Let's talk brands of wet/dry shop vacs!

[mikey52]

What brands of recently purchased shop vacs do you have, say purchased in the last 2 years? What brand/model, how do you like the hoses; as far as sturdy or how easy they kink. How easy do they roll around, what's your review on them? Let's hear the good and bad. Thanks mikey!

 

[Czechvar]

I’ve been using a very durable DeWalt Shop Vac for at lest 10 years...it’s still in excellent shape including the hose. It uses 18 volt batteries or AC...the batteries Dewalt makes disappointed me, but the AC motor seems fine.

This seems to be the current model:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-2-Gal-Max-Cordless-Corded-Wet-Dry-Vacuum-DCV581H/204301089

I think if I get another shop vac, it’ll be a RIDGID like this one:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-...and-Premium-Car-Cleaning-Kit-HD1401/308343494

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

My current wet-dry is a 3 year old 1 gal. Shop Vac. Since 1974 I've has 4 Shop Vac brand unit of several sized, and one other that was a tool box with a built in vac (It was a store brand) and a Ryobi 18V+1. The Ryobi was every bit as good as the Shop Vac! The store brand was junk! If I bother with another Tool Box type it will be a Rigid. the last company I worked for had w very large units that were very good at flood clean up and normal use too. (after flood clean up; rinse all wet dry vacs out with Lysol or bleach solutions. or a week later you can't stand the smell!)

Ivan

 

[whitestang]

I have a Craftsman which is 8 years old and still works like a new one. I use it in my garage and on the cars. The hose does not kink and the tools work well.

 

[WuzzFuzz]

I have both the 1 gal and the 20 gal; Shop-Vac...Both are more than 10 years old...I like the 1 gal one for cleaning the car and truck, and for getting cob webs out from the ceiling corners, and of course the smaller jobs.

The 20 gal I've used for a little of everything. Cleans up water just fine the that water attachment. ...Even sucked up a small snake that wanted to hibernate down the the basement next to the furnace...(It got dumped outside into the cold).

It rolls around just fine, and never had any trouble with the hoses on either one.


WuzzFuzz

 

[IronSkillet]

Fein Turbo III

after going through a couple of shop-vac's, Craftsman, and a no-name yellow one purchased a Fein Turbo III. It may of cost more up front but it is still working great years later. My biggest complaint with or from experiences work shop vacuums was after a time they exhaust to much dust back into the area they are being used in. My Fein vac is the previous generation and I strongly recommend them durability & ability.

 

[Bozz10mm]

I have to make do with an old Filter Queen that I paid way too much for in 1970 and my wife absolutely hated. Alas, although it works fine for dry, it is not made for wet.

 

[Rule3]

I have a big 14 gallon 6.0 peak horsepower Rigid. It's orange and black and its name is Igor. It has its own room in the house and likes to sit out on the deck in the sunshine. I don't think there's anything it won't eat. It likes Doritos and socks and loose change and empty brass and gravel and leaves and pine needles. I use it on the car and the truck and the house. Certain accessories with small openings make a loud whistling sound and I wear ear plugs. I never point it at anything I don't want to use it on. I tried to sell it once but it scared the buyer away and told me I better not try that again. I carry a gun when I'm around it.

(10)

 

[pharmer]

I have the large Rigid. It'll pull paint off a wall and the filters last a long time. Joe

 

[Targets Guy]

We have Shop Vacs. Basement, attic, garage and shed. Keep the filter clean is all I can tell you.

 

[Gaffer]

I have an older Shop Vac and my beef is that the company does not have parts for their product that is over 10 years old. As a conservative American I expect a product t last and not become unrepairable just because a small plastic part is no longer available. I guess it is yet another example of our throw away mentality. I also think that many products today are designed by idiots.

 

[rockquarry]

I got a large Rigid model more than fifteen years ago and it is used regularly. I shake out the filter when I think about it, at least every couple of years. It continues to work well.

 

[soFlaNative]

I sympathize with you Mikey.
I have tools, power equipment, jackets, appliances even a garden hose at least a quarter century old and trying to find info on quality manufacturing only a few years old is tough. I wish I could help but all I have is small Shop Vac still going strong after 30 years.

 

[sar4937]

I used Craftsman for 30 years. It looks like Rigid is built by the same people.

 

[Funflyer]

I've been through several over the years and finally decided to buy something that'll last. Treated myself to a Dayton 6 gallon with an 18 foot hose so I don't have to drag it all over when cleaning up.

Dayton 4TB90

 

[Sistema1927]

My Dad has had the same Craftsman wet/dry vac that he had when I left home at age 19 (45 years ago), and it still works very well. I have borrowed it from him a time or two recently.

Since I wanted a small one to use to take out to the truck, etc., I just picked up this Ryobi that takes the same 18v batteries that my tools use. I actually picked it up on Fleabay, brand new in the box, for $70, which included shipping.

https://www.ryobitools.com/power-tools/products/details/18v-one-plus-3-gallon-project-wetdry-vacuum

For big jobs I will still borrow Dad's, but this should handle small jobs. Suction seems to be on par with the Craftsman. If it lasts half as long as his I will be very satisfied.

 

[wheelgun28]

I have a customer that uses shop vacuums on machinery. They run all day long all week long. They are running pulling a vacuum the whole day, the input is reduced to very small holes.

The Ridgid brand outlasts all the others by far. Over the years they had tried them all. The Ridgid's last months just running and running.

You'd be surprised some of the brands don't last two weeks.

I have a Ridgid in my shop that has been sucking up metal from the lathe and mill. It's going on ten years old and working great.

 

[Drm50]

I use them everyday for sawdust and such. Was buying the biggest craftsman but wasn’t getting much life out of them. Motors were burning out. I have had the big Rigid for a year and it’s still going. Has more power than the Craftsman too.

 

[Ματθιας]

I have a newer Shop Vac the grey and blue ones. It's works, but it has a noisy bearing.
We used to have a older shop vac at a shop I used to work at that'd run and run and run. It was like 10 years old the only maintenance that was done was dumping the water out - and it was run without a filter!

 

[meaneyedcatz]

Are there any good shop vacs that do not howl like a banshee?
I have a craftsman and I wish it would burn up so I can justify a quite vac.