Cordless Vacuum Q

[Mike13]

I tried the search, but last entry in this forum was 2012.
Have things improved at all?
Currently the cordless stuff I have is mostly Ferrex, I have the 20V/40V batteries already.
Are there any cordless Vacuum cleaners that are worth getting?
I bought one a long time ago, used it twice and gave up on it, absolutely useless, so have been holding off trying any.
Our corded house Vacuum is getting near to needing a replacement, so is it time to try cordless yet?

 

[^woody^]

For the missus at Christmas or for your DIY?

 

[Mike13]

considering dual use, I dont need one a lot as the worst of DIY dusty stuff for me is outdoors these days

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I've been using cordless vacuums for about 4 years.

The first was an 18 volt Makita DVC350 which was bought to do clean-up on a snagging job. It works quite well, is very poryable (with it's shoulder strap), but has a relatively short run time on 5Ah batteries (despite a brushless motor) and isn't really up to running a power tool. Class L filtration. Currently at home where the missus uses it for the stair carpets

After that I got a 2 x 18 volt Makita DVC861L. Whilst it is technically a class L, it has a HEPA filter so it will handle MDF dust and it can keep up with the dust produced by my DSP600 cordless plunge saw, so good vscuum performance. It can also run on 110 volt power instead of the dual batteries (there is a 230volt one as well) and it dumps the waste into a plastic bin bag. It is also very compact. Downsides? It is very heavy because it has a transformer for the 110 volt (230 volt will be the same), it has only 15 litres capacity (Makita now do a 25 litre version I believe), when running on batteries it does need two (which in turn means four batteries and a dual charger, thr DCRD, to keep it going) and rather short run time. Despite that mine has been reliable and been run on a lot of jobs over the last almost 3 years (bought early 2020)

Better than the bigger Mak, Starmix/Metabo introduced a dual battery M-class vacuum with a 35 litre capacity this year which is a major step up on performance. Makita have announced an M-class 30(?) litre vac which uses a single 40 volt battery, but it won't be cheap (£600 to £700 bare?)

Whilst tbese things are on tbe market, the price means they aren't cheap, so probably trade only at the moment

 

[Mike13]

Hmmm I suspected that might be the case. I think it will be corded until next time. Thanks for the information. It tells me that the cheaper ones will still be a disappointment.

 

[^woody^]

If you want a stick vac for the house - like a Dyson, then look at the Xiaomi Dreame range. These are essentially Dyson copies but a fraction of the price and every bit as good - Xiaomi is a massive Chinese company so no worries about quality or performance. Ali Express or suchlike will be the best and cheapest way to purchase. The middle/top range products will easily vac a common 3/4 bed house including furniture on a charge with a bit to spare.

However, most other mid/top range cordless house vacs will perform the same, so yes cordless are OK nowadays.

I use a Ryobi cordless for the work stuff and it does its job well. Powerful, about 20mins off a 5Ah battery. But only worth it if you have Ryobi batteries already. I like it because its rectangular tool case shape and stacks with similar shaped cases for storage and transport, and no awkward hose flapping about. https://uk.ryobitools.eu/cleaning-tools/cordless-vacuums/r18pv/r18pv-0/?

I use a Charles for prolonged use or really messy jobs, and hooked up to a cyclone dust collector for sawing and sanding work