Most powerful vaccum - Metro or Festool?

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98LowRanger

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Three years ago I bought a Rigid 6 HP shop vac for detailing. After cleaning well over a 100 vehicles it seems like the vaccum is getting tired. I have cleaned the hose out and replaced the filter and it still doesn't seem to have the suction that it should have. After thinking about how much time I spend vacuuming interiors (I don't do any quick interior jobs, all very thorough) I am contemplating replacing my vaccum and I want to upgrade it to a unit with more power. I feel like this would easily increase my efficiency.

So from my research, it appears that Metro and Festool have two of the strongest (suction) vaccums. Have any of you guys used either one and can give me some insight on them before I drop $300- $500 on a vaccum?
 
The very first thing I do is remove the filter when I buy a new rigid.The reason is the filter stinks when it wet and constricted power.Try to remove the filter and hose out the circular little intake.Rigids don't loose power they just burn out with no warning.These are disposable vacs and cheap when new.I won't spend more than 100.00 on a vacuum.once a year I but a new one.Try that and see if you have any luck.
 
Check the hose sometimes there can be a small crack.Ive never gotten 3 years out of a rigid.
 
Can't speak for either of the two you mentioned but I've had great luck with good vacuums >$100-150. I just added a basic $75-100 Shop Vac Brand Wall mount unit that's 4hp and comes with an 18ft hose. I added 8ft more and it does great. I wish it had a bit more power but it will suck up screws and bolts at 26ft with ease and uses both bags and a filter for easy cleaning.

I'm not a pro running a detail shop of course just part timer in his garage but there was no way I wanted to spend $300-$500 on a vacuum. Extractor perhaps but not a dry vac. I only use my shop vac for dry stuff.
 
I didn't even think about checking the hose. Thanks for the tips guys! I was checking this thread to ask about 2 more brands that I have found that offer high end, powerful vaccums (Power-Flite and Fein), but you guys have me thinking. I really didn't want to put $300+ into a vaccum that who knows how long it will last. I thought the Rigid worked great for at least a year and a half and it was right at $100 with tax. Might be a better to invest $100 in a new Rigid vaccum each year or two rather than paying $300+ (most I looked at were in the $400-$600 range) on a high end vaccum. I know I am wanting to upgrade my steamer and get a Rupes iBrid this winter so saving some cash on an expensive vaccum is looking like a great option! Thanks for the feedback guys!
 
My brother has Festool's CT 26 HEPA Dust Extractor in his woodshop. And after using it I can attest to how nice of a machine it is. Not only is it powerful, but it's also quite. However, the Festool has a limited use outside of woodworking. Like the name "dust extractor" implies it was designed to pick up sanding/cutting/planing debris. Unlike a wet/dry vac you can not use it for picking up anything wet and you must use a dust bag. Plus Festool products aren't cheap!! The CT 26 retails for $675!!!

So when it came time for me to purchase a new shop-vac I went with a Ridgid wet/dry vac instead because it is more versatile and less expensive while perfectly meeting my general purpose/ detailing needs.

Here's another advantage the Ridgid has over the Festool: you can attach the hose to the blower port and use it to dry your freshly washed vehicle :)
 
Thanks for your reply Angus, great to hear from someone who has personally used a Festool vaccum. I don't want to have to worry if I am vacuuming anything wet or not. I also decided that I want to stay away from vaccums that require bags as I feel that could get costly. Yes, it was going to be a very costly investment (model I was looking at was $550), but I am just tired of spending so much time vacuuming.

I have decided to first check the hose and filter on my current Rigid to see if I can gain any more suction power. If I can't (I'm not planning on it) I will most likely buy another Rigid or maybe even McKees 37 8 gallon, 2.5 hp shop vac. It supposedly has a 90" sealed lift, which is very good. I believe the most powerful Rigid is around 70" of lift. The McKees vac is $175 now, but I may wait till the holidays and snag it for cheaper.
 
98LowRanger said:
Thanks for your reply Angus, great to hear from someone who has personally used a Festool vaccum. I don't want to have to worry if I am vacuuming anything wet or not. I also decided that I want to stay away from vaccums that require bags as I feel that could get costly. Yes, it was going to be a very costly investment (model I was looking at was $550), but I am just tired of spending so much time vacuuming.

I have decided to first check the hose and filter on my current Rigid to see if I can gain any more suction power. If I can't (I'm not planning on it) I will most likely buy another Rigid or maybe even McKees 37 8 gallon, 2.5 hp shop vac. It supposedly has a 90" sealed lift, which is very good. I believe the most powerful Rigid is around 70" of lift. The McKees vac is $175 now, but I may wait till the holidays and snag it for cheaper.
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Sure thing. Happy to help out and share my thought process when I was in your shoes.
 
I've been running a Rigid WD4070 with the "Auto Detail Kit" since March of '13. Filters get cleaned and swapped every 3 cars and hoses get rinsed out every job. I've never had an issue, suction has been great. I do have a back up vac I carry with me, but never needed it. I'll spend a solid hour typically vacuuming when I'm doing an interior job. It seems to be a very popular unit and for $80 you just can't go wrong with it. Most vacs will burn up the motor from having to strain due to clogged filters, keep them clean and you should have no issue.

