New Shop vacuum

[Ronald Kellison]

I'm about ready to relegate my old Ridgid ShopVac to the garden shed for use as a leaf-blower and taking the water off the pool cover in the Spring. I've narrowed my choices for a replacement down to Green (Festool) or Orange (Fein Turbo II or III). Any comments from owners of either would be appreciated. If you were thinking about one of these and ended up buying something else, what were your reasons?

Regards,


Ron

[Warren Clemans]

How about adding blue to the mix: the Wap Attix 8 A/SE? It's a little hard to find and it's expensive, but the thing is built like a tank. I have had mine for a year or so and have used it hard. I love it. It comes with all of the accessories you'll need, unlike the Festool or Fein, which makes the price about a wash. Also, the Wap will take bags made for shop-vacs, which cuts down on the long-term cost of ownership. I'm not sure if you can do that with the Festool, but I suspect not. I had heard complaints (here, among other places) about the Fein's durability. If you have a bunch of Festool tools, you might be more inclined to go with the green vac, since you'll then be able to stack them all up and drag them around the neighborhood. Otherwise, I'm sure you'll be more than satisfied with either the blue or the green choice. Good luck!

[Peter Pedisich]

Ronald,

The flat top, anti-static hose, and HEPA filters of the CT22 made it my choice.
The fein looks like it ruggedly built, and it is quieter than my Festool on full speed.

-pete

[peter de tappan]

I have a Fein Mini Turbo, predecessor to the Turbo I. Ten years old and still does everything I need, quietly!

[Joe Vincent]

If you do decide on a Fein, you might want to consider buying it on eBay to take advantage of Microsoft cashback. (See Deals forum for details.) I think there is at least one Fein retailer who sells on eBay using Buy It Now and Paypal.

[John Hedges]

I had heard complaints (here, among other places) about the Fein's durability.

That's interesting. I have always read that this was one of Fein's strengths and hadn't ever read any negative durability issues. In fact I just went through this same decision a couple of weeks ago and went with the Fein Turbo III for this very reason. So far I love it, about the only downside compared to the Festool is the variable speed, but that hasn't been an issue when sanding for me.

[Warren Clemans]

That's interesting. I have always read that this was one of Fein's strengths and hadn't ever read any negative durability issues. In fact I just went through this same decision a couple of weeks ago and went with the Fein Turbo III for this very reason. So far I love it, about the only downside compared to the Festool is the variable speed, but that hasn't been an issue when sanding for me.

I certainly don't claim to have done any scientific studies...I just recall reading a small number of negative reviews--see Amazon, for example. That, plus the exorbitant cost of the tools, was enough to push me to another brand. I have no doubt that Fein makes a good vac.

I agree that lack of variable speed isn't a deal killer, but it can come in handy. I use it when vacuuming dust off of my clothes or off of drop cloths, where full speed would suck the fabric into the hose.

[Dan Lee]

I have the Fein T3 for 5 years. I use it for general clean up and connected to sanders/biscuit cutters etc works great no problems at all. I use the Mister Noozle hose kit with it. The original hose is pretty big and rigid to use connected to tools

[David Beeler]

I added a cleavue cyclone separator to my rigid shop vac and have been very happy with the results.

[Paul Greathouse]

I've never had the opportunity to use a feestool or a Fien. I'm sure they work great but I prefer to take the less expensive route when it comes to shop vacs that will be used for dust collection.

Get the best Shop Vac or Rigid brand model for about $150, a Sears switch for $20, a hepa filter for about $35 and a clear vue cyclone or a Oneida dust deputy. The cyclones run around $150 - $200. All totaled about the same price as the Fein or Fesstool.

When the vac dies, all you have to do is replace it with another cheap vac. The switch, filter and cyclone are still there. This is the most cost effective option in my opinion.

I use this type setup for dust collection on my guided circular saw, compound miter saw and random orbit sanders. It works great, but like I said, I've never used the big names, maybe I don't know what I'm missing.

[Joe Scharle]

The fein is quiet with good suction. If you get one, opt for the wire top basket. Super handy.

[Joe Jensen]

How about adding blue to the mix: the Wap Attix 8 A/SE? It's a little hard to find and it's expensive, but the thing is built like a tank. I have had mine for a year or so and have used it hard. I love it. It comes with all of the accessories you'll need, unlike the Festool or Fein, which makes the price about a wash. Also, the Wap will take bags made for shop-vacs, which cuts down on the long-term cost of ownership. I'm not sure if you can do that with the Festool, but I suspect not. I had heard complaints (here, among other places) about the Fein's durability. If you have a bunch of Festool tools, you might be more inclined to go with the green vac, since you'll then be able to stack them all up and drag them around the neighborhood. Otherwise, I'm sure you'll be more than satisfied with either the blue or the green choice. Good luck!

I have a WAP, now Alto. Look at the specs. The Alto is quieter, with more suction than any other. I love Festool, but they are relatively noisy at 72db compared with 59db for Fein and 56db for Alto. Alto has many versions, you would want one with auto start. I use mine with bags, and a Hepa filter. The motor is so powerful that there is no perceptible change is cfm with a new bag and a completely full, ready to burst bag. I bought mine maybe 12 years ago and it is one of the best shop purchases I've ever made.

[John Hedges]

When the vac dies, all you have to do is replace it with another cheap vac. The switch, filter and cyclone are still there. This is the most cost effective option in my opinion.

I used to be of the same opinion. However after burning up 2 shop vacs in the last year, I did the math and figured out that the Fein would pay for itself in less than 3 years, and give me some nice features like autostart to boost. I guess it depends on how much you use one. I hook mine up to sanders, routers and my FMT and a D4 jigs so it gets a lot of use, and hence I was burning the cheap ones up pretty fast.

[Ronald Kellison]

Thanks for all the input! I'm now almost certain I'll go for the Fein. It's quiet, available locally (I'm one of those who has to touch and feel stuff before I shell out the money) and will probably be reliable.

Thanks again!


Ron

[Mike Wilkins]

I currently have the 10 gallon Porter Cable vac to use with sanders, a bench top bandsaw and general cleanup, and it works great. If I ever have to get another one, I would take a hard look at the larger Festool system. I have heard one run in a local Woodcraft store and as far as vacuums go, it is reasonably quiet.