Best Shop Vac's - Page 2

MCWD · 11-16-08, 07:29

Costco had a sweet wall mount shop vac that would be great for a garage where your doing your own car or a few cars here and there a week, the hose is a good quality, similar to a rigid or shop-vac factory hose, but for me I think the hose would wear too quick with the abuse I would put it through on a daily basis..... Just figured I would suggest it for some of you who may be looking for a good quality vac.

Greg Nichols · 11-16-08, 08:30

Its all about inches of lift (suction power). I like the amount of lift the altos have, but if I recall the shop vac 6.5hp generates 80" of lift.

Anyone have this data on inches of lift for various vacs?

Cheers,

kompressornsc · 11-17-08, 03:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greg Nichols

Its all about inches of lift (suction power). I like the amount of lift the altos have, but if I recall the shop vac 6.5hp generates 80" of lift.

Anyone have this data on inches of lift for various vacs?

Cheers,

I know the VacMaster at Costco (mentioned above) has 88" of lift. From what I've read, 80" is the minimum you want. I've been eying it. Just waiting for a few more reviews to come in. $99 shipped right now. I will also say that I contacted VacMaster with some questions about it and their CS was excellent - quick, thorough and gave me all the answers I needed.

Costco also has the Hoover GUV in stores for $129.

I like that the VacMaster is a 1 7/8" hose - the smaller hose seems to clog too easy, and the big ones give up too much suction for most jobs (except like leaves).

MCWD · 11-17-08, 09:03

I like where this post is going. If anyone has technical info I really would like to hear it. I myself do not have much knowlegde aside from knowing that higher hp's= better suction. Does anyone feel that fellow detailers need a certain amount of hp's to be effective???

kompressornsc · 11-18-08, 03:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by MCWD

I like where this post is going. If anyone has technical info I really would like to hear it. I myself do not have much knowlegde aside from knowing that higher hp's= better suction. Does anyone feel that fellow detailers need a certain amount of hp's to be effective???

From what I've read, hp don't mean squat. The number you see advertised is the peak horsepower - what the motor jumps to when it starts up. Water lift is the key, but it's hard to find the info.

Just as an example, I was looking for water lift numbers for vacs and came across some whole house / built in vacs: hp was 1.5, but water lift was over 100. Compare that to a 5.5 peak hp ShopVac that had a water lift of only 80.

ZaneO · 11-18-08, 06:50

I've used both Rigid and Craftsman. The larger units definitely have more suction than the smaller, and overall I think *I* would give the edge to Rigid.

brwill2005 · 11-18-08, 07:14

As a professional the most important things would be build quality (reliability), power, and sound level. The specs on my Wap SQ15 are 90 water lift, 120 CFM (air volume) and only 58db. In addition the filtration system. Some spew dust all over the place which can be a problem.

ShineShop · 11-18-08, 10:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by brwill2005

As a professional the most important things would be build quality (reliability), power, and sound level. The specs on my Wap SQ15 are 90 water lift, 120 CFM (air volume) and only 58db. In addition the filtration system. Some spew dust all over the place which can be a problem.

Agreed. Aside from the specs, reliability and cost to service is my biggest issue. We used to have several really expensive vacuums which had excellent specs but were unreliable and EXPENSIVE to fix. Those Italian made motors are PRICEY. Since then we have switched to Rigid`s contractor wet-dry vacs and when they break we cannibalize them for parts and buy a new one. The entire vacuum costs less than one of the two motors the more expensive model used.

MCWD · 11-18-08, 09:08

So what are the preferred vacs that you guys have used? I use Rigid, some are saying Shop-vac... Lets hear it

StumpyDetailing · 11-24-08, 07:33

Die-hard Ridgid fan here... Had mine for 5 years now, and it still runs like the day I bought it. I bet it'll last another 5 years.

And boy does this thing SUCK!

BigAl3 · 11-24-08, 09:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by StumpyDetailing

Die-hard Ridgid fan here... Had mine for 5 years now, and it still runs like the day I bought it. I bet it'll last another 5 years.

And boy does this thing SUCK!

also, you can't beat the...

Gumball · 11-26-08, 02:48

This is the vac I use. I love it. I replaced my Rigid with this. More lift and they dont rate them in "Peak" hp like everyone else likes to do. This 1.5 horsepower vacuum smokes my old "6hp" Rigid.

BettyMills: Model 45 HEPA Dry Vacuum with Tools - Pullman Holt B160414

More money but nice quality equipment.

Just my .02