Vacuum Cleaner Recommendations

Waywego said:

For those of you who have the HD Bucket Head, how do you like them? They seem to have some big limitations in my mind. The hose is short and the filter is just a bag. Also, they are not that powerful though the hose is small, so I wonder if they have enough suction.

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I would call it good enough. Also works as a dinghy inflator. Switch the hose to the blowhole and it fills inflatables in seconds.

My complaint with the Bucket Head is that it is top heavy and tends to tip. Putting a couple of rocks in the bucket helps. (That's rock-it science BTW.) You can buy longer hoses if you need it and I think it's powerful enough for all the jobs I do.

lowcountry said:

This!



Although, we have the v6.

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+2. The handheld dyson and a small 2-2.5 gal craftsman wet/dry shop vac.

This is going to sound strange. In a pinch, we picked up an $18 "Bissell 3-in-1 stick vac" at Wal Mart, figuring it would last until we got the boat home, where we'd buy a "real" vacuum.

We ended up liking it so much we bought a 2nd one for the house. It's 120VAC, but runs easily on the inverter. It has a removable handle, which converts it into a hand-held. It comes with a generous amount of wire, which stows easily on the handle.

Roomba. We have a dog. We have hand held and a wet dry in the machinery space. We have a dyson handheld and two roombas for the living spaces. Full time liveaboard 8 years and full time cruisers 3 years.

2 Bucket heads.

Older becomes the wet, newer is the dry.

Older wet stores in the bilge.

Newer is kept in drier spaces and has a 20 foot pool vacuum hose as they are way cheaper and less likely to kink or twist up.

I can reach all areas of the boat with the 20 foot hose, keeping the bucket head outside so all dust is removed and not returned to the I terior.

The bucket heads fit a variety of bucket sizes from 3 gal to 6 gal....and usually and endless supply floating around or tossed in a marina dumpster.

Can't be beat for price and suction power...beat the inexpensive rug beating types hands down...even with a golden retriever on a small 40 footer.

As the wet one dies, cycle to a new one. So far 4 years and they haven't needed cycling from dry to wet .

I was using a 1.5hp wet vac with the 1 1/4" hose (same power and hose dia as the bucket head) and found it would suck bilge water and small debris up, but didn't have the power i was looking for and the hose clogged easily. Part of that is probably because I got an old/dirty boat that I'm trying to clean up. I suspect people with newer/better cared for boats wouldn't have that problem.
I'm looking at one of the ridgid small (5gal or less) vacs with a 5hp motor and a 1 7/8 hose.
I also have a ryobi 18v dust buster type that just doesn't have the capacity for sawdust and my general situation.
If there was a bucket head with a larger hose and more powerful motor that would be perfect.

HenryD said:

Bucket wet/dry for the engine room and a Dyson for the rest of the boat. My wife shopped a lot before she settled on the Dyson and she is very happy with it.

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Exactly my setup as well.

Nopistn said:

I'm looking at one of the ridgid small (5gal or less) vacs with a 5hp motor and a 1 7/8 hose.

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I have one of those and also a 3 gallon 3.5HP one. Both are fine for use on the boat and in the garage. The 5HP one comes with a 20' power cord which is really nice.

We do not have any carpeting so we use a Hoover CP30000 commercial canister vacuum. We love it. We also have one at home to do the hard surfaces. It has about a 25 or 30' power cord so I can do the whole boat without moving to another outlet.

It's hard to beat the versatility of a backpack, which is what we use for general cleaning. A shop vac pulls bilge duty. BTW, the "Clean Stream" shop vac filters are worth every penny.
Eventually I plan to mount the suction unit from the back pack in the engine room and plumb it into a simple 2 port central vac with a self stowing hose.

Wifey B:

“Don’t you reach for the broom and dustpan or that old Electrolux, for dirty filthy grimy jobs Hoover really sucks.”

Barry Manilow never understood why Hoover turned down that jingle.

Aft Deck Capt said:

It's hard to beat the versatility of a backpack, which is what we use for general cleaning.

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I envision myself in a tight area inside the boat and scratching the heck out of the wood paneling.

I'm thinking one of these might be a good bet:

Oreck Compact Canister Vacuum Cleaner https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AAJVC8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_C36TybPB6858Y

Hoover CH30000 PortaPower Lightweight Commercial Canister Vacuum https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005NASSRO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_y66TybZNSTDHF

I really don't want to spend a lot. We have a Miele at home and it's phenomenal, but it was very pricey.

I have a Scorpion by Dirt Devil. It uses 7 amps (corded, 110V) but is so quick and powerful the time running is short. Normally $50 on Amazon I waited and got one on sale for $30.

I've tried the 12 volts ones, and the rechargeable vacuums. In comparison, the Scorpion is far more powerful. It's not for use with wet, and has a removable filter (no bag)

I love mine.

