Just a random question. I’ve got 3 shop vacs, a 12 gallon shop vac brand, a Fein Turbo II, and a Festool ct22.
If I’m doing anything cleaning wise I end up reaching for the Shop Vac. It’s got the big hose and seems to have great suction as long as the filter is clean. I also use it to hook up to my table saw and thickness planer for dust collection.
The Fein vac pretty much just goes with the SCMSs for dust collection. I’ve got the small hose on it and it’s way too small for clean up.
The Festool vac just goes with the Festool tools for dust collection. Haven’t used it for clean up yet.
When they’re all set up in the shop it seems like it’s pretty nice to have them all mobile and functional, but on site I usually only have one at a time, and haven’t actually taken the time to rig up adaptors and such so that one vac will do it all.
It just got me wondering how everyone uses their shop vacs and what systems work best for different applications. I’m mostly interested in on-site applications because I’d just as soon get into a real dust-collection system in the shop at some point, but what I’ve got seems to be functional for now.
Paul
Replies
Might just be me, but in my mind, you've got 2 vac's too many. And alot of money not well spent.
I know!!!Actually the only one I'm not sure about right now is the Fein vac. The shop vac is a dragon that can't be slain. The Festool works wonders for what it does, but I don't really use it for cleanup because the small hose gets clogged pretty easily with bigger debris. The Fein vac I had bought before the Festool to be used as dust collection for tools, but it only gets used on the miter saw now.I usually don't get rid of tools because I always end up needing the thing I just got rid of. And I certainly don't mind the convenience of having all the vacs available.It was more about being on the jobsite and the fact that 3 vacs is too much for one location. Right now I bring the shop vac on site for clean up and table saw dust collection. I just use the bag for the miter saw. But all that is hinged on having a place to set up where I can make some dust.Just wondering whether people have found that "perfect" setup for jobsites that lets them do everything.Paul
Between the fein and the festool, what featuires make you favour the one over the other? One of my guys has a fein, and he says his wife hijacked it for the house because itis the best vac she's ever used.
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That's kind of what I'm trying to figure out.I use them mostly for their dedicated purposes. The fein is great, whisper quiet, and good suction. Works great for tool dust collection, and light duty clean up. But when I'm on a jobsite and need a vac it usually involves sucking up chunks of plaster and wood as well as fine dust and smaller debris. The situation that sums that up best is vacuuming out the chunks of plaster that fall between the mudsill and flooring when demoing a wall to put in new doors or windows. That long, thin hose gets plugged up really quick with any larger debris. I could put the bigger hose on there, but then it's clumsier for using with the tools because the smaller hose is so light and easily maneuverable. And I could see how it could become someone's favorite vac for the house because it's really quiet and has GREAT suction for dust and the like.The Festool seems like a great vac, I've only used it with the Festool tools so far and for that it's perfect. But I have the same reservations about the hose size for actually cleaning up anything large and chunky. As to features, I do like the bags. Although they're kind of expensive, and not the most efficient way to go, I do like just popping it out and into the trash (and for Pete's sake they have a little plastic cover that goes over the inlet hole!)
I never use the speed control for the vac, I'm sure it probably helps for some things but I haven't found them yet. Also very quiet, and I'm a sucker for the flat top because you can never have enough places to set things.May sound a bit retentive, but I like when everything does it's particular job really well (as PaulB) was saying as well) so I don't mind having all the vacs, but I'm betting if I try more with either the Fein or Festool, I'll discover that there's ways to use them more efficiently for other purposes.Paul
Ooops, I have three too.I have a big ole sears that Has been relegated to the nastiest muckiest stuff like plaster demo and a big ole Rigid that sees most use nowdays for jobsite cleaning sawdust and shavingsand a PC with bag and smaller hose that I use hooked up to sanders and saws with the autorun switch, or for smaller cleanups. Shucks - forgot I have the wife's older Electrolux too for fine dust control on paint jobs or final cleanups.one other thing - the Rigid or sears I will use as a blower after SR sanding. I close doors off, open a window, turn on the dust catcher machine, and then blow all the dust off the ceilings and walls and crevices around windows and door jambs
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4 here, 5 with the household Dyson And a DC system for shop tools.Same loud Craftsman as you most likely for nasty and lives attached to a stationary belt/drum sander mostly.Rigid that is tool box type, rides in van.
