Dust Extractors - I know nothing

[MillCreekRCR]

Good afternoon, I’ve been lurking on these forums for several months off and on trying to decide what dust extractor would best suit my applications. I’ve been researching several different manufacturers and have landed on the Metabo ARS 35, the Bosch VAC090A, CT Midi, CT26, and the Makita can’t remember the model. The usage applications would mostly be sanding cabinetry, built ins, and vanities for refinishing, sanding small amounts of drywall repair, sanding imperfections prior to repainting walls, limited amounts of masonry, and general cleanup.

The HEPA certification for OSHA compliance as well as just protecting myself and my workers along with the professionalism in dust control is why I want to switch to a dust extractor as opppsed to my current shop vacs. Having a vac with an AC feature that’s still hepa certified would be nice as well.

I noticed many in this group tend to be cabinet makers, furtiture makers, wood workers, and other fine finish craftsman (way more skilled than me). I am not any of those things as I do mostly remodeling and insurance restoration work. I don’t have a shop, unless you count my garage that I mostly just use for tool storage, so whatever dust extractor I go with will be kept in a jobbox attached to my work truck. What impressed me with Festool is the 30 day money back trial period, I feel it a company is going to offer that then they are pretty confident in their products. I know the Festool dust extractors are not silica certified but I’m still interested in them. I don’t currently own any Festool products and am probably only currently interested in the sanders (for now).

I’m sorry this is jumbled and long but the main reason for me posting was wanting to get some feed back from other remodeling contractors on the best dust collectors for those applications. I feel it I was buying tools for a shop then Festool would be hands down the route to go. Since the cheapest of the vacs start at around 600 I don’t want to regret my purchase.

 

[peter halle]

First, Welcome to the FOG!  I am a contractor who probably 30% of the time is not entirely sure what I have to do until I get to the job site.  It might be repairs, trim, drywall, painting, and usually I don't do the same thing two days in a row.

Am I partial to Festool?  YES.  I have had my old CT-22 for close to ten years and it has been to used to suck up all sorts of stuff.  I admit to drawing the line at liquids and dog excrement.  Although it had a HEPA filter it wasn't HEPA certified.  I now have a CT Midi which is HEPA certified.  I love the features and low noise volume which over time can really spoil you.

Sorry but I can't give you any real advice about the other brands.

Peter

 

[MillCreekRCR]

Thanks for the welcome and your time. I appreciate your answer and that’s exactly what I was wanting input on. Thats pretty much how it is for me. One week I might have an exterior paint job, the next might be a deck, the week after might be a tile shower install etc. I’m partial to Festool just based off the 30 day guarantee and the following it has.

 

[ColossusX]

I have a remodeling business like you.  I spent about 6 months debating on which dust extractor to get.  Because I deal with silica dust (drywall and concrete) in addition to wood and the occasional lead paint, I went with the Bosch VAC090AH. The hoses fit my festool and milwaukee tools, the auto clean really is nice when sanding drywall. 

For general cleanup I still use my small Ridgid shop vac, and I use the Bosch with my tools.  I do have the CT-SYS for small jobs.  And I am planning on either a CT-MIDI or 26 in the future for just woodworking.  One thing about the Bosch is it's often on sale and available at most Lowes stores.  Most of the others have to be ordered online.  I really like my Bosch and use it every day.

 

[RKA]

I'm not a remodeler, just a hobby woodworker.  Your wood cutting and sanding uses would be served well with a Festool extractor.  They are expensive, but they do include a few features that may be of interest:  Antistatic hose (you might be shocked by the amount of static some tools and materials can generate), tool end fittings that work with all their tools (metric sized ports) without the use of clumsy adapters (note: some tools will benefit from a 36mm hose which is not standard with their extractors), sufficient power in the accessory outlet to run all their tools except for the big router, optional bluetooth trigger (timesaver and encourages cleaning as you work).  Their filter bags are 2 or 3 layer quality bags that keep all but the finest dust away from the Hepa filters.  But the bags do clog if you use them with drywall and I suspect concrete dust as well.  For a homeowner, it's not a big deal, but for a contractor, I would choose a different extractor for these purposes.  There are other small things that may not matter to you, like the ability to coil the cord and hose into the top of the extractor and the ability to latch systainers to the top of the extractor.  The extractor itself is pretty compact and you'll find it stores well compared to the Metabo.  The one big con is the lack of filter cleaning for the Hepa filters.  For woodworking, this is not an issue because the bags are very good.  The hepa filters will last a very long time when used with the fleece bags.  But for finer dust (concrete and drywall) that may work it's way past the bag, it will eventually kill the airflow across the hepa filters.  That's not the kind of work these extractors were built for and it could turn into a frustrating experience for you if that's your intended use.  I have used a Festool extractor for small drywall work and just replaced the bag as soon as I'm done.  I could feel the suction drop off, I tried turning off the extractor and shaking up the bag, but that was a temporary fix. Ultimately, I think it's better to toss the bag early that risk contaminating an expensive set of hepa filters.  But, Festool does sell a CT36AC for use with their drywall sanders.  It's not a Hepa unit but it does have filter cleaning.  I'm not sure how well it would work with concrete, but that may be a viable option for mixed uses.

