Shop vac that doesn't pump dust?

[aemeijers]

Finally trying to clean out the 20+ years of dirt and dust in the basement, so I can try to get it halfway organized. There used to be a garage bay down there, and I had some concrete cutting done last year for furnace swapout. In the old garage and where the concrete dust was, the shop vac did a good imitation of a smoke machine- the stuff pumped right through the foam filter ring around the motor can. Couldn't see across room, layer of dust on everything, and asthma kicked in within a few minutes. The vac is second-hand cheap junk, but it sucks well. Anybody know a source for, or how to fabricate, a filter cylinder or bag, that will actually slow dust down? Hopefully cheap enough that I can have several on hand, and rotate them as they get plugged up? Idea being that I could then take all the filters outside, hose them clean, and they would be dry in time for the next project?

Related question- anybody know a good way to strip old striped foam-backed basement carpet? I pulled back a corner, and it looks like a layer of talc under there. I really don't wanna end up in a hospital from inhaling all that.... (The truck-mounted rig a duct-cleaning company uses comes to mind, but I assume they would charge a fortune, if they would even do it.)

aem sends...

[RBM]

If you're serious about a vac that doesn't emit dust, get a central vac with an exhaust to the outside. They work great, and are less expensive than you would expect

[trainfan1]

No fabrication necessary. Just get a filter that the vac originally came with. The foam is not it. The foam piece is supposed to go over the pleated paper filter.

There are also washable pleated filters for most models. They are about $30 but last a long time.

Rob

[mm]

You're supposed to use a paper filter also when vacuuming dry stuff.

What brand. If it's shop vac or made by shop vac, they sell filters. If it's Ridgid, they sell them too, maybe the same filters iirc.

There are special small hole (my term) filters for soot. I'm not sure if you need that for what your describing or not, but I got them at Lowes, I think. HD sells Ridgid brand vacs and only a few accessories that fit Shop VAc.

I used mine special filters to vacuum inside my oil furnace, includring the firebox as best I could, and the flue and the place where they connect (which was clogged with things that looked like charcoal, as big as marbles, but would break into small pieces when I squeezed them. Made out of partially burned oil I guess. I didn't see a bit of dust come out.

The very smallest shop vacs won't accept these filters. You have to have the vacs where the hose enters the bucket, not the removeable top of the vac. Now I recall that the these low-diameter filters don't go on over the foam tube. They slip into a bracket and are held in place when the input tube is slid into its holder in the bucket. They are U-shaped tubes that wrap around the motor and the input hole is in the middle.

I bought my vac at Pep-Boys, it was about 50 dollars. I still have the small one, so I put the big one in storage until I need to clean the furnace again.

I'm not sure if you need these special filters or not for what you are doing, but you can't expect the foam to filter dust. It's only to protect the motor when you are sucking in water and stuff.

I have that everytime I take up any of my bathroom rugs. Isn't that just dried foam rubber, not talc at all. (which is the same chemically as asbestos but not the same physically. Isn't it the physcial properties of asbestos that make it dangerous? Isn't talc still used for massages and babies, not dangerous at all? Or am I wrong about that?)

Try sci.chemistry , I guess.

And you could wear a mask, a simple dust mask or a fancier one.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

They make a pleated filter that is washable and will control fine dust

Wear a respirator and use a long handles ice scraper.

[Gordon Parks]

Depending on the age of the vac, it may not have had a pleated filer cartridge. I have an old (80's) shop vac that does not have a pleated filter or the ability to use one. The foam filter on these older units is there to provide support for a filter bag. I have found them at Wal-Mart, Lowe's and Home Depot. My unit originally came with a cloth filter bag but it was not very good at filtering dust.

Look for the paper filter bags at a Shop-Vac dealer. They are held in place by either a large rubber band or a plastic ring.

[mm]

BTW, the less expensive paper filters, the ones not for soot, are circle shapped. They go on flat along the bottom of the cage, and then wrinkle as put around the foam filter. They are held on by a plastic ring (whhere the cross section is a quarter round) for shop-vac, and a thick rubber band for Ridgid.

If you have the ring, you can buy a bad of filters for a dollar less at Walmart. If you need a ring, you can buy a bag at Lowes with the plastic ring, or iirc and HD with the rubber band ring. I like the plastic ring better, but if for some reason, I want to store one outside of the machine, the rubber band takes less space. I can't remember why I once wanted to store one outside the machine.

[mm]

Are you sure? I sort of assumed the paper filter circle went over the foam. Wouldn't putting the foam over paper likely rip the paper?

