stove vacuum finally died

[Tonyray]

hey,
any recomendations on pellet stove vacuums?
my HD jober gave out after 4 years..
was just a small 2 gallon type but got it done..
Have read the powersmith [with the attachments] is a popular one here..

 

[Funnydirt14]

I have a powersmith ash vac and it works just OK. I just wish it had more suction power for the hard to get too spots.

 

[bogieb]

My Powersmith died after less than a year of use. I didn't even bother trying to claim a warranty since, as Funny mentioned, the suction was not all that good. I now have a ShopVac ash vacuum and am much happier with it. The local Aubuchon's normally has them for $9o, but sometimes they go on sale for $80.

 

[Tonyray]

INTERESTING..
the small 2 gallon one from HD was 4 amp and was fine for pellet ash.
. powersmith is 10 amp.. should be good enough for my stove.?
not using it for any other purpose.

 

[BrotherBart]

Yeah I have two Powersmiths and am not impressed with the suction. I don't know what what they are doing with those 10 amps. Ended up with two because after I bought the first one I wanted a spare filter. Ordered a filter from Home Depot and it arrived packaged in a whole new vac. Two emails and a phone call telling them to send me a shipping label and I would send it back, sans my filter that I paid for, with no response so I just kept the vac.

 

[Shane1]

Powersmiths are hit or miss. I've had one for 3yrs now with great suction. Same time period my dad had 3 and hasn't had one in over a year lol

 

[jackhammer]

I’ve had my love-less ash vac since the beginning. I have replaced the filters only once a couple years ago. I would say the suction isn’t great, but I don’t have another brand to compare it to. I don’t like the idea of a shop vac because I often clean my stove as soon as it shuts down. I am of the opinion that they don’t make things like they used to though. I’m struggling with replacing my 30 year old Ariens snowblower with a new, bigger model. I just think new stuff is junk!

 

[bogieb]

I’ve had my love-less ash vac since the beginning. I have replaced the filters only once a couple years ago. I would say the suction isn’t great, but I don’t have another brand to compare it to. I don’t like the idea of a shop vac because I often clean my stove as soon as it shuts down. I am of the opinion that they don’t make things like they used to though. I’m struggling with replacing my 30 year old Ariens snowblower with a new, bigger model. I just think new stuff is junk!

The Shop Vac ash vac has a metal canister and has a metal enclosure over the filter. I believe all ash vacs say to make sure stove is cold and there are no live embers though just because of the filter.

That being said, I used a small Shop Vac (regular) to clean my stoves for a couple of years and it did fine (cold stove). However, I also made sure to put the vac out in the driveway for several hours just in case.

 

[MCPO]

The Shop Vac ash vac has a metal canister and has a metal enclosure over the filter. I believe all ash vacs say to make sure stove is cold and there are no live embers though just because of the filter.

That being said, I used a small Shop Vac (regular) to clean my stoves for a couple of years and it did fine (cold stove). However, I also made sure to put the vac out in the driveway for several hours just in case.

OK, Mine is a el-cheapo $55 Snow Joe (4 amp) but it`s good for 3 monthly cleanings before I have to shake and blow out the dual filters. It hasn`t the suction power of my old shop vac that sounded like a jet plane but it`s more than adequate to suck out ashes.. I never have any trace of soot/ash in the exhaust plus the motor noise is significantly lower. A 4 amp motor should be strong enough to suck up dust, soot, and ashes .
I always was amazed at the Sears vacuum marketing ads touting their most powerful vacs were 12+ amps. In many homes these power hungry vacs overloaded the existing electrical circuit and as an electrician I was often called in to install a new line due to the vac blowing the fuse/breaker.
Folks should realize a 12 amp motor is absolutely unnecessary to suck up dust. Sears and maybe others also use that same practice when advertising their overhead garage door lifts with a 3/4 -1 HP motor. I`ve had a 1/4 HP lift on my both my garage doors for 20+ years and neither strains because the doors are properly balanced and can be lifted by a 90 yr old frail individual.
Just some food for thought.

 

[Mortalis]

My Powersmith is 3 years old now and one of its casters has broken beyond repair. Although that does not affect its ability to vacuum, the fact that I have always had soot blow out of the exhaust and frankly I'm tired of holding a damp rag over the exhaust to keep the soot from flying everywhere. I make sure the filter seal is secure but doesn't seem to help. I've checked for tears in the filter and found none. Has anyone else had this problem? I'm ready to buy a replacement and due to this experience with the Powersmith am skeptical to go that route again.

 

[KodiakII]

I bought an Ashvac (?) through Sears a few years ago and found it worked OK, but I was forever cleaning the danged filter in it. I keep it for the occasions where I don't have time to let the stove cool down. I had a re branded Shop Vac that gave me approx 13 years of good service...until last week when it died. Went with a bigger Home Depot Rigid stainless steel shop vac this time. I only run them with the drywall bags installed, and this one I am going to try running it with the air filter also at the same time.

 

[bogieb]

My Powersmith is 3 years old now and one of its casters has broken beyond repair. Although that does not affect its ability to vacuum, the fact that I have always had soot blow out of the exhaust and frankly I'm tired of holding a damp rag over the exhaust to keep the soot from flying everywhere. I make sure the filter seal is secure but doesn't seem to help. I've checked for tears in the filter and found none. Has anyone else had this problem? I'm ready to buy a replacement and due to this experience with the Powersmith am skeptical to go that route again.

Okay, I must admit that I thought I was a spaz since I seemed to have the ash blowing out of the exhaust too. One more reason I didn't get another one after my first one died.

 

[Ssyko]

i use a 5 gal shop vac with a drywall (yellow) filter. but you have to wait till stove is cold!

 

[Tonyray]

well. i started this thread about 3 weeks ago and have since bought a Powersmith.
seems to work fine for me..
since i am only using it for Pellet ash and not carpet and such, having the 'greatest suction in the hemisphere' is not a priority..
it get's the job well done... I take it's advertised Outside and Other uses with a grain of salt.
we will see how long it holds up..Price was good also.