you get those and are they hard to hook up?

 

[ket-tek]

Cool! I looked at some of your other pics and saw you had some lighted mounted under your Cabinets? Where did you get those and are they hard to hook up?

Ah, you noticed.. I just started messing with a couple different lighting ideas last night. Watch the Gladiator build thread I will be going over undercabinet lighting in the next posts there.

 

[Jason B]

OK, please post a link here too for that.

 

[vectorw8015]

Well I ended up with the Bissell also, the price at my local Meijer was $99 on clearance. I could not pass it up. So far I am very happy with its performance. Its a lot better than wheeling around the big shop vac.

 

[skeletonizer]

I just picked up this Shop Vac brand Hang Up Pro model. It was regularly $85 and on sale plus a $25 mail in rebate I got it for about $45 with tax.

Here is my pro and con list.

Pro:
Made in USA
3 year warranty
***** like crazy for 4.5 horse
long hose
quiet
inexpensive (on sale with rebate)


Con:
No real provision for hanging hose or accessories
cheap wall bracket
overpriced at $85 IMO


The fact that this vac is US made has the 3 year warranty, and was less than $50 is what made me buy it. As far as function it appears to be the equal of the RIDGID and Craftsman models that I looked at.

Sadly it doesn't come close in perceived quality and features. No way would I have paid $90 for it.

I am OK with the fact that it looks like a vacuum and not a space ship though.

 

[Ennco Bryce]

Has anyone used the new Home Depot bucket vacuum? I don't know if it's new or not, but I noticed it the other day when I was there. It fits on top of their orange bucket and is only $20. I'm sure it's not as nice as the ones that cost more, but for a small vacuum that could easily be made to hang on the wall it's got me thinking about it. I currently have one of the HUGE Rigid ones and with the floor space it's taking up I could easily stuff another motorcycle in the 'ol garage.

 

[Costner]

In my old garage I took my small portable Sears vac and hung it on a bracket from the wall. I used a couple of zip ties to prevent it from pulling off and it seemed to work for cars.

My father had a shop-vac brand wall mouted unit (the same one skeletonizer shows in his post above although my father's was red instead of orange) but the motor burned up in about a year. He replaced it with a standalone model on wheels so I used that opportunity to take the long hose and attachments as well as the wall mount for the attachments and I used them for my setup.

To be honest, those small vacs just don't have all that much power however, so if I was doing something other than a small job I would just use my Ridgid vac since it was WAY more powerful. If I were to do it all over again, I think I'd buy just one large powerful vac but design a wall mount unit to keep it in place. That way when I needed mobility I could take it off, but the rest of the time it would be right where it needs to be and out of the way. A properly sized shelf and a good tarp strap is about all it would take to install one. Get a 15 or 20 foot hose and it would probably end up staying on the wall about 95% of the time.

 

[Zrexxer]

I bought the Hoover GUV from Amazon.com for about $130 and I love it. The hose lets me get out into the driveway and vacuum out my floorboards without dragging around a shop vac and an extension cord. So far it's been a complete success.

 

[Joe69]

I have both a 10 gallon, and a 1 gallon shopvac, I almost never use the 10 gallon one anymore. I only use it for cleaning up drywall sanding dust, because I don't want to damage my beloved 1 gallon with the fine particles.

Joe

 

[skeletonizer]

Has anyone used the new Home Depot bucket vacuum? I don't know if it's new or not, but I noticed it the other day when I was there. It fits on top of their orange bucket and is only $20. I'm sure it's not as nice as the ones that cost more, but for a small vacuum that could easily be made to hang on the wall it's got me thinking about it. I currently have one of the HUGE Rigid ones and with the floor space it's taking up I could easily stuff another motorcycle in the 'ol garage.

Haven't used one but I was pissed when I saw them on the shelf. I had that idea 15 years ago and my wife kept on me to get a patent attorney and tie it up.

I didn't.

 

[lawfarm]

I too bought the Costco Bissel Garage Pro, and love it. I have it in the corner of my 2.5 car garage, by the garage door, and I can reach the whole garage, and reach 30' down the driveway (to vacuum out cars outside). It works great!

 

[bmwpower]

My building is 30' X 60' with a 16' ceiling. It also has a 13' deep 60' long second floor over the one bay. It's really more like a mezzanine. I was using a Craftsman shop vac to pick up saw dust, dirt, leaves etc. It got real old real fast dragging that thing around behind me, not to mention the cord wanting to get caught on stuff. That's when I decided I needed a central vac unit in my building. I did a lot of looking around on the Internet and ended up buying 2 units from Central Vacuum Stores out of Florida. Here's the link (hope it works), https://www.centralvacuumstores.com/
I sent them an email on a Saturday morning about "closeouts" they mention on their website, describing the size of the building and what I would be picking up with it, then went on about my business around the house never expecting a call until the following week. Within an hour they called me back and left a message on my cell phone. When I returned the call they said they had some units that would work great for what I was after. The units were taken out of new homes that never sold and still had the manufacturer's warranty. They recommended the garage kit for attachments and 50' of hose to make it to each end of the building and upstairs. I ordered 2 of them, each with the 50' of hose and attachments, the other one went into my wife's shop. Each unit was $175 shipped to my door. I don't have the invoice in front of me for a price on the hose and attachments. My vac unit is mounted in the bathroom that's about in the middle of a wall. I mounted it and hung the hose and attachments inside the bathroom and plugged it in. I did not vent it outside or put a muffler on it. I did add a muffler on my wife's and it is just fine (not vented). It has been one of the best things I have spent money on for either one of our buildings. The noise for me isn't really an issue in my building. It's not any louder than my shop vac. If it gets to be annoying then I will get a $13 muffler from them like I did for my wife.

