Decent site vacuum

[iep]

I'll be starting work tearing the interior out of our house in the next month and wondered if there are any decent industrial vacuums that can be used to pick up the dust and small bits of rubble (old cement, plaster etc). Would also be great if it could be used with table saw etc for dust extraction.

Noted a few machines out there:

Makita 440/445
Titan wet/dry thing from screwfix
Makita VC3511L
Henry (or big Henry) - disadvantage being no power take-off.

Obviously, the Makita ones are pricey but I am happy to pay if they are much better. Not sure what the main difference between the 440 and VC3511L is though.

Are there any others I should consider?

I realise it's only a glorified hoover but if it helps me keep on top of the dust during the build then it'll be useful to have.

iep

 

[merlin50]

I have a Henry Xtra and a Charles, avoid Titan rubbish

 

[iep]

Sounds like a vote for the mighty Henry. Quite fancy Big Henry (15L rather than 9L) but it's an extra £40. Reckon I'll just live with more frequent emptying.

BTW, I guess you're using your ones for relatively heavy work and they are okay?

Cheers,

iep

 

[EViS]

I just came to ask the same question, but I'm looking for a vacuum which will such dry, wet and also function as a dust extractor. Any recommendations? (sorry, I don't mean to hijack your thread)

 

[Burnerman]

Charles for wet, Henry for dry....just picked up a 2 speed Henry from Homebase £99, complete with hepa bags......ordinary paper bags much cheaper on ebay.
John

 

[EViS]

Two take up too much space, would rather one decent vacuum which is also bagless to remove the hassle and additional costs.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

The best site vacuum I've found to date is the Bosch GAS25. Big square beastie with almost as much suction as the Fein and Festool vacuums but with one significant advantage (other than price) - when switched off it goes through a filter shaking (cleaning) cycle automatically. Capable of handling the output from a large chop saw or a portable table saw. I used these quite a bit whilst subbing for a large building contractor in the NW and I was sufficiently impressed to buy one for myself. I've used the Festool CTL26 as well as the CTL Midi, but the price leaves me cold - and they're not that much better unless you want to clip a Systainer on top - or are impressed by Festool's replacement filter prices! Similarly we hired a Makita 440 on a job last year (HSE visit!) - OK and better than a Henry, but no improvement on the similarly priced Bosch and an odd shape to get into a van (round rather than square). If you don't like blue then Metabo sell the ASR2025 - a green version of the Bosch. Mafell also do it in black and white (the S50), but you really don't want to ask the price.....

 

[EViS]

The best site vacuum I've found to date is the Bosch GAS25. Big square beastie with almost as much suction as the Fein and Festool vacuums but with one significant advantage (other than price) - when switched off it goes through a filter shaking (cleaning) cycle automatically. Capable of handling the output from a large chop saw or a portable table saw. I used these quite a bit whilst subbing for a large building contractor in the NW and I was sufficiently impressed to buy one for myself. I've used the Festool CTL26 as well as the CTL Midi, but the price leaves me cold - and they're not that much better unless you want to clip a Systainer on top - or are impressed by Festool's replacement filter prices! Similarly we hired a Makita 440 on a job last year (HSE visit!) - OK and better than a Henry, but no improvement on the similarly priced Bosch and an odd shape to get into a van (round rather than square). If you don't like blue then Metabo sell the ASR2025 - a green version of the Bosch. Mafell also do it in black and white (the S50), but you really don't want to ask the price.....

That's more expensive than a Fein though . Also, do all site vacuums use paper bags? Anything which is bagless? At the same time, how does a paper-bag vacuum suck in water and store it safely?

 

[Deleted member 174758]

That's more expensive than a Fein though .

Personally I can't see any reason to buy the Mafell versions, but some folk are badge loyal.......

do all site vacuums use paper bags? Anything which is bagless?

The only ones I've seen which don't are the cyclone designs which are normally used for fine dust extraction, e.g. on wall chasers, drywall sanders, concrete grinders, etc. Problem is that they can't be wet and dry by the nature of how they work AND they cost a small fortune (£1k and up). No Dysons in 110volt site guise yet. The GAS/ASR can be run bagless, but the filter life is somewhat shortened by that. The electrostatic self-cleaning mechanism helps greatly there, though. I've also used the Mak 440 in bagless mode.again the poleated filter needs dusting out regularly to keep it working

At the same time, how does a paper-bag vacuum suck in water and store it safely?

You've obviously never used a wet and dry vac in wet mode - you need to remove the bag (if fitted) and empty the container before lifting water with any of them. There is normally some sort of ball float mechanism to ensure that you don't overfill with water and kill the motor - the GAS/ASR is no different. After use on water the pleated filter needs to be removed and allowed to dry (the vac needs to be run with a primary filter to avoid destroying the motor). This would probably mean buying a second filter if you do that sot of thing regularly - which I don't

 

[Norcon]

I've got a Kew bagless wdc 40-40 wet and dry which I believe was a fore runner model to one of these.
http://www.nilfisk-alto.co.uk/Products/VacuumCleaners/IndustrialVacuumCleaners.aspx

The Attix 40 is about £450 quid including vat.
Just look at what he puts through this thing...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNLyzWcBb1I

 

[EViS]

Nope, I haven't used a wet vac before, but have been in situations where it would have come in useful, hence wanting to buy one. Max budget was around £150 though, but that maybe skimping a tad?

 

[joe-90]

I've been using a budget Earlex for years and it was well worn when I got it.
I could fill a skip with what it's sucked up.


It can give you a good suck or a good blow.

http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...=X&ei=eUW6T5fqO4nChAew-bnvCA&ved=0CN4BEPMCMAM

 

[RF Lighting]

I've got one of those, but mine seems to blow almost as much dust out the exhaust as it sucks up the inhaust

 

[joe-90]

New cartridge then.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I've been using a budget Earlex for years and it was well worn when I got it.

Not really much good for use on site, though - mostly 110 volt required these days! Pity. They're cheap as chips

Max budget was around £150 though, but that maybe skimping a tad?

Probably the only one under £150 is the Henry - but they're dry only, aren't they? I'm assuming that by site you mean proper 110 volt and industrial quality - in which case £200 to £250 is bottom of the market for wet and dry