Which Workshop Vacuum?

[jameslee30]

Hello all. I am currently in need of a vacuum for a house that i am renovating, so its going to be sucking up all sorts like lumps of mortar and fine plaster dust. But i have decided i may as well get one that will serve well hooked up to power tools in the workshop once i am done with the house.

So what should i look at getting? I see screwfix do a fairly cheap one,

http://www.screwfix.com/p/erbauer-30ltr ... cuum/61721

Or there is the axminster one

http://www.axminster.co.uk/numatic-numa ... prod21330/

Or Makita one

http://www.axminster.co.uk/makita-440-w ... rod377694/

Or Fein one?

http://www.axminster.co.uk/fein-fein-du ... rod806764/

So...any ideas? Are there others i have overlooked? I think the Festool ones are a bit pricey. Obviously the screwfix one is a lot cheaper than the others. Does this make it really inferior? I dont want to buy something that blows up within a year!!

Cheers, James.

 

[Lowlife]

I bought two on eBay last year, a bit like the 20l Erbauer one that Screwfix sell, £15 for both of them! They were from a contract cleaning company that was buying all new machines and didn't want odd makes, they work really well on all my power tools, apart from the thicknesser which produces more shavings than they can cope with, I have a chip collector for that.

One of the guys at work has the smaller Erbauer, it works very well but is no better than my two.

 

[Lord Kitchener]

Also have a look at this Nilfisk unit from Machine Mart. The tools are good, and it's got lots of suck. The nozzle will fit Festool etc tools.

http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... -050512288

Only thing you need to be careful of is if you use it without the dustbag (which is how I use it) you need to check the filter regularly to ensure it doesn't get clogged, reduce the airflow and banjax the motor. The same would probably apply to most other makes. I've got 4 of them in my workshop. I've also got a Trend 30Af which is much better, but does cost more than twice as much. It's got a prefilter thing which stops the main filter getting clogged.

 

[johnf]

I use a fein and am realy pleased with it not the cheapest but comes with a 3 year guarantee and has a extra filter to protect the cartridge filter


http://www.axminster.co.uk/fein-fein-du ... rod806764/

 

[Shane]

I bought the erbauer for my dad. Absolute piece of junk, lasted a couple of days and stopped working, which is to be expected of anything of that brand. I've used the Fein in the past and that is very good indeed. For powertools I have the nilfisk alto and so far it's been superb, cant comment on the others on your list...

http://www.screwfix.com/p/nilfisk-alto- ... uum/41848#

 

[hamburglar]

Got the bigger Nilfisk Alto 50-21XC. Self cleans its filter. Very impressed with it. It's way better than the domestic vacuum!

I'm sure the smaller one is also very good. Seen it on ebay for about £125.

Hamburglar

 

[jameslee30]

Thanks for the help guys. I think i am going to go for the smaller 25l Nilfisk. Its a lot cheaper than the larger ones and with this sort of item id rather buy new (never know how much abuse it has been given).

It is still a small toss up between this and the axminster version as i have one of these at work, but for a 60quid saving the Nilfisk may have tipped it!

Cheers, James

 

[Steve Maskery]

Have you looked at the Hitachi? It's an excellent machine.
S

 

[Shane]

It is still a small toss up between this and the axminster version as i have one of these at work, but for a 60quid saving the Nilfisk may have tipped it!

£77 difference now, the Nilfisk has a higher capacity for power tools, is quieter (apparantly. It is very quiet though, when I use it with my makita ROS I cant hear it), and is most probably better quality than the axi (imo)

 

[Karl]

I've got two - a Fein (QA35) and a Nilfisk (from Screwfix - can't remember the model number). The Fein is better built, but they both feel like they give the same amount of suck. I prefer the Fein, and have it set up in the 'shop. The Nilfisk is for site use.

Cheers

Karl

 

[johnf]

I've got two - a Fein (QA35) and a Nilfisk (from Screwfix - can't remember the model number). The Fein is better built, but they both feel like they give the same amount of suck. I prefer the Fein, and have it set up in the 'shop. The Nilfisk is for site use.

Cheers

Karl

I also have the Fein and the small Nilfisk prefer the Fein the powertool take off works a treat with my 1800 watt Bosch smcs

 

[dedee]

Have you looked at the noise level of the shop vacs you are considering. I've never regretted buying a NVQ model from Numatic NVQ = Very Quite. Vacs do not have to be noisy to be powerful

Cheers

Andy

 

[jameslee30]

Iv Decided to go for the Nilfisk from screwfix. Picked it up today and will try it out tomorrow evening.

Andy im not too worried about noise levels, as any prolonged use such as sanding i wear noise isolating earphones with my ear defenders on the top. Even with no music playing i am literally deaf to the world!

Cheers for the help. James.

 

[Ollie78]

Bosch Gas 25 or gas 50 are the best vacuums I have used. No need to use a bag and self cleaning filters. They also have power tool take off (240 or 110 versions).

I always think that its important to look at the bag cost as some are over a fiver each, and some dont filter to the same particle level without bags.