After my recent head-to-head shop-vac review (FHB #240), I was approached by Pulse-Bac, a maker of high-end vacs that I’d never heard of before. I decided the PB-550H would be worth a follow-up after reading that it’s 99.99% efficient up to 0.3 microns at 140 cfm—a pretty stellar rating. The price tag also set it apart: It’s twice the cost of some of the best models in my review. Curious how such a premium vac would compare to the crowd, I replicated the tests from the previous review in order to gain similar qualitative and quantitative data for this additional contender.
The tool is centered around an 8-gal. steel-drum tank. The only other features on its no-nonsense exterior are a few handles and a pair of wheels. There were several things I didn’t like about the housing and physical makeup of the PB-550H, but let me do the vacuum justice by first describing how well it works.
Like the Makita VC4710 and the DeWalt DWV012, the Pulse-Bac PB-550H blows air over the filters to help keep them clean—a highly effective method of maintaining suction. The PB-550H vacuumed up a 60-lb. bag of concrete in 2 minutes 18 seconds, a 25-lb. bag of powdered drywall compound in 1 minute 30 seconds, and all but the largest of nails directly into its tank. Even then, the 12d framing nails went easily into the hose. These results alone put the PB-550H with the top contenders from the full head-to-head test, but the real performance difference could be seen and felt when the vac was connected to various tools.
I have no quantitative method for measuring how much dust was kept out of the air, but the Pulse-Bac worked at least as well as the Festool and Makita vacuums from the full review, if not slightly better. And even when vacuuming fine concrete dust, there was never a noticeable loss of suction. I was able to use the vacuum for hours on end without needing to clean the filters. With the amount of suction the vacuum produced, it vented out an amazingly small amount of air with never a trace of dust.
The PB-550H has three filters instead of the standard one or two: There are two easily accessible twist-on HEPA filters rated at 100% efficiency at 2 microns and above, and a third HEPA filter located inside the motor housing that is rated at 99.99% efficiency at 0.3 microns and above. The third filter is more difficult to access, but it should rarely need to be cleaned or replaced.
There were a few things I didn’t like about the PB-550H. Unlike most other vacuums, it has just two wheels and can be rolled around only when tilted backward. At all other times, the bottom of the steel tank rests directly on the ground. That is fine for working over a subfloor or slab, but not finished flooring. Also, instead of a top handle, there are two small handles at the side of the motor housing, making it difficult to carry the vac with one hand. Despite this vac’s high-tech performance, its fit is pretty rough: It relies on thumbscrews rather than latches to attach the motor housing to the tank.
Despite its steep price tag, I can see this vacuum being valuable for lead or asbestos abatement, or for use in shops or on job sites where fine-dust production is an everyday occurrence.
Price: $1000
Capacity: 8 gal.
Weight: 30 lb.
Noise level: 76 db.
EPA compliant: Yes
HEPA filter included: Yes
Filter cleaning: Yes
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