Small Shopvac hooked to a sander for drywall sanding
Med Shopvac for bigger home clean ups ( we are under construction)
And the Dyson for carpeted areas of the home.The DC in the shop is for the tablesaw, bandsaw, sliding miter, planer/jointer and radial arm saws. Just a double bag from Harbor freight, but works well with blast gates and smooth piping.
Well, if you want to count the household, I have a couple more then. What'm I up to now - Six!Do I hear seven anybody?Wife has a good Electrolux home and she has another one to haul around to her jobs. Personally I dislike them, but she won't use anything but Electrolux
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Zorrohood,looks like you may have the same config as I with a Dyson in the house and the Ridgid toolbox style for the shop. Just a suggestion for a trick. The Dyson attachments fit OVER the nozzle on the Dyson but with just a few winds of electric tape they fit INTO the Ridgid shop-vac hose. With just a couple feet of electric tape I was able to double the number of attachments for the Ridgid without sacrificing their usefulness to the Dyson. The wide brush attachment for the Dyson does a very nice job on HW floors when used with the Ridgid's two extensions.Hope this is useful.DD
Just dusted the house in prep. for company, worked like a charm.I have scads of PVC adapters, homemade can connectors and other ways of increasing and reducing all the fittings, I keep a milk crate full od goodies in the shop for just that reason.My dream is still to aquire a whole house air filtration system, we are innundated with dust, and have no central filtration as of yet.
Do I hear seven anybody
5 sears, 4 no name, 1 shop built with 5 HP 240 V motor and 22 inch 1/8" steel plate impeller.
Hard to pass up a $5 deal at a garage sale, even if just for the 2" hose and the chance of a good filter.
The shop built one gets used every week (mostly the grandkids empty the sawdust bin and suck it up again), some of the other have never been used, just take up space <G>.
"Hard to pass up a $5 deal at a garage sale, even if just for the 2" hose and the chance of a good filter. "Definitely, not that we have many yard sales out here.
I do have the parts from a central vac an owner wanted removed.good time to divert this thread a bit...
onto misuse and alternate use incidents with the Vac. Somebody mentioned excavation with one.A caretaker once was using his owner's Craftsman and asked me one day if I could take a look at it for him. He had seen that I had the same kind and mine would suck the warts off a toad but he said his just didn't work well anymore, even tho it was only a couple months old.I'm a helpfull sort of guy, so I said sure, after the crew leaves - busy right now.I was alone when I went to look at it. He was gone too.
He had never emptied it!
When I unsnapped the lid, it practically jumped off, and when I lifted it, you could see the shape of the filter and filter base formed into the sawdust and junk.So I emptied it - once I got finished laughing - and shook the filter off and tried it out - real good suction.Next day, he asked about it, and I said go try it out.Wow, Man, what did you do?Well, when is the last time you emptied the thing?The look on his face was precious.Then after a while he went on to use it as a wetvac with the filter still in place, left the yuckies in it without emptying it, and grew a colony a college student would be proud to have in the back of his closet or refrigerator.I found a Craftsman unit once at the dump.somebody had used it after taking the filter off, and back on, but without the plate washer base to hold it in place. The little plastic nut was on the shaft, the filter was in the base with the dirt, and the plate base was no place to be found.The hose and tools were good though, and the barrel on wheels makes a handy trash bin.
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I use a Rigid or a Craftsman on jobsites. Always outfit them right off the bat with a clean stream, or similar, filter which catches very fine particulate (drywall dust, even fireplace ashes). Plus, these filters can be washed out and seem to last forever.
If I'm in a confined space where there are no windows, or I can't open one to hang a box fan for dust control, I'll pull off the hoses on the vacs and let them run. It does help to keep the dust down (sanding drywall, etc.).
I had a nest of yellow jackets in the stucco wall of my home. They were entering through a small hole in the stucco about 12" above grade. Tried sprays, etc. to kill them, but they just kept coming back. I didn't want to seal the hole because I'd leave a nest in the wall, and have the critters looking for another opening. SO, late one afternoon I pulled the shop vac into place, positioned the hose end about 4" from the entry hole, and flipped it on. It was delightful to watch every yellow jacket that came back to the nest sucked into that shop vac.
After dark I shut it down and plugged both ends of the vac. Next day, bunch of dead warriors in the vac, and no more activity at the nest.
I wonder how they got by on jobsites in the days before vacs.
DIA
I have two good friends that use em for hive removal.
Reostat to drop motor speed, some kind of removable flap with screen over it on the side. Bees don't get hurt, just real dopey and confused for a while.
