Shop vac woes (aka - No Good Deed Goes Unpunished)

[stvrowe]

Sooo, this weekend I unilaterally commenced Spring cleaning thinking that would be a nice thing to do.  I pulled the Fein mini-turbo into the house and clean the blinds.  SWMBO comments on how quiet the vacuum is.  She then 'borrows' it to do some other cleaning with the accompanying accolades about how much better it sucks than her vacuum.  Now the shop vac has been 'promoted' to house vac and her old (actually much newer) vacuum goes to the garage sale box.  Yep - that's right, no good deed goes unpunished.  I am thankful that the CT-22 had a boom arm and was impractical to bring into the house. 

Woe is me, but wait!  -  It seems that I now have an excuse to purchase a bigger, better vac that sucks even more.    I guess every cloud has a silver lining.  The real question is whether to go for the CT-33 dust extractor or go with one of the Fein vacs.  Having used both, they are of rougly equal performance with a slight edge to quietness going to the Fein.  Both are about the same price when outfitted with HEPA filters.  I used the Fein for general shop cleanup and the CT-22 for connection to shop tools.  Any input would be appreciated. 

PS - Hmmm? - I wonder if I could use this as a reason to make a stealth tool purchase in one of those package deals?

Steve

 

[Daviddubya]

...It seems that I now have an excuse to purchase a bigger, better vac that sucks even more.  ...Steve

The CT33 is bigger in capacity than the CT22, but they have the same performance - same specs.

 

[Jim Becker]

Funny coincidence...I've been wishing to get a Festool vac for the house every since I cleaned all the barn beams in our great room with my CT22 a few weeks ago. (14' up on a ladder for several hours....) I'm just disappointed that the two smallest ones don't have the HEPA filtration as they would be quite suitable for what I have in mind.

 

[Corwin]

I just received my second CT22.  While I could have opted for the Fein, my tools are mostly Festool and another CT simply seemed a better choice for me as it fits within the system and uses the same supplies.  The cyclone and separator units that I have added to my first CT will now work with my new CT like they were made for it -- because they were. 

I like the ability to store Systainers and Sortainers on my extractors.  I like the modular, or system aspect to the Festool line.  Adding another brand tool, or vac in this case, may bring with it its own added features or value, but staying within the Festool line in turn has its own merits.

Just my $0.02 worth,
Corwin

 

[Warrior]

I have the Fein turbo3 and a CT22 and I would rather have the CT any day. I know the specs state that the Fein has more CFM but it seems that when doing clean up with the 50mm hose the CT has mush more suction than the Fein with the same hose. And the Fein has a brand new filter with no bag. The CT has hepa filters and a bag. More suction and no mess.

The shape of the CT is way more efficient as it is rectangular and the Fein is kind of round or tubular. This makes it easier to store or transport the CT vacs.  The CT vacs also have handy locking casters. I do not particularly like that the power cord comes out the side of the vac instead of at the rear. This makes it harder to manuver while cleaning up since it has a tendancy to roll over the cord or get hung up on it.

Overall I say the CT vacs are far superior.

I saw on some other posts that the poster did not feel that the CT vacs were the best on the market for the price but failed to mention another brand that was better.

Eiji

 

[Corwin]

... I do not particularly like that the power cord comes out the side of the vac instead of at the rear. This makes it harder to manuver while cleaning up since it has a tendancy to roll over the cord or get hung up on it.

Eiji

I lead the cord to the rear of the CT and clip it to the cord wrap to prevent the problem you describe.  Though a little hard to see in this picture, it may illistrate my point well enough;

Actually, the picture doesn't show exactly how I have the cord now, but you can get the idea...

Corwin

 

[pteubel]

If you already have a CT, go with a big Fein for general shop cleanup. You'll save on bags.

 

[Mirko]

Nick,
How many bags do you fill a night?

Mirko

 

[semenza]

Hi,

 Nick,  I know that you like the Feins better.    I am wondering about the rapid filter clogging that you experience on the CTs.  I know you put a lot of hours on them and do a lot of sanding.  But I have not had my CT filters clog ever.  So I am curious what it seems to be that is causing it?

Seth

 

[joraft]

... I'm just disappointed that the two smallest ones don't have the HEPA filtration as they would be quite suitable for what I have in mind.

Jim:

You may want to consider a Miele for inside the house. German engineering and quality easily equal to Festool. They are light, have excellent suction, are so quiet you can hardly tell they're running, and they have a HEPA filter so good that there's absolutely no odor in the exhaust.

Of course their pricing structure is also equal to Festool. 

John 

 

[semenza]

That is weird. I have a friend coming over to look at these. He likes the Festools better, I may have something wrong here and am willing to try. Like I  said I want the festools to be better then what I am experienceing.

This is what happens. The Festool is better for ten minutes,. Then the Fein is as good and better after 30 minutes. Then when the Festool bag is not nearly full its no good. The pull sucks. I open it up and the tubes are filled with the dust but the bag is just half full.

With the Fein I have used it until the bags literally are bursting at the seams before a I notice a difference.

