Vacuum Suggestions

ShakingHorizons

ShakingHorizons

New member
I have ALWAYS despised cleaning the interior of "customers", or even my own cars. My wife on the other hand, is an interior fanatic - she could care less about the outside though, lol. Well, after cleaning out our car this weekend, she has determined that we need something other than a shop-vac. With a good vac, I can start charging for interior details, and give her the profits of the up-charge. I prefer something with a long hose so that I can wall mount the unit and not have it chasing me around the vehicle.

I figure the $300 or so mark should get me in to a quality machine - so let`s hear your suggestions, as well as what to stay away from!
 
After checking around, I recently bought a Sears Craftsman wall-mount (can be removed, as well), that I`m very happy with. 5HP, 21` hose, remote switch, bunch of accessories, etc....on sale for under $100. Model #16825.
 
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Vega@Autopia said:
If you`re only interested in a vacuum without a blower, yes. It sounds like the perfect fit for you.
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And if I was looking for a blower/vac...........I have a leaf blower that I purchased for drying off cars, but I just don`t use it very often. Maybe if I had something that was easier to maneuver, I would use it instead of my air compressor for crevices.
 
I would suggest looking at something with a two-stage motor. More lift and less noise. Most the box store units advertising high HP ratings use cheap motors that aren`t meant to last.

I recently picked up a nice two-stage Shop-Vac and I`m very happy with it`s performance.
 
RaskyR1 said:
I would suggest looking at something with a two-stage motor. More lift and less noise. Most the box store units advertising high HP ratings use cheap motors that aren`t meant to last.

I recently picked up a nice two-stage Shop-Vac and I`m very happy with it`s performance.
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im using the lowes 6.5 hp shop vac

is the two stage one something i should be considering?

im guessing this "6.5hp" is not accurate

im a little fed up with this one and its 2years old anyways (the rationalization begins)



Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
 
I personally have a Rigid Shop Vac, I know it is not a wall mount, but they last. At work, (I`ve been with my current employer on and off throughout college for the past three years) we have two Rigid Shop Vacs, one of which is more than three years old, and if I had to guess has at least 1500+ hours of usage, and it still runs strong with servicing. A couple of months ago, it even ran without a filter for just under a week and coincidentally some of the dirtiest trade-ins I have ever seen were cleaned by that vacuum. Yeah, it picked up some debris in the impeller (without filter), reducing suction minorly, but after a good cleaning with compressed air, it was sucking like normal. I will never purchase another brand of shop vac. Rigid even makes a small 4 gallon, 5 H.P. unit that works quite well with the 2.5 inch hose. For $200 or less you can have a Rigid Shop Vac (4 gallon) with lifetime warranty, 30ft of hose (at least), many attachments, and extreme portability. <-- With that combination, I personally do not see the logic in buying a shop vac that gets mounted on the wall and is not portable, not to mention that the 4 gallon will not take up much space at all.
 
512detail said:
im using the lowes 6.5 hp shop vac

is the two stage one something i should be considering?

im guessing this "6.5hp" is not accurate

im a little fed up with this one and its 2years old anyways (the rationalization begins)



Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
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Based on the reading I did I felt it was important for "my needs". I wanted a quite vac with lots of lift for wet work and to get carpets nice and dry. The single stage can`t compare to the 2-stage in that regard. If your vacuum needs are specifically for dry vacuuming then it`s probably not as important to you. Spend some time reading up on single vs. dual stage and CFM vs. Lift. ;)

Buyers' Guide: Shop Vacuums
 
TheMeanGreen said:
I personally have a Rigid Shop Vac, I know it is not a wall mount, but they last. At work, (I`ve been with my current employer on and off throughout college for the past three years) we have two Rigid Shop Vacs, one of which is more than three years old, and if I had to guess has at least 1500+ hours of usage, and it still runs strong with servicing. A couple of months ago, it even ran without a filter for just under a week and coincidentally some of the dirtiest trade-ins I have ever seen were cleaned by that vacuum. Yeah, it picked up some debris in the impeller (without filter), reducing suction minorly, but after a good cleaning with compressed air, it was sucking like normal. I will never purchase another brand of shop vac. Rigid even makes a small 4 gallon, 5 H.P. unit that works quite well with the 2.5 inch hose. For $200 or less you can have a Rigid Shop Vac (4 gallon) with lifetime warranty, 30ft of hose (at least), many attachments, and extreme portability. <-- With that combination, I personally do not see the logic in buying a shop vac that gets mounted on the wall and is not portable, not to mention that the 4 gallon will not take up much space at all.
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They are UGLY. For a good Vac. B)
 
I did a review of the Powr Flite PF 51. It has very, very similar stats as the one Chad posted, but costs 1/4 of the price. I`ve had mine since 2011 and love it still. It will leave a "hickey" on your arm if you stick it to your skin. It has very strong suction.

PF51 Wet Dry Vac Review


Wet Dry Vacuum 5 Gallon PF51 - Powr-Flite

To me there is no better vacuum for the money. It can`t be beat on performance vs price.
 
I have not had good experience with rigid vacuums. They are inexpensive but dont last. I own a dual motor minuteman wet dry vacuum that is insane. I purchased becoase of hurricane sandy flooding but it works great on the cars. I use it wet or dry. I also have an smaller wet dry Vac that is fair on suction and use it when the mats aren`t too bad. Look at your local Jan SAN house. Plus no bags and I get all my change back with the use of a remove magnet retriever easily.
 
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