I'm toying with getting involved with one of them in a little sideline, actually. Seems that while guys that do swarm removal from trees, side of the house, etc. do it for cheap, guys that go remove them from soffits, attics, etc, get pretty substantial dollar/hour return if it involves any construction/ repair.
Sorry for the hijack.
Bing
I would not call that a hijack, other than how friiends use theirs rather than "how do you use your shop vac?" (;-)For those who have fought for it Freedom has a flavor the protected will never know.
Best accessory for a vac? A clearvue mini cyclone:
http://www.clearvuecyclones.com/Order_Page.htm
I've had one for 3? years now, and abused it with masonry and mortar clean up and it is still going strong. I have to empty the 5 gallon bucket I have it on top of long before I have to check the vac filter.
Z
Interesting. That would be another thing to have to move around, but it looks like it would do a great job. And when I'm using the vac for table saw dust control it clogs the filter so fast. This might be worth looking into.Paul
There are some threads on the Festool fora talking about how you can put those cyclones in a systainer (permanently, or temporarily, the latter being you open the top and put a bucket in the systainer to stabilize it)Here's one:http://www.talkfestool.com/vb/jigs-inventions/656-dust-deputy-sys-5-a.htmlOr do a search for 'cyclone' here and you'll find dozens of threads
http://festoolownersgroup.comMaybe you can ditch the Shopvac and Fein and pick up some bigger hoses and/or a cleaning set for the Festool? Might take care of many of your problems there.'Man who say it cannot be done should not interrupt man doing it' ~ Chinese proverb
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For what my opinion's worth, I disagree entirely with the too many/saving the good stuff premise. I've got at least 3 or 4 shop vacs myself. The oldest is a PC, and it was marketed as ideal (and it is) for their DW sander. It's taken quite a beating but still filters the dust out of the airstream very well, so I sort of earmark it for dust removal with a sander. I've got 2 (IIRC) cheap but powerful ShopVacs that I don't mind too much if they take a beating in the back of the truck. Loud, robust construction and powerful. Lastly a Fein that is so quiet I thought it was broken. Not terribly powerful but it uses a reusable cloth filter bag and it's perfect for cleaning up the shop without going through pricey PC disposable bags.
Anyway, to me it's like saying you have too many circ saws or routers... all a matter of what kind of work you do IMHO.PaulB
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I sorta have to agree with Pelipeth. Not to be critical but why invest the big money in high end equipment only to use the low end for most tasks (unless you have some sort of sentimental attachement in the low end stuff).
As a remodeler, I certainly believe there is a right tool for every job; but having the right tool often comes with having a much higher overhead. The goal is to lower the overhead by choosing equipment that meets multiple needs. I have 2 shop vacs right now. One is a 2 gallon ShopVac the other is a 4.5 gallon Ridgid (I also have a 2stage system in the shop). I bought the Ridgid to replace the ShopVac which was a gift I wouldn't have chosen anyway.
The Ridgid at $100 fills most of my needs and has HEPA if needed but no bags and no wheels but is reasonably quiet and has superb suction. The ShopVac sat in the shed for years until I rediscovered it and put it back to use on ladders because it is lighter weight than the Ridgid and I could care less if I dropped it. But it's lesser suction combined with it's 1-1/2" hose cause it to clog easily and it sometimes shoots out a cloud of dust because of it's pathetic filter system.
So for me, I only have two for size/weight purposes. I would like to get a Festool but only for the house (two big dogs, ongoing renovation, and mostly wood floors isn't for the average household vacuum) and the occasional drywall job or possibly for controlling sawdust onsite using the plug in feature. But again the only reason I am willing to lay down so much is because it meets multiple needs. You on the other hand have three of essentially the same vac; one without a tool plug. In my mind that is two to many.
Reading your post I get a feeling you don't make your paycheck off of carpentry so you could care less about overhead. Still, I discourage being frivolous with one's money so my advice to you is the same.
My advice is to (hark!) sell the ShopVac and the Fein and reinvest the money into a high end dust collection system. With the standards I imagine you have you will be looking at a cyclone/vortex system in the $1500 range anyway. The power and possibility of a dedicated custom dust collection system is unmatched by low HP shop vacs and the capacity of the system will keep you going much longer without worrying about emptying out the shop vacs. As for the Festool vac, keep it for use with the other Festool tools (or tools that are not black and lime) and for if you ever have to set up temporary shop elsewhere for an install.
