Shop vac recommendations for DC?

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

I need to buy a new shop vac. 99 percent of its job will be DC on my router table and ROS. Occasionally used to drain my boat. It won't be used to floor cleaning. I've been watching comparisons on YouTube but none of them talk as much about use as a DC.

Advice?

[Tapper]

I need to buy a new shop vac.  99 percent of its job will be DC on my router table and ROS.  Occasionally used to drain my boat.  It won't be used to floor cleaning.  I've been watching comparisons on YouTube but none of them talk as much about use as a DC.

Advice?

Unless you decide to go upscale with Fein or one of the other high-end suppliers, Ridgid at Home Depot has a pretty good reputation for performance and reliability. I've had one for 15+ years now and it's still going strong. Buy the muffler for a few extra dollars and it helps out with the noise.

Good luck,

Doug

[fredhargis]

Be aware that you might damage your ROS with a vac, unless you have a way to reduce the suction. What can happen is the if the vac is pulling the sander into the wood, it overheats the H/L pad and they quickly loose their grip. When I used a regular vac I fashioned a vent to cut the suction down (my sander is a Bosch 3725). I've moved on and now have a vac with variable speed and always put it on low when connected to the sander. On to selections, my opinion is that the all suck about the same. It comes down to noise and life (of the vac). The premium ones will be quieter, and arguably might last longer in constant use. But my first vac (Craftsman) lasted about 20 years in hobbyist use, so the life thing may not be as important. But using one with a sander means if needs a good filter as well. I just put Gore Clean Stream filters on mine.

[nodima]

Another vote for a ridgid from HD.  I got a largish one, but that was before adding the dust deputy to it.  If that was plan for day 1, I'd have gone a lot smaller with the vac as nothing ends up in it now. 

Really have a love/hate with the DD.  Love that it works, and works well, but get really *(bleeping)* annoyed at all the shenanigans one has to go through to get the right fittings to connect it with shop vac stuff.

[DaveM123]

I use a Ridgid shop vac with a Dustopper connected to it. Works well for the small stuff.

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

Fred, what vacuum are you using that has variable speed?

[fredhargis]

The one I have is a Fein Turbo II (9.20.25). It's a model they no longer produce. While mine has an electronic control, I think the newer ones just have a venting arrangement to control the vaccuum. I think som of the others (Festool, maybe others) still have an electronic control.

[Cub_Cadet_GT]

The one I have is a Fein Turbo II (9.20.25). It's a model they no longer produce. While mine has an electronic control, I think the newer ones just have a venting arrangement to control the vaccuum. I think som of the others (Festool, maybe others) still have an electronic control.

Yes, the Festool Dust Extractors are electronic variable speed. They are outstanding dust extractors but is not a shop vac.

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

Ah.  Budget won't allow for Festool just yet!  

To vent the hose I assume I should cut a slit in the adapter to allow air to bleed?

[fredhargis]

You could, though that might not be the best way. It would probably be noisy (whistle), not vent enough, and pretty much ruin the hose for anything else. A couple of thoughts. If there's a handle somewhere on the setup, you could drill a hole through it, and then fasten a sliding cover (think 2/3 a section of PVC pipe) that rotates over it to close it up. Much approach was much clumsier. my vac had a 2 1/4" hose, and I put a 3" x 2/14" PVC adapter (from the plumbing section at Lowes) on the end of it. In to the 3" end I cut a wooden plug to fit, and then drilled a 1 1/4" hole  for a hose that size (all hose sizes are approximate). The 1/14" hose was then connected to the sander. But in the wooden plug I also cut 2 1" holes to provide the venting. This cobbled together approach worked really well, even if it did look a little nutz. I had a picture of it, and I can't find it....but I'll keep looking. But basically it's something you'll have to engineer based on what on hand.

OK, found the pic:
[attachment=31395]