Shopvac - Toy or Tool?

[kbarrett]

Contemplating getting a shopvac. Primarily to clean the garage and basement floors.

Any experience with these? Do you still use it today?

 

[JTD]

I've used/owned several over the years. Best one is made by Fein. Expensive, but it's quite, works very well and doesn't throw dust in the air when it starts up. You can also plug a tool into it that when you start the tool it starts up. Great for interior sanding with dust system attached. Many others are cheaper; noisy, dusty and can give you static shocks.

 

[Harv]

Kevin -

I had a Sears wet/dry shopvac for years. I mostly used it in my wood shop and loved the way it sucked up not only sawdust by the pound, but also chunks of wood, nails and screws, too. One pass got it all.

Only used the "wet" feature a few times, but it was amazing. Sometimes a hard rain would find its way under the door from the back patio and I'd find standing water in the shop. That shopvac slurped it up in no time and left the concrete floor absolutely dry!

Even had occasion to use it in the kitchen a time or two to make short work of an otherwise messy cleanup. Remember when those 2-liter soda pop bottles were made of glass?

 

[HalseyGreen]

Had an older house that had bathroom sink drains that would drain slowly, would fill them up with water, put the end over the drain and then cut the shop vac on and it would pull up all kinds of hair and stuff, whole lot easier than snakeing out the pipe and lasted just about as long. Also used it to suck a pull wire through a conduit after the son broke the one we put in while putting the conduit together. Wouldn't be without one.

 

[Inspector507]

Kevin,
I myself would not be without one out in the shop. Best tool besides my tractor I ever bought. I have tried several brands and the Crafstman 16 Gal is the only one in the shop now. The others have been given away or the CFO uses one to clean up dog hair. Of course she eyes my Craftsman, but she ain't getting it.

 

[frank_f15]

SHOP VAC GREAT TOOL! i have a heavy duty craftsman shop vac. use it to clean grage floor, basement floor, suck up anything that gets in my way. for the price they are a hady peice of equiptment to have around, vacume the cars with it all the time. i get no dust when i turn it on,

 

[rockyridgefarm]

<font color=blue>Best one is made by Fein</font color=blue>

I have 3 Feins. I had HAD it with the deafening roar, and crummy fall apart designs of others. Expensive? They are a fraction of the price of a DeWalt and just as good. Easy to get the parts, too

 

[Richard]

You ask if toy or tool...I think mine is classified as a toy. Found out classification changes from tool to TOY, if in fact it is purchased (along with a battery charger) as a Christmas present for the Wifey!!

She had not given me ANY clues as she ALWAYS does (nicely dog eared catalog pages) soooooo I took it upon myself to get what I "thought we needed" (and to cure her of her sudden forgetfulness of dog earing ideas for me)

Funny how she hasn't missed a Christmas catalog since /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

I'm SURE had she bought it for me, or me for myself it would then have been classified as a tool.

Richard

 

[EdKing]

Shop vacs are great, especially the wet dry types. When I lived out in California, I used mine to suck up all the water when my roomates wife unbalenced the washing machine, causing it to "walk" out of its alcove and pull the drain hose loose. Dumped 2 cycles of water on the floor before it was discovered. The shop vac sucked the water right up.

 

[Chuck52]

In addition to all those other uses, I use mine to clean the carpets. I don't know if the attachment is still available, but years ago I got the carpet cleaning hose and stuff. I was tired of how wet the professional cleaners left the carpet, and the rental machines didn't do much better, so I bought the attachment for the shop vac. It really does a pretty good job. No scrubbing brushes, but it sure sucks the water out better than the rental machines. I've used it to clean dust off concrete floors too. Gets up all that fine dust that just vacuming doesn't pick up.

Chuck