Jump to content

Who can recommend a good HEPA vacuum?


khariV

Recommended Posts

As a continuation of the attic drama from my other thread in "Around the House" I am contemplating doing the cleanup in my attic myself. To do that safely, I really think that I should use a good HEPA vacuum to remove all of the drywall dust, mouse poop and fiberglass leftovers. I love my ridgid shop vac, but I don't think it's quite up to the job.

 

Does anyone have experience with this sort of mess that can recommend a good HEPA vacuum?  I don't mind spending for quality, but of course I don't really want an industrial system that costs a fortune and weighs a ton.  Any personal experience that can say what not to buy is also greatly appreciated. 

 

Thanks

kdv

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Believe it or not, the Festool DCs are right in line than the competitors but they are really well designed machines. You can get some models a little bit cheaper but a comparable Bosch is right in the same price category.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Do some research, several companies manufacture them. look for a system that has the ability to take bag/ liners to make handling what you have cleaned up easy to dump/empty. Fein is another company that has an outstanding reputation, DeWALT does as well. Another feature you may want to look into on your Hepa vac is a self clearing filter or filters that clean themselves every 30 seconds or so. My estimate is you are looking at $300 or so to start and it goes up from there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I seriously thought about getting a Festool and this would really be the perfect excuse. Then however, I thought about the fact is be vacuuming up poop with my fine German engineering and I'd probably have to replace a $400 hose when I was done because there's no good way to clean it out for regular woodworking dust duties. I've vacuumed up litter box dust with a shop vac before and the smell never really leaves the hose. I'm just not sure I could do this to a Festool or any really nice dust extractor. That's why I was leaning towards something like a Dustless that has a pre-filter. I don't know that it's that much cheaper, but then I don't have to have the conversation with myself saying "well, this is the stinky Festool. I have to buy another one for my shop" if that makes any sense. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a Fein Turbo II and I really like it. I picked it up off Ebay at great deal to get me started in the dust collector game. I bought the dust bags for it at HD online. I have a dust deputy I am going to mount to a bucket which fits perfectly right on top of the Fein.

 

That being said I recently wanted something smaller and more portable for jobsite use and as a sanding vac. I placed an order for a Festool CT-Mini. Patiently waiting for it's arrival.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 8/1/2016 at 11:59 PM, jeffmcmillan said:

A dust deputy would probably be highly benificial. You can always go with the warning cone model for cheap.

 

Ive also gotten around hepa issues by using a spare hose to send the exhaust outside.

I've looked at the Dust Deputy, but the problem is then you have to empty the DD cylinder.  I'm not sure it would be a great idea to go banging out a mouse poop filled DD, though I suppose I could do that while still suited up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Member Statistics

    18,195
    Total Members
    6,555
    Most Online
    mattyuk
    Newest Member
    mattyuk
    Joined
×
×
  • Create New...