I personally don't think there is any comparison using a shop vac after going with a central vac unit. I pull the hose off the hook and go to town. It doesn't get much easier than that. I don't see any "dirt or dust" in the bathroom because of not venting to the outside. They said this unit does not need to be vented. My Vacuflo in the house has to be vented outside.

YMMV
Steve

Steve,
Any more info or picts on this since you installed it?
This seems like a good option. How's the noise?

 

[peterp]

I also bought the Bissel and couldn't be happier. It's much, much better than the Craftsman wall vac it's replacing. Much quieter, much more suction power, great attachments, wall mounts to organize everything (hose and tools under the unit), and 30 foot hose.

The craftsman was too noisy and ineffective and the (I think) 20 foot hose was never long enough. It is a small diameter hose on the Bissel, but works for 95% of what I want to do (I also have a 6 hp Craftsman shop vac with a huge hose, but never use it because it's so bulky).

One concern I have with the Bissel is that the extension tube is not that strong, I already broke one of them when cleaning the floor, but otherwise this vacuum is great.

 

[Auzivision]

I have the under rated Craftsman system. It’s not too bad given that it costs less than $100; fine for cleaning cars and other small jobs. The hose included is to short, but I’ve got a few extenders.

A nice feature about this one is how easy it comes off the bracket and it’s very portable. I still find myself using my older more powerful shop vac that rolls around on the floor for bigger jobs.

Keeping the filter clean helps a lot too and my favorite tip is to take it out in the middle of the yard blast it with a gas powered leaf blower… cleans up in about 20 seconds!

 

[Jason B]

I have one of these:

It has a 12 amp motor and a 32 foot hose. I love it. The detailing tools it comes with are terrific. It's also rather quiet.

I have the DeWalt wet/dry vac in the above post as well. It gets used a lot, in the house, garage, the vehicles, and it goes RVing with me as well.

Still didn't get a garage vac yet. Was deciding between the Bissell and the vacmaster. The just put the Bissell on sale here for $149 though. Anyone know how the Vacmaster compares?

 

[ZRX61]

These were on clearance last year, a bunch of us bought them for (I think) $19.99... Mine is only used for the truck & stuff near the front of the garage, regular shop vac takes care of the rest.

I got this one from HD. Has 7ft immediate hose and a 14ft attachment hose. 21ft!

http://www.ridgid.com/Tools/WD5500-Wall-Vac/index.htm

Looks like another member has it too
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2287

 

[Jason B]

I also bought the Bissel and couldn't be happier. It's much, much better than the Craftsman wall vac it's replacing. Much quieter, much more suction power, great attachments, wall mounts to organize everything (hose and tools under the unit), and 30 foot hose.

The craftsman was too noisy and ineffective and the (I think) 20 foot hose was never long enough. It is a small diameter hose on the Bissel, but works for 95% of what I want to do (I also have a 6 hp Craftsman shop vac with a huge hose, but never use it because it's so bulky).

One concern I have with the Bissel is that the extension tube is not that strong, I already broke one of them when cleaning the floor, but otherwise this vacuum is great.

I just got this. Nice suction.

For anyone that has this, is air supposed to blow out the top left and right sides??? Please check yours and reply. Not sure if this is normal! Want to know before I return it. I called Bissel and they said this wasn't normal, but I don't believe them.

 

[kartracer23]

I just got this. Nice suction.

For anyone that has this, is air supposed to blow out the top left and right sides??? Please check yours and reply. Not sure if this is normal! Want to know before I return it. I called Bissel and they said this wasn't normal, but I don't believe them.

I'm just happy you got one after two and a half years.

 

[Greatbear]

The air blowing from the top is normal. The motor has a separate cooling fan from the vacuum airflow, the air you feel from the top vents is from the motor cooling setup. Cheaper household vac route the exhaust from the vacuum impeller through the motor to cool it. This can allow dirt to enter the motor if the filter were to fail. Any wet/dry vac will have the impeller system entirely isolated from the motor to prevent liquids from entering the motor itself under any circumstances.

 

[peterp]

I just got this. Nice suction.

For anyone that has this, is air supposed to blow out the top left and right sides??? Please check yours and reply. Not sure if this is normal! Want to know before I return it. I called Bissel and they said this wasn't normal, but I don't believe them.

I would have sworn this was not normal because I hadn't noticed it, but I just went out and the same thing happens on mine. Most of the air comes out of the exit port on the right, but there is quite a bit of air also coming out all around the circular top. Either it is normal or both of ours are broken.

Glad you like the vac. I've had it for a couple years now and still really like it. I vacuum a lot more often because it is so quiet and the long hose and wall mount make it really convenient to just grab it when I need it.

 

[slush]

I know this is an old thread, but if anyone is still looking for a shopvac, the Bissel Garage Pro is on sale for 99.00 (5.00 shipping).

http://home.woot.com/

 

[Jason B]

Awesome deal!