I would recommend Eureka Quick up Cordless 2 in 1 Stick Vacuum for home. I am using this vacuum cleaner and It works fantastic. Eureka comes with washable filters. It is heavy to operate on up and down stairs. You can buy it from https://www.vacuumcleanerstuffs.com/eureka-quick-up-cordless-2-in-1-stick-vacuum-reviews/.

Waywego said:

I have one of those and also a 3 gallon 3.5HP one. Both are fine for use on the boat and in the garage. The 5HP one comes with a 20' power cord which is really nice.

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These are the 2 I'm looking at. Maybe 5hp is overkill but 1.5hp isn't enough for sure.

RIDGID 4 gal. 5.0-Peak HP Portable Wet Dry Vac-WD4070 - The Home Depot

RIDGID 4.5 gal. 5.0-Peak HP Pro Pack Wet Dry Vac-WD4522 - The Home Depot

I'm not sure if the toolbox design or the rolling setup would be better for a 37ft boat. also not sure if those wheels will tear up a wood floor.

The 5HP one I have is RIDGID 4 Gal. 5.0-Peak HP Portable Wet Dry Vac-WD4050 - The Home Depot. I like that it does not have wheels on the boat so it stays where I put it.

The toolbox design seems nice in that you have everything stored in one rectangular package. On a smaller boat, I think I would remove the wands and mount because they would get in the way and I doubt I would use them much. Not sure if I would like the collapsing hose -- you might have to fight it due to the suction making it want to get shorter.

gaston said:

If you haven't used one you don't know what your missing. Dyson V8

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same wonderful, so powerful at the end we put 3 onboard, one on engine room (on work-shop so nice to have under the hand when you cut something one on salon floor and one up to pilot house

so much stairs onboard and I found good deal on ebay for 3

Half carpet, half wood floors....works great and very versatile. Dry only.

https://canada.bissell.com/powerlifter-super-light-multi-surface-vacuum-1576y

101TUG said:

same wonderful, so powerful at the end we put 3 onboard, one on engine room (on work-shop so nice to have under the hand when you cut something one on salon floor and one up to pilot house

so much stairs onboard and I found good deal on ebay for 3

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Do those Dyson vacuum driven powerheads work good on carpet? Do they slow or will they stop spinning? I have read that is one complaint generally compared to electric power head.

Our Dyson has a lithium ion battery, so runs at full speed until it stops due to low battery.

sdowney717 said:

Do those Dyson vacuum driven powerheads work good on carpet? Do they slow or will they stop spinning? I have read that is one complaint generally compared to electric power head.

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They work great on lower pile carpet. But longer pile and loose throw rugs will stop the agitator and the suction can pull the loose rugs into the head and stop it.

I have Rug Doctor Portable Spot Cleaner Machine for carpet. It is lightweight, and easy to store. Here is a review about Best Portable Carpet Cleaners 2017 - https://cleanersexpert.com/best-portable-carpet-and-upholstery-cleaning-machines/ you can find some examples. I found mine here.

I'll be installing a Dirt Devil SV 1500 central vac in a few days and I'll report back.

meridian said:

I'll be installing a Dirt Devil SV 1500 central vac in a few days and I'll report back.

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Sounds intriguing! I still haven't bought one!

Central Vac

Greetings. After painting the ER and re-plumbing the boat with PEX, I decided it was time for operation central vac. The vac started life as a back pack unit. It is mounted on the ER ceiling above the water heater. The port is located mid saloon, under the setee. A 30' stretch hose will reach both extremes of the boat easily. I made a water separator out of a 5 gal bucket to handle bilge/ER duties. As a result I've been able bring home both the shop vac and other backpack that were previously used.

I knew this would be an improvement but didn't anticipate the resulting convenience. If you're considering doing this, it is well worth it!

Here are a few pics.

Hello, guys! I have seen some really good vacuum cleaner recommendations here! Thank you so much for them and this thread in general. I would only like to recommend you something too. Check out those lovely devices from https://www.which2buy.co.uk/vacuum-cleaners I have got a couple of them for my huge house and they are really perfect, as for me. I personally like Dyson products the most and would recommend you to get one of those for you too. They are very reliable and durable indeed. Good luck, hope I helped you a little with your question

HenryD said:

Bucket wet/dry for the engine room and a Dyson for the rest of the boat. My wife shopped a lot before she settled on the Dyson and she is very happy with it.

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That's exactly what we do but be careful to avoid the dyson sucking up anything liquid... even just a little. It will short the motor and replacement just for the principle driver from Dyson is $200!

Geraldes said:

I personally like Dyson products the most and would recommend you to get one of those for you too. They are very reliable and durable indeed. Good luck, hope I helped you a little with your question

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If one is looking to buy a Dyson, Bed Bath and Beyond often has special deals on them. When they do you can then combine that with one of their 20% off coupons and get a great price. Typically you might get a $700 vacuum for $550 less $110 so end up paying $440.

When I was building my 34'ers in Key west back in the day all I needed was a wash down hose. Everything in the boat could be hosed off, everything.