I want to hook up my shop vac to some small power tools. I'm hoping someone can save me time and money by sharing their experience or knowledge.
  • I have a 16 gal. 6.5 peak HP Craftsman shop vac with a 2 1/2" hose - the fitting on the end has a 2" inside diameter.
    • I tried a 1 1/2" hose and found that the suction was diminished significantly (I could drag a box of clamps across the floor with suction from the 2 1/2" hose but not the 1 1/2" - real scientific!).
  • I want to hook the vac to my circular saw, hand planer, and a router, all of which have about 1" to 1 1/4" ports.
    • I can find/create tapered adapters to go from either hose size to fit the tools
  • The hose will run up 3' to a boom and be about 10' long
  • Ultimately I plan to install a Phil Thien design separator between the vac and the hose - or maybe I will do it initially if I need to for the sake of making the adapters easier
My questions:
  1. Does the extra suction of the bigger hose matter?
  2. Would a smooth hose be noticeably better since it's such a short (10') run ?
    1. I have extra small and big shop vac hoses on-hand
    2. Agri-Supply sells PVC suction & discharge hose - 1.5" x 25' or 2" x 15' for $20
  3. Is there anything else I should be asking?
Whew! Thanks.