Ridgid Shop Vac Surprise

[Thomas Canfield]

Ridgid makes several levels of shop vacs, and they are definitely not all equal. A couple of years ago I picked up a 16 gallon unit cheap after Thanksgiving and it was so loud that I gave it away. After calling Ridgid tech service and asking about sound levels and other factors, I bought the 14 gallon unit which was much quiter. I also use a Dust Deputy so a couple of gallons difference in tank was not a consideration compared to the lower noise level.

[Dick Mahany]

I bought the Ridgid 1851 ( somewhat apprehensively ) to replace a 25 yr old shop vac. Read Mike's comments on another thread way back about the quietness. I have to say that this vac is the strongest, quietest and versatile shop vac that I have ever used. I use the big orange/black ribbed aftermarket hose with 2.5" connections and it has passed my expectations by a mile. I use an internal filter bag in conjunction with the pleated HEPA cartridge when hooked up to my ROS and couldn't be happier.

I have a DC system connected to my bigger machines for serious volume consumption, but the Ridgid vac serves its intended needs perfectly. Whooda thunk HD would carry such a great tool in local stock ??

i also think Scott is on the mark about at least a 35 post on this one

[Rick Thom]

I went through this same exercise a few years ago and this is what I ended up with. A bit top-heavy but I need to conserve floor space in a small shop. The 'chair' can be added or removed in less than 1 minute, and no modifications to the shop vac were required. I prefer not to modify the vac because I use it as a wet/dry and in non-shop applications too. For wet/dry I just plug the hose directly into the vac which bypasses the DD. The DD has a pretty high capture rate.. maybe high 90's so emptying the shop vac and cleaning the filter is a rate experience. The combination is pretty efficient air-flow-wise as demonstrated by capturing the vast majority of fine dust from my Ridgid combination belt/spindle sander.

[Richard Jones]

So, do the standard 2.5" hoses fit this unit or not? I'm confused..............

I'm in the market for a new vac, this looks good.

[george wilson]

Dick,just above,says he uses the 2 1/2" hose on his Ridgid 1852. I use the standard 2.5" on my Fein,too. The opening accidentally fits the standard 2.5" hose when you take off their small hose. I really like my Fein. Had it at home and 3 others at work for years with no trouble. I'm going to check out the Ridgids,though,if they are also quiet and powerful. Beats the price of the Fein,though I love the automatic turn on of the Fein when power tools are plugged in. I could just use another vac so I don't have to drag the Fein around the shop.

[Bob Winkler]

So, do the standard 2.5" hoses fit this unit or not? I'm confused..............

I'm in the market for a new vac, this looks good.

My new Ridgid that I started this thread with uses a standard 2.5" hose. All the attachments fit my other machines )sander, table saw port, etc) and other hose attachments. I just think its a great machine for the money.

Bob

[Dick Mahany]

So, do the standard 2.5" hoses fit this unit or not? I'm confused..............

I'm in the market for a new vac, this looks good.

I just measured the male hose connector that plugs into to vac inlet. It measures about 2 1/4" and takes the same standard hose that my ancient ShopVac had.

[Bob Winkler]

Like Dick said- the male end is 2 1/4" and the female end is 2 1/2". I think that's the "standard" of shop vac hose because of fits everything I own.

Bob

[Kurt Cady]

Damn, I'm the odd one out. It is seriously annoying having an odd sized hose. Love the vacs. Guess I'll look for the orange aftermarket hose.

[Richard Jones]

OK, I ordered one. Thanks for all the help in spending my $$$..............

[Ben Hatcher]

I used the blower from my old screamer vac and built this for my dust deputy. The sides of the box surrounding the motor and blower are lined with homosote. It is no louder than my palm sander.
dd1.jpg

[Ole Anderson]

The Ridgid lifetime warranty would be nice. Other than the noise, it seems that the bearings give out on all my shop vacs way before they should. I use my small shop vac with my 6" belt sander, both are plugged into a black/red button on-off switch so they come on at the same time. End of October it gets used to suck water out of all the lines on my Spa.

[Jacob Muldowney]

Well after reading this I picked one up today. The switch was wearing out on my 12 Shop-Vac branded unit. Thanks for the heads up!

[Jamie Lynch]

I just looked at the WD1450 online price and there is a bonus online special with two free bags.

[John McClanahan]

Jamie, where do you see the bonus? I don't find find the free bags on the HD web site.

John