Which hoover?!

[Oakbear]

After my last thread i reckon i don't want an extractor, i need a vacuum cleaner.

I have no idea where to start however!

I figure the Dyson won't cut it, but am unsure the benefits of a £300 jobby over one a third of that....

Any recommendations?

 

[PeterSk]

Wickes do a wet'n'dry vacuum cleaner for about £40-45. I've got one and it's very good at clearing up chips, shavings and the like. 1100W motor so plenty of power, and they're pretty robust machines too

 

[Jonzjob]

I have the older version of this http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ax ... rod794272/ with the tool hose which is a very long hose that plugs into most of the power tools, belt sander, random orbit sander, delta sander, circular saw, etc. I also got the castor stand for it so that I can wheel it around to where I want it.

Mine has a cloth filter with a paper filter over that and it is a class 4 filter system, as good as it gets.

It's a real workhorse and well worth the money!

 

[Oakbear]

Thanks!
The Wicks job looks very good value and reviews well.

John - does that axi hoover up shavings etc like a vacuum cleaner and not clog? I was under the impression 'extractors' didn't like such work?

 

[gasmansteve]

I have cheapo B&Q wet and dry which works fine (about £60 if memory serves) 1250watt motor good little work horse and even use it as a vac source for my vac chuck.
Steve

 

[skeetoids]

Sorry but I have nothing of use to contribute to this thread other than my fetishistic liking of your use of the word 'jobby', right up there with 'toly' in my opinion! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Jonzjob]

Basically it is a good powerful vac and does everything that a household vac will do. I have had no problems with shavings or anything else, apart from having to retrieve the odd tool that has disappeared when I got too close to it

AND it has the advantage that it keeps the dust inside and not chucking the small, dangerous stuff straight through. The new one with the cartridge in it filters down to 1 micron and I would doubt that a cheepie would do the same. As the old saying goes "you pays yer money"?

I would buy it again if I had to, but I have had mine for best part of 12 years now and it shows no sign of stopping, so no need!

As I said, I have the long tool hose and after loads of use the nozzle was getting quite worn. Axminster supplied a new nozzle for me for 'not-a-lot' of cash and when the original finally gives up the ghost I will have the equivalent of a new hose again..

 

[PeterSk]

Thanks!
The Wicks job looks very good value and reviews well.

I have mine set up in a little corner of my workshop with a separate switch to control it, as I'm planning to box it into it's corner. I've also got a bit of hose connected to the outlet which directs the exhaust outside, so if you can come up with a similar arrangement for the exhaust it should get round the issue of the extractor simply re-distributing the dust for you

 

[Bodrighy]

Some time ago a forum member called Niki did a WIP on converting a shop vac into a dust extractor. It's here if anyone is interested

Pete

 

[Oakbear]

Thanks for the replies.

That Axi is looking mighty tempting right now!

 

[Silenus]

An old wet and dry Vax does the job nicely. Anything along those lines will work. Charity shops will probably have them or Henrys or similar for a fiver/tenner or so.

 

[Bodrighy]

An old wet and dry Vax does the job nicely. Anything along those lines will work. Charity shops will probably have them or Henrys or similar for a fiver/tenner or so.

Don't think you'll get a Henry. They are like gold dust and go for a good few quid on eBay. You should be OK with most cylinder vacs though. I got a bagless one off freecycle, (my favourite shop :lol: ) and it works fine.

Pete

 

[Silenus]

There was an old Henry sitting in the local charity shop here for long enough. I had no idea they were so desired! It did sell eventually, mind. Just goes to show, it's easy to miss a bargain if you don't know what to look for. Probably best I didn't know or else that would be another thing taking up space "just in case" I needed it.

 

[dannykaye]

whatever you do DON'T get a Dyson! after my wet n dry vax moved to the boat for a while I used a Dyson in the shop it was crap. The Vax is wonderful, the only good thing about getting rid of the boat is that the vax has come back

 

[Blister]

I have found most Vac's not very good

If they have a paper filter inside , It gets clogged very quick

And the efficiency drops very quick

I have a Draper wet and dry and it has a paper filter and clogs very easy


I wish I could find a vac that works without clogging

:wink:

 

[PeterSk]

The problem with Dysons is that the HEPA filters clog very fast.

I can very much recommend the Wickes unit for not clogging, I'll take a photo of the bin in mine tomorrow, it's full of chips and shavings and hasn't missed a beat in the last month or so.

 

[Silenus]

I found replacing the material in the old Vax filter made a big difference. The original cloth was quite fine and soft material, maybe too fine for the shed mess instead of the carpets it was meant for. The new material was some off cut that was originally for making pillows. Does great and clogs less often. Only need to give it a tap into the bin after hoovering up the shed. Also saved me looking for special filters.

 

[PeterSk]

With converting hoovers you're always fighting the fine particle retention vs large particle extraction efficiency.

For example, I know that if you take the HEPA filter out of a cylinder Dyson model, it stays efficient for much longer, but you can tell that it's not retaining nearly as much fine dust.

IMO you either need to spend loads of cash to get a decent HV cyclone system which can deal with the chips and the dangerous fine stuff, or you may as well go reasonably cheap and use some sort of workaround with a cheap unit to collect chips and exhaust the fine dust somewhere safe

 

[Silenus]

I suppose it depends if you are using it for cleaning up or trying to actively filter. I'm just trying to stop the shavings and dust from building up so high whole expeditions can disappear inside it. I've got a workshop air filter mounted high up to take care of the fine stuff and keep the lungs healthy when I'm inside and a mask for the really bad stuff.

I got the masks and filters on the back of the repeated health and safety warnings I've read here, actually. Glad I did read the posts here considering the possible long term health risks.

 

[dannykaye]

the vax ones have a replacement foam filter for wet use that works pretty well