Mike
 
Firehouse Mike said:
I've been running a Rigid WD4070 with the "Auto Detail Kit" since March of '13. Filters get cleaned and swapped every 3 cars and hoses get rinsed out every job. I've never had an issue, suction has been great. I do have a back up vac I carry with me, but never needed it. I'll spend a solid hour typically vacuuming when I'm doing an interior job. It seems to be a very popular unit and for $80 you just can't go wrong with it. Most vacs will burn up the motor from having to strain due to clogged filters, keep them clean and you should have no issue.

Mike
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Thanks for posting, I feel better knowing I'm not the only 1 who can spend an entire hr. straight vacuuming a vehicle during a detail if it needs it. Lol.


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I would suggest not focusing on HP ratings and maybe consider a unit with a 2-stage motor. Most the cheaper box store units are basically disposable with cheap motors. 2-stage units will be quieter and have more lift. I got tired of the noisy cheaper units and picked up an industrial Shop-Vac, which has 105 inches of lift and 109 CFM.

I did see a Rigid unit with similar specifications for quite a bit less then what I paid for my shop-vac.

https://www.ridgid.com/us/en/16-gallon-2-stage-wet-dry-vac
 
I have a ridgid that came with the auto detail kit and so far it has worked great for me. I have a craftsman i have had for 6 years and does fine still i have foam filter for wet stuff that i change out but after every detail i always clean out my vacs brush and blow out the filter just because my ocd lol. The time it take to vacuum a car can depend widely but all the cars i do takes at least 45 minutes but they are usually bad thats why people pay to have them detailed. I get some cars that arent bad and in 20 minutes i am done but very rarely does that happen. I dont think you can go wrong with ridgid i believe they have a lifetime warranty on their vacs also.
 
98LowRanger said:
Thanks for your reply Angus, great to hear from someone who has personally used a Festool vaccum. I don't want to have to worry if I am vacuuming anything wet or not. I also decided that I want to stay away from vaccums that require bags as I feel that could get costly. Yes, it was going to be a very costly investment (model I was looking at was $550), but I am just tired of spending so much time vacuuming.


I have decided to first check the hose and filter on my current Rigid to see if I can gain any more suction power. If I can't (I'm not planning on it) I will most likely buy another Rigid or maybe even McKees 37 8 gallon, 2.5 hp shop vac. It supposedly has a 90" sealed lift, which is very good. I believe the most powerful Rigid is around 70" of lift. The McKees vac is $175 now, but I may wait till the holidays and snag it for cheaper.
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I have been using the McKees vac for 2.5 years now. I'm not a pro and don't use it constantly, but it is a quality unit that should hold up to heavy use. It has powerful suction, is quiet, has a very long power cord and a long hose. I highly recommend it. Purchased mine during a 20 percent off sale.
 
Dan K said:
I have been using the McKees vac for 2.5 years now. I'm not a pro and don't use it constantly, but it is a quality unit that should hold up to heavy use. It has powerful suction, is quiet, has a very long power cord and a long hose. I highly recommend it. Purchased mine during a 20 percent off sale.
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How long is the hose? And what diameter is it? You wouldn't happen to know how many decibels it measures as far as the noise it makes, would you?
My 14 gallon Ridgid vac measures 92 decibels while it's on.


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Eldorado2k said:
How long is the hose? And what diameter is it? You wouldn't happen to know how many decibels it measures as far as the noise it makes, would you?
My 14 gallon Ridgid vac measures 92 decibels while it's on.


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12 foot long, 1.5" diameter, 35 foot power cord! Comes with nice attachments, and you can use an adapter for smaller 1.25" attachments. Don't know about decibels but it is by far the quietest shop vac that I have used. I religiously use hearing protection when necessary, and I definitely don't need to with this vac.
 
Cool. Thx for the reply.


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Well OP, my suggestion to you would be to ask all these Rigid/ShopVac posters if they've ever used a Metro or a Power Flite.

As my good friend Senator Benson used to say...

'I have a Power-Flite; Power-Flite has been a friend to me; Rigid and ShopVac, you're no Power-Flite."

Thank you.

(And yes, I own a Rigid, a Shop-Vac and a Power-Flite.)
 
I have two vacuums that have lasted 4 years. For dry I use a Dyson, still pulls like new. I bought a $50 wet vac from Amazon. I thought it was disposable but it is over 3 years old. I could not say enough about my Dyson, no filters either.
 
Firehouse Mike said:
Eldorado2k said:
Thanks for posting, I feel better knowing I'm not the only 1 who can spend an entire hr. straight vacuuming a vehicle during a detail if it needs it. Lol.


This is what makes the 1-2 hour vacuum times happen! (and why regular filter changes / cleaning is needed)

https://www.facebook.com/FirehouseM...5175125583591/945173225583781/?type=3&theater



Mike
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Holy smokes! Who drives that vehicle? Chewbacca?? Lol.

Do you also vacuum engine bays? I do that too. Lol. I just vacuumed my Cadillac and the Kia's engine today. I have a dedicated dust brush just for that nasty duty, but it's well worth it, especially for me since I won't dare take a hose to anyones engine including my own.




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