BTW: Don't be afraid to USE your tools. It makes NO SENSE to me to spend big money on a tool and covet it so much that it rarely gets use. I use all my tools...even irreplaceable antiques. I would rather they get a little beat up in the process of making me money and making my life easier than by sitting all pristine in my shop while I toil away hating my job and wishing I had become a banker so I could buy all the "toys" for my house or shop that I never used. {sorry, just had to add that gripe}
So, in summary: To each his own, use your tools, get the shop dust collection system, size matters, be sensible, it's only worth it as long as it's making you money.
DC
PS: I highly recommend the $100 Ridgid "ProPack" toolbox vac.
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I have the Fein vac with a 2" hose on it dedicated to my shop scms.
I have a dust collector for all my other shop tools.
Seperate vac for outside the shop.
My one shop vac spends most of its time in my garage blocking me from getting my golf clubs from around the bicycles. When used, it's usually to clean out my cars, also in the garage. It's used so rarely, that I often forget where the attachments are. I can't imagine having more than one of them.
I've got a 12-year old Rigid (lifetime warranty) that refuses to die. I've vacuumed tons of dirt and water. I've dug multiple post holes and even trenched across a driveway with it. I'm going to feel guilty when I finally make the warranty claim.
I have no affiliation with Rigid.
Scott.
Edited 6/22/2009 9:46 pm by Scott
I use 3 different vacs on jobs:
- a small ShopVac for light duty clean-up, mostly on small jobs, its small and easy to carry in/out with the other tools.
-A super loud, very ugly, old craftmen 5 HP that just wont die, This lives at the job in the early stages of any messy job, I even use this sometimes to clean out after drywall, but with no filter because it clogs too fast, I just add hose on the outlet side and stick it out a window (be carefull in populated areas, this creates HUGE clouds of dust outside!) I have a "clean stream" filter for this that just washes out with a hose.
-A Rigid that I'll bring in during finishing stages (like cabinet installs), when the craftman is just too embarrassingly ugly to have around.
I rigged up an easy-to-set-up site collection system with a medium sized rigid vac.
Bought (3) hoses - one for table saw, one for miter saw, and one for hand tools.
Bought (1) 2" plumbing 3 way (had to sand this out on the inside a bit in order for the hoses to fit, and to make it fit snug in the vac).
Bought some 2 wire lamp cord and some quick connects.
Made some blast gates with scrap plywood and masonite.
I shouldn't get into the rest here, but sufice to say, it was time well spent. It all fits into a smallish plastic storage box, and takes me about 5 minutes to set up.
It keeps my site nice and clean, and the H.O.'s REALLY like seeing me bring it into the house.
If anyone is interested in seeing this, I'll post some pictures.
I have a DC system in the shop. BIL had it at machine shop and did not need it anymore. Got it for $100, had the super cheesy Chineesy bags but got a good 1 micron on amazon. I have the Ridgid tool box one and two other Ridgids of other sizes. Still have about three Craftsman loud ones. The star of the fleet is the Fein TII like yours.
Customers are impressed with the Fein and I have no problem with clean-up. I usually rough sweep/shovel up/pick up larger stuff first. I uses it with sanders, kreg jig, ez-guide and other similar applications. You can get one of the remote light plug-in adapters and put a light or something plugged in to it and run the vac remotely if desired. I got the can filter and scored a bunch of bags on e-bay for cheap.
I have been impressed with the Ridgid over Craftsman for the warranty. Believe all are still made by Emerson. There is a recall/product improvement on these to put some thing to prevent sucking water into motor. They will send you the part for free.
My Fein stays in the van, others get thrown in if needed.
I have a rigid that was given to me as a xmas present...I love that thing I use it for sucking up about everything, water , thin set pieces when ripping out old floor tile, cleaning things around the shop i wont use my dc for...the car, just about everything
I have the Fein and had to get the fancy filter 80 bucks - guys here told me it would go balloey if I didn't (drywall dust, etc).
The thing I have been doing and have liked for about 3 years now is remote control. I have a little remote hooked on the business end. My wife gave me her Xmas tree remote controlled outlet. I plug a pigtail light in the remote outlet (for a load for the automatic on relay - plus sometimes the extra light is handy). Having that remote (20 ft?) away is great. The RC outlet has held up well too - gone through a few bulbs.
I get 3 or 4 uses out of the paper Hepa filter bags. I cut the end off and re-seal it with staples and duct tape, (staple, roll/tape, staple). I've almost forgot how much I paid for the Hepa filter and this setup will go and go and still has a lot of suction even when full.
Edited 7/3/2009 8:47 am ET by Fonzie