I recently acquired a Metabo extractor, which was cheaper.  My experience with it is limited, but here it goes.  It came with a standard hose (not antistatic) which was larger in diameter compared to the Festool.  This will work better with a miter saw, tracksaw or router, but it's not ideal with a sander or other handheld power tools.  The manual states the automatic Hepa filter cleaning does not take place with the use of the fleece bags (which is puzzling because I hear the filter cleaning kick off when I turn it on with the fleece bag installed).  The fleece bags are a single layer bag, not the same quality as the Festool bag.  If you use the extractor with drywall or concrete, they instruct you to use a plastic bag (they include 1 with the extractor) not the fleece bag.  The fleece bags are a royal pain in the a$$ to find (and twice as expensive as the Festool CT26 bags), you have to order online.  The power spec on the accessory outlet is somewhat low, I'm not sure if it will shut off or allow you to run until you exceed the capacity of the circuit and trip the breaker (which is essentially what the Festool will do regardless of what the lawyers printed).  I think it will let you run until the breaker trips?  The 9 gallon capacity is without the use of a bag, it's closer to 6 with a bag according to specs.  However, the Festool CT26 is also a 6 gallon+ and looking at the bags side by side, the Metabo bag is substantially smaller, which makes me wonder.  Considering it's a larger overall package, it's puzzling that the capacity would be smaller than the Festool when using a fleece bag.  This extractor does have automatic Hepa filter cleaning on board which is necessary with concrete and drywall.  And it states that it doesn't cut off the suction while it does it like many other extractors on the market. 

Both are excellent machines, The Festool should do most of what you want.  The masonry work is where I'm hesitant to recommend it.  And the drywall...only as long as it's limited and you're willing to eat the cost of the bag. 

 

[Jiggy Joiner]

I recently bought two CTM 26 E AC, and have used them for mainly wood and MDF, and also for drywall, concrete and brick dust. Very pleased with how they’ve performed, and the auto clean works really well. It took a bit of getting used to the sound it makes when auto clean kicks in but, great all the same.

I recently asked a few question about AC or not?, and there is a Hepa filter that can be used but, you must not use the Auto Clean whilst that filter is installed.

I leave the stock filter in mine, and use the poly disposal bags when on AC with drywall, concrete and brick dust, and use a filter bag for wood.

 

[AlexThePalex]

If sanding is your main interest get the CT Midi, no need to get bigger and you'll love the portability with this small vac.

 

[MillCreekRCR]

I’m sorry I didn’t get back with y’all sooner but just wanted to say I appreciate everyone’s advice and time. I ended up going with the CT-Midi and Ro-90 to start with. I honestly can’t believe I waited this long to get proper dust extraction. This morning I’ve been sanding mdf shiplap from a poor install (bulges, bad 45s, nail holes, damaged spots etc) job and I’m amazed at how there’s no dust. I still have the homeowners contents covered but there’s no dust. Not even anything clinging to the painters plastic.

I almost went with the Bosch but wanted something that would be easier to keep in my rigid box and easier to haul around on every job. If I end up doing more masonry and larger amounts of drywall I’ll probably pick up the Bosch VAC090A.

 

[Jiggy Joiner]

Glad you got sorted, yes they really are great machines, I’m amazed at the two new ones I bought  [thumbs up]

 

[Paul G]

Sounds like a good choice, especially considering your storage requirements. Keep an eye on dust build up under the sanding pad on the RO90, it’s a great sander but mine has the tendency to get dust cakes that I need to pick out periodically. Also when sanding much drywall my bags get kinda clogged up so I prefer using a dust deputy. At least keep a new bag on hand if needed.

 

[Kevin D.]

I own the CT22 the CT36AC the SYS-CT and the Bosch 9 gallon and a 14 gallon vac.  They all have their intended purposes for me.  I like the Festool over the Bosch overall myself. 

The auto-clean function on the Bosch units are on by default and must be deactivated when not wanted. 

The Bosch does NOT come with anti-static hoses, but you can buy them at cheaper prices than the Festool ones, but the Bosch hoses won't insert in my CT vacs, but my Festool hoses all work on my Bosch vacs. 

My preferred Bosch vac is the 14 gallon for its nice lug around high handle and it also has a drain hose at the bottom when dealing with sucking up water, the 9 gallon Bosch does not have those features.

If looking at Bosch, be careful to distinguish what might be old stock of their two models (9 and 14 gallon) SEMI-Automatic models versus the AUTO models.  The semis would be old stock as when the OSHA rules came into effect, Bosch stopped selling the SEMIs in NA.  I would have liked the SEMIs myself for ease of engaging the auto-clean function at my choosing rather than it being on by default as in my two AUTO models, although the SEMIs do not have a variable suction dial which Bosch terms the 'Power Broker' dial in both their AUTO models. 

Note also, Bosch has a 30 day satisfaction guarantee just like Festool, so no worries taking one out for a spin.  Bosch accessories and consumables are a heck of a lot cheaper than Festool as well if that's important to you.  Their vacs are made in Germany. 

Despite all of the above, I still prefer my overpriced Festool CTs.