Need quiet shop vac

[David Ewing]

I have the 16 gal shop vac brand sold at Lowes. The blue ones. It has a decent muffler system...basically ports under the upper plastic shroud. I was surprised how quiet it is. It is not perfect...but price/performance was very good. It also has the ability to pump water. I use a nano filter with a bag.

I also have a harbor freight dust collector with the nano filter....also pretty quiet. I suppose it depends on your definition of quiet. Baby in the room...not quiet enuf. I'm in the basement so I'm ok.

Good luck


Dave

[Ron Kellison]

these are great:$79
Attachment 204907
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...atalogId=10053

I have one of these. Not as loud as my big Ridgid beast (that won't die so that I can buy a Fein!) but still quite loud.

Regards,

Ron

[Mike Henderson]

Home Depot - Rigid Pro... it is very quiet and does a great job. I used it every day! Also get the syn filter sold right next to it.
I use mine for sanding, routers, some equipment.

Attachment 204934

it cost $99

After reviewing the vacuums at Home Depot, I bought this one. It's not as quiet as a Fein or Festool but it's acceptable. I'll also get a muffler for it - they were out of them at the HD I went to.

One good thing about the Ridgid display at HD is that they have a rating for each vacuum. They assign a number for the suction and a separate number for the noise. While not an actual dB number, it helps you choose the quietest of the group. The smaller Ridgid vacuum mentioned earlier was actually rated as noisier than this larger one.

Since it's a universal motor, I suppose I could put one of those speed controls on it and quiet it down by slowing it down, at the loss of some suction. But for now, it's acceptable.

Thanks to everyone who offered advice. I very much appreciate it.

Mike

[Mike Henderson]

I bought a "muffler" for the Ridgid vacuum and it doesn't make much difference. If you face the same thing, don't waste your money.

The vacuum is about as noisy as a household vacuum so it's not too bad.

Mike

[Peter Elliott]

Mike, I should have warned you not to buy that muffler.. my bad...

But I will say this is pretty close to a Festool/Fein vacs as far as decibels wise. I remember at the time looking at a review and this $99 vac was so close.
I wish I could find that spec.

Either way, I didn't feel I need to spend $$ on a festool/fein sander. I use this Rigid with an auto on switch from craftsman.

Currently I am using it on my Mirka Ceros RO setup and it's about the best electric combo I've had my hands on...

[Jim Becker]

these are great:$79
Attachment 204907
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...atalogId=10053

I have one of these for clean-up purposes during home-improvement work and sometimes in the shop, like the DC/Compressor closet where I can't easily use another method. It's definitely quieter than many of the larger "shop vacs" I've used and owned, but still louder by a noticeable amount from my Festool CT-22. One really still should wear hearing protection when using it.

[Mike Henderson]

I have one of these for clean-up purposes during home-improvement work and sometimes in the shop, like the DC/Compressor closet where I can't easily use another method. It's definitely quieter than many of the larger "shop vacs" I've used and owned, but still louder by a noticeable amount from my Festool CT-22. One really still should wear hearing protection when using it.

In the Ridgid display at HD, that little vac was rated as a 6 for noise but the larger one I bought was rated as a 4 (smaller is quieter). The one I bought is not bad as far as noise is concerned. It's not Festool quiet but it's decent.

Mike