I forgot about that one.

But are you saying tghere are three kinds, the circle, a pleated one, and the washable pleated one? I thought there was only one pleated one, washable.

[aemeijers]

Wow. Cheapest one on there costs more than I have in the entire machine, and none of them (on a quick read) look washable. I was using 'shop vac' generically, but I just went downstairs and looked, and it is an actual Shop Vac brand shop vac, model 600C. Pretty old, judging by the metal collection can. Guess I'll have to ponder this, and maybe try and see what I can rig up with some filter media and giant rubber bands.

Methinks I'd probably need a supplied-air unit, with my allergies. That and borrow one of those window exhaust fans from the FD. I'm gonna start calling around and see what the flooring and abatement companies would charge.

aem sends....

[mm]

Based on Edwin's post, Shop-vac doesnb't seem to make these. Maybe they stopped in t he 9 months since I bought my bag of 3 filters, or maybe it was a 3rd party that made them. HD sells 3rd party filters that fit both ridgid and shopvac. I went to so many stores looking for the perfect vac, that I don't remember everything anymore. (inc. also sears and Target I think. Most sold shop-vacs in the local store's colors.)

[Jim Yanik]

mm wrote in news: [e-mail]:

the foam filter is for WET vacuuming;for dry,you use a pleated paper filter or a filter bag that fits in the tub.

[aemeijers]

Think 'job site' vac. This is dirt that predates my owning the house- after

2 years, I am finally getting around to unpacking and setting up the rooms where I dropped all the crates when I got here.

aem sends...

[mm]

>

Despite the ones on that page, I'm sure they still selll the paper circles.

Plus did you see on the right hand side

3 for 9 dollars. Only fits 5-8 gallons. How big is yours. I don't know what 600C means.

You may even be able to get the high filtration bags, at only a little more.

Try this page:

and this one

[RBM]

I understand what you have, a crappy shop vac and asthma. All those things, regardless of the filter type, put particles back into the room. You want clean air, get a central vac that exhausts to the outside

[AZ Nomad]

Or get a long hose and put the shopvac outside.

[Jim Yanik]

"RBM" wrote in news:v1udi.1$ [e-mail]:

IIRC,there are HEPA filters made for ShopVacs.

[HerHusband]

Is it an actual "Shop Vac" brand vacuum? What size is the tank?

Most shop vacuums have a foam filter that is mostly for sucking up liquids.

If you vacuum dry items, there's usually either a paper bag that slides over the foam filter and is held in place with a rubber band, or there's an actual pleated filter that slides in place and is held in place with a screw-on cap.

The pleated filters come in various filtration ratings (how small of a particle they block), but tend to be fairly expensive ($15 and up) and clog up rather quickly.

If your Shop Vac is 12 gallons or larger, you can buy large filtration bags that wrap around the inside of the tank and attach to the incoming hose port. These are more affordable (typically 3 bags for $15) and last a LOT longer than the other filters (though I leave the original filters in place when I use the bag). The bags also make emptying a lot cleaner and easier. When the bag is full, just take it out and throw it in the trash. Sure beats dumping the can with dust flying everywhere.

The filtration bags are typically available in "Fine" and "Medium" particle ratings, at any of the home centers (Home Depot, Lowes, etc.). I use the fine bags for vacuuming saw dust and cold ashes from our woodstove, and have never had a problem with dust coming back out.

Of course, if you can't find bags or filters for your vacuum, maybe it's time to upgrade to a new Shop Vac? Just a thought...

carpet? > it looks like a layer of talc under there.

I've never done it but you could seal off the space with plastic, put on goggles and a face mask, and have one person vacuum the dust as you pull back the carpet slowly.

Another option might be to wet it down first. It would keep the dust down, but would make the carpet heavier. Cut it into small pieces to take it out. Then scoop up whatever wet goop is remaining with a flat shovel.

Anthony

[Bob F]

>

What does the filter element of your unit look like? If you are missing the paper filter that goes over the foam pad, you will have exactly the symptoms you described. The paper filters, and the ring to hold it in place if you don't have that, should be pretty cheap.

After you get it working, check the filter frequently. I find that the ring works its way loose over time, making the problem happen again.

I had one freeby vac I picked up that didn't have the ring or filter. I had a spare filter, so I cut the top ring off a nursery flower pot that was the right size for a new ring.

Bob

[hallerb]

buy a new shop vac that can be used as a blower, then attach some hoses and exhaust the air outside.

[Bob F]

Seems a little excessive if all he needs is a properly installed filter to do what he needs.

Bob