The Festools  performance drops way fast . The Fein starts out a tad less but last about 90 minutes or more with a MUCH better suctions.

Hopefully I am missing something stupid. I just asked Fred if he wanted to buy one, I am at that point if I can not find a problem. I have 12 less than 1/2 filed Festool bags here. For the cost that is outrages. My Fein  bags are bursting at the seams. I saved them all, maybe I will put up pictures.

Oh and I am constantly cleaning those two darn little filters constantly. If I open the unit and I take the bag out and get a big puff of dust, what is the use of the HEPA? I think the HEPA clogs to fast and might try a non HEPA filter, do they have them for Festool?

Nick

Hi,

        "tubes"  Do you mean the filter pleats or the vac tub?

      The non HEPA filters are still listed in the catalog.  But I am guessing that it is more likely the particular nature or intensity of your work or something else.  Because I have used both types and not noticed a performance difference.

      My experience has been that I don't notice the suction dropping off until the bag is at least 75% full and even then not enough to be a problem.  However it would be a variety of particle size from all types of tool sources in mine. Not just from sanding.

    BTW, do you put the bags in right side up? :

Seth

 

[Warrior]

Nick,
How about a even trade My turbo3 for one of your CT33s?

Eiji

 

[Dongar]

Hi Nick. It sounds like you either are producing very fine dust, have defective bags, or have a leak that is allowing dust to bypass the bag. I have never cleaned the filter in my ct33 that I use with paper bags for sanding (I just looked and there is a very light layer of dust on them). The filter in the ct33 I use with the reuseable bag for sawing, routing, and planing needs more cleaning. Usually by the time I notice the drop off I can barely get the bag out it's so stuffed. Good luck Donald

 

[Michael Kellough]

That is weird.

This is what happens. The Festool is better for ten minutes,. Then the Fein is as good and better after 30 minutes. Then when the Festool bag is not nearly full its no good. The pull sucks. I open it up and the tubes are filled with the dust but the bag is just half full.

Nick

Which tool are you using, the drum sander?

Does the Fein vac have a HEPA filter installed?

 

[pteubel]

Dongar yes its fine dust. The RO 150, the ETS 150/3, the disc sander and spindle sander are all used for it only. I will take a picture of the clogged filters. Its totally caked to the extreme.  The filters clog on me at minimum, every other day.

Nick,

It sounds like you have something wrong with your vac or the bag isn't sealing properly. I've used my CT for HEAVY drywall sanding (finer that sanding dust) and the filters had barely a coating on them. Full suction right up to to a full bag....which was packed like concrete.

 

[Mirko]

Nickao

My bags are like presto logs when there full, and after almost two years of heavy use, you can eat off the hepa's
so... what gives?

Mirko

 

[Joe Jensen]

Sooo, this weekend I unilaterally commenced Spring cleaning thinking that would be a nice thing to do.  I pulled the Fein mini-turbo into the house and clean the blinds.  SWMBO comments on how quiet the vacuum is.  She then 'borrows' it to do some other cleaning with the accompanying accolades about how much better it sucks than her vacuum.  Now the shop vac has been 'promoted' to house vac and her old (actually much newer) vacuum goes to the garage sale box.  Yep - that's right, no good deed goes unpunished.  I am thankful that the CT-22 had a boom arm and was impractical to bring into the house. 

Woe is me, but wait!  -  It seems that I now have an excuse to purchase a bigger, better vac that sucks even more.    I guess every cloud has a silver lining.  The real question is whether to go for the CT-33 dust extractor or go with one of the Fein vacs.  Having used both, they are of rougly equal performance with a slight edge to quietness going to the Fein.  Both are about the same price when outfitted with HEPA filters.  I used the Fein for general shop cleanup and the CT-22 for connection to shop tools.  Any input would be appreciated. 

PS - Hmmm? - I wonder if I could use this as a reason to make a stealth tool purchase in one of those package deals?

Steve

Steve, it depends on what you are looking for.  I am very partial to Alto/WAP vacs from Germany.  They have as much suction and CFM as the Festool, but they are 57db compared to 72db for the Festool.  Lots of options, autostart, auto filter clean, HEPA, etc.  They are pricey however, $700-1100.  Fein is almost as good at a much lower price.  Or, you could buy your wife a Miele canister vac for the house.  It's the Festool CT for the house...joe

 

[Mike_Chrest]

Nick,
  Check the bags for any punctures. Any leaks and your HEPA filter is toast. I stabbed a bag with the two prongs at the back end of the vacuum's lid. Check for air leaks around the intake nozzle.
  I never clean my filters ??? Sometimes I fill the drum on my cyclone twice a day(it holds more than the bag).
Consider getting a cyclone. You will pay for it fast in a commercial shop.
Mike

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Everyone,
I found out this morning that Nick has chosen to delete his FOG account.
I'm posting this so people know not to address notes directly to him any more.
Matthew

 

[Scott W.]

Everyone,
I found out this morning that Nick has chosen to delete his FOG account.
I'm posting this so people know not to address notes directly to him any more.
Matthew

That's just a shame... 

Scott W.