What are you using to vacuum your stove with.

[Fish On]

Hi guys what are you using to vacuum your ashes with, I know a shop vac is not a good idea, and I've seen the vacuums they sell and they seem like a lot of dough...
Heck that's a ton of pellets for the price.

So any good ideas for me!

Pete

 

[wjmvas]

I use a shop vac with a HEPA filter, works pretty well. You just have to keep the filter clean. I use a new filter every year and clean the one i'm using after every 2 or 3 stove cleanings...

 

[Fish On]

really I have a hippo filter and I can get a little dust out of it... Maybe I should buy a new one.
Thanks!

 

[nosaudioil]

I use a 14 gallon Ridgid 6 HP shop type vac with a HEPA filter and a 10-14 gallon multi-fit bag. If you're going to use this kind of set-up ( and not one of the metal stove vacs)
You must vacuum when everything is dead cold.
I also use a Toro electric leaf blower for "total system cleaning".

 

[kbjelka]

I use a Cricket Vacuum purchased on eBay, they are expensive but you can score a deal at auction. The cord retracts and the hose stores inside the vac too. Looks nice enough to sit next to my stove full time so it's convenient. Has a foil lined bag and steel snout so you don't need to wait till the stove is completely cold. I am pretty good about sweeping most of my fly ash into the ash pan so I only go through maybe two bags a season. My shop vacuum is a monster and I'd rather not drag it up from the basement every week. I would recommend the Cricket vacs to anyone, they are pricey but well made.

 

[cncpro]

Hi guys what are you using to vacuum your ashes with, I know a shop vac is not a good idea, and I've seen the vacuums they sell and they seem like a lot of dough...
Heck that's a ton of pellets for the price.

So any good ideas for me!

Pete

I bought one of those pricey Love-Less Ash Cheetah II vacuums last year. I am glad to have it. It performs beautifully and I feel it is worth the money. If you ever have an extra couple hundred smackers I'd recommend getting the fancy vac.

 

[Xena]

I use a Loveless wet/dry drywall vac. Got it super cheap on
a clearance a couple years ago for some work
I was doing in the house. Works perfectly for
cleaning the stove and it's always dead cold
when I clean it anyway so it all works out well.

 

[krooser]

I use a one gallon shop-vac with a drywall filter.

 

[Havlat24]

I use a Canadian Tire Job Mate shop vac knock off.... works great, only cost me 30 bucks.

 

[caledoniacars]

i use one of those expensive cheetah vacs. works great for the hot stuff. lacks on suction. have to be careful getting too hot and burning a hole in your filter. when cold i use my good old shop vac. can't wait to try the leafblower trick

 

[BJN644]

Home Depot had Ridged shop vacs on sale for $19.99 a month or so ago. I bought one just for cleaning the stove. I learned very fast that you need the fine dust filter for cleaning out your stove, that fine dust filter cost more than my new $20 dollar shop vac. It does work very good now.

 

[littlesmokey]

I used to use a Fein Turbo II with HEPA filter, no I use my $10 Cheetah II :cheese: :cheese: :wow: :cheese:

 

[rottiman]

Use my shop vac which is about 15 years old. It is the one with the medal cannister. I run a paper bag in the cannister and a paper filter over the pleated filter. I make sure the stove has cooled down. Have had absolutely no problems to date. Use my Homelight gas powered leaf blower on both stacks. Absolutely works 1st class. Have done my stacks twice since mid september start-up. The stoves are really clean and perform 1st rate. and the discharge from the leaf blower is now very little ,so dosen't create an issue with discharge. I highly recommend doing this.

 

[countk]

I use a shop vac with a HEPA filter, works pretty well. You just have to keep the filter clean. I use a new filter every year and clean the one i'm using after every 2 or 3 stove cleanings...

Ditto, except I only clean my filter 2x a season. Hadn't cleaned it yet for this season and boy was it dirty! Works great though and I would highly recommend it. Of course the only draw back is the ashes do need to be cooled down.

 

[Mr Whitfield]

I use a Love-Less Ash Cheetah, I got lucky at a garage sale last year 10.00 dollars. What a steal

 

[MCPO]

I use a scuzzy old shop vac with a double filter setup that i made out of an extra PVC T
Ain`t about to spend a lot of good money vacuuming dirty old ashes.



http://www.pbase.com/johnd1/image/100614117.jpg

 

[tinkabranc]

I use an old cheetah ash vac I got at a yard sale a couple of years ago.
It is a bit loud and has a dent in the side, but works great.

 

[amick780]

I use a 5 gallon shop vac from lowes, and I put the drywall bags in it. Even says on the bag package cold ash. Works great and it is small so its easy to move around. No ash ever gets thru the bag.
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=127133-20097-5872411&lpage=none

 

[Vermont-XXV]

I use a 5 gallon shop vac from Aubuchons Hdwre with a drywall filter bag. Cost less than $75. And I've only set the drywall bag on fire once. If you see embers fly out of the burn pot (that you thought was cold and out) and fly into the vacuum, just stop and pull the drywall bag out of the vacuum and put it into a bucket of water. It's already on fire. Just my advice.

clifford

ps oh yeah take it all outside first. and do it quietly so the wife doesn't find out and don't do it twice

 

[FireintheHole]

I use a Love-Less Ash Cheetah, I got lucky at a garage sale last year 10.00 dollars. What a steal

That was a darn good buy. (I wound up buying a new one on Ebay for a little less than 200, ouch!) It keeps the ashes in the can and doesn't
blow them all over the basement like it did when I used an old shop-vac. I would've saved some bucks if I found this forum earlier, I'm sure.
( My new Cheetah II has a nice winter scene to remind me of why I gotta spend all this dough just to stay warm, though.)

 

[hoverfly]

I use a scuzzy old shop vac with a double filter setup that i made out of an extra PVC T
Ain`t about to spend a lot of good money vacuuming dirty old ashes.



http://www.pbase.com/johnd1/image/100614117.jpg

Ha Ha!! I have that style shop vac. My parents gave me their old one some time ago, got to be 20 years old by now. Still works but noisy as hell!

 

[cncpro]

I use an old cheetah ash vac I got at a yard sale a couple of years ago.
It is a bit loud and has a dent in the side, but works great.

Just so you know... The volume of your cheetah has nothing to do with it's age or history. I actually caused some temporary damage to my hearing with mine one day while stretching to pick something up near the unit. They are extremely loud right from the factory. I ALWAYS wear ear protection now.

 

[jtakeman]

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/44890/

Another thread with some shop vac info. macman has a good post on the filter bags.

I use a shop vac and hepa filter. My hepa is over 4 years old and still no dust from vac.

 

[xbillyx]

ShopVac with HEPA

 

[CanadaClinker]

..... 6.5hp shop vac in basement right below stove with suction port and on/off switch up stairs by stove. Useing Drywall bag... works great...tons of suction for cleaning! ..... cc.