Why does nobody talk about using a shop vac for ash removal instead of those expensive HEPA vacs?

So I got tired of my little ash bucket spilling dust everywhere and almost dropped $300 on one of those fancy ash vacuum setups. Then on a whim I grabbed my old 5 gallon shop vac from the garage, stuck a fine dust filter bag in it, and added a cheap inline spark arrestor I found at a farm supply place near Columbus. First cleanout went smooth, second one too, but on the third job I noticed the filter was already caking up way faster than I expected. Turns out the fine ash clogs things up different than regular sawdust and I had to stop twice to knock the filter clean. I figure it still beats the price tag but has anyone else tried this route and found a better filter setup or am I just asking for a fire hazard down the road?

3 comments

3 Comments

elizabeths5112d ago

$300 is cheap compared to a house fire. I heard a story from a guy in Toledo who ran a shop vac for ash removal and the spark arrestor failed. His garage went up in two hours. Insurance didn't cover it because the adjuster said using a regular shop vac for hot ash counts as negligence. The fine dust bags you're using trap particles but they also trap heat way better than a HEPA filter designed for that exact job. If you have to stop and knock the filter clean that means the ash is building up inside the motor housing too where you cant see it. That $300 vac starts looking real cheap when you factor in replacing drywall and a roof.

beth_reed12d ago

Yeah I actually read something similar on a woodworking forum last week. A guy posted photos of his shop vac motor after it caught fire from ash. The inside was caked with this black soot that had basically turned into a fire hazard over time. He said the same thing about the filter getting clogged and needing to be knocked clean every few minutes. That should be a red flag that the ash is building up where it shouldn't be. I wonder how many people are using those fine dust bags thinking they're safe when really they're just delaying the problem. Have you seen any reports about those ash specific vacs actually being tested against fires?

riley4312d ago

Didn't a buddy of mine's cousin's shop vac turn into a smoke machine after one ash job?