Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Anything about BXs
Post Reply
Stuarted
Confirmed BX'er
Posts: 57
Joined: Mon Nov 26, 2012 2:19 pm
x 1

Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Stuarted »

(Not sure if this is the best forum or website, but if not, please suggest a better one!)

When cleaning my car I am fed up with both my useless domestic vacuum cleaner and a feeble, cheap 12v one I have. Both have less suck than an asthmatic pensioner.

I want something with really powerful suction, which will suck up grit, leaves, twigs, nuts and bolts, small children and anything else not securely bolted down.

I don't want to spend a lot of money - it will only get occasional use, so doesn't need industrial robustness - and I don't care how big, heavy or noisy it is.

I am tempted by this VAX one, with 380 air watts of suction (amazing how few manufacturers quote the air watts!) and gets a lot of good reviews, but it is £100 and as far as I can see, has no stowage for the tools:

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/p ... 066686.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

or by this Karcher one which is cheaper (£50) and also gets good reviews but which does not quote a suction power and tends to topple over:

http://www.viking-direct.co.uk/a/pb/Kar ... bdescclass" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Alternatively I could be tempted by one of these 12v ones which obviously won't be as powerful but are amazingly cheap and get good reviews:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/12V-Wet-Dry-Vac ... er+for+car" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Brookstone-Vacu ... er+for+car" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

although this one looks very similar and gets terrible reviews:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vacuum-Cleaner- ... er+for+car" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(See them all, and others, here:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vacuum-Cleaner- ... er+for+car" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&keyw ... _authority" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
_ _ _

Does anyone have any experience - good or bad - of any of these, or of anything similar, please? Any advice, comments, recommendations or suggestions welcome.
User avatar
Tim Leech
Over 2k
Posts: 15565
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 11:12 am
Location: Derbyshire
My Cars: Various
x 141

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Tim Leech »

I bought a Tesco own brand upright vaccum cleaner which was on offer for £45...cheap looking bagless one but my god its powerful!! Has the tools etc which is great for car carpets with the brush attachment.
Lots of Motors, mostly semi broken....
Defender110
Over 2k
Posts: 5917
Joined: Wed Dec 16, 2009 8:02 pm
Location: Harwood, Bolton
My Cars: Land Rover Discovery Series 1 200tdi 3 door
Land Rover Discovery Series 2 Facelift TD5
2020 Fiat Panda cross 4x4 twin air.
x 27

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Defender110 »

at £7.50 - £12 I hardly think the 12v ones are going to meet your criteria :?

Hoe does 'Air flow Rate' (ltrs per second) compare to 'Air Watts' ?
Kevan
1997 Mercedes C230 W202
2003 Land Rover Discovery Series 2 Facelift TD5 - Daily driver / hobby days and camping.
1993 Land Rover Discovery 200tdi Series 1 3 door - in need of TLC
2020 Fiat Panda 4x4 Cross Twin Air.
Mickey taker
Over 2k
Posts: 3209
Joined: Wed Apr 01, 2009 10:38 pm
Location: M K
x 1

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Mickey taker »

the henry rules as far as Im concerned,
Again no tool storage but it will suck in a small planet if you need it to , we have totally abused ours with building work and all sorts but it keeps coming back for more .
the only thing we have replaced is the flexible hose because we wanted a longer one.
you can even get a pink one for the wife :D
1991 BX Meteor 1.6

light travels faster than sound, thats why you look intelligent and then you spoil it all by opening your mouth !!!!!
User avatar
mat_fenwick
Moderator
Posts: 7326
Joined: Tue Sep 20, 2005 4:08 pm
Location: North Wales
x 19

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by mat_fenwick »

Another vote for Henry here - 10 years and two house renovations, and still going strong. If that's what you want from a vac though...

The latest Car Mechanics magazine has a test of portable and 12 V cleaners, and a Dyson model came top but would expect it to be pricey. I'll have a look at what the other contenders were. If you buy from Argos at least you can (presumably?) return it under their 16 day policy.
Image

1993 1.9 TZD Turbo Estate
1996 3.9 V8 Discovery
1993 VW LT35 campervan
1985 Hyundai Stellar V8
2016 Hyundai iLoad
Tinkley
1K Away
Posts: 1502
Joined: Sat Jun 06, 2009 11:27 am
Location: N Hants England
x 8

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Tinkley »

Can't beat a Henry esp for workshop/domestic use. Dyson's OK indoors but give it sawdust etc and the Henry beats it hands down. The worst are VAX - the filters clog very very fast.
Dollywobbler
Over 2k
Posts: 3940
Joined: Sun Dec 04, 2005 2:25 pm
Location: Wales
Contact:

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Dollywobbler »

And another one for Henry. Bought a cheapy Tesco vacuum a while back. It was powerful for about five minutes, but the filters got clogged up VERY quickly. Then it went bang and made lots of pretty sparks and is now in the bin.
KevR
1K Away
Posts: 1767
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 8:46 pm
Location: Normandy
My Cars: It's all in my signature
x 4

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by KevR »

And another for Henry - you can also get spare parts (brushes/contacts/switches etc) and they're easy to strip and repair.
1990 BX TZD Estate ('the grey one', 1991 BX TZD Estate ('the white one'), 1982 2CV6 Charleston (in bits), 1972 AZU Serie B (2CV van), 1974 HY72 Camper, 1990 Land Rover 110 diesel LWB, 1957 Mobylette AV76, 1992 Ducati 400SS, 1966 VW Beetle, 1990 Mazda MX-5, 1996 Peugeot 106D, 1974 JCB 2D MkII, 1997 BMW R1100RS, 1987 Suzuki GSX-R1100, 1978 Honda CX500A, 1965 Motobecane Cady, 1988 Honda Bros/Africa Twin, 1963 Massey Ferguson 825, and a lot of bicycles!
User avatar
mat_fenwick
Moderator
Posts: 7326
Joined: Tue Sep 20, 2005 4:08 pm
Location: North Wales
x 19

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by mat_fenwick »

British made too, if that is important to you. (Without wanting to turn this into a Henry appreciation thread!)

I'd like a decent 12 V or rechargeable vacuum I can use in the van, or in the car when away from a mains supply so also would be interested in people's recommendations on those lines. I have a Black and Decker 9.6 V jobby, but it lacks the power I would like. I suppose it should run better if I connected it up direct to the car battery...
Image

1993 1.9 TZD Turbo Estate
1996 3.9 V8 Discovery
1993 VW LT35 campervan
1985 Hyundai Stellar V8
2016 Hyundai iLoad
User avatar
Way2go
Over 2k
Posts: 7279
Joined: Fri Jan 13, 2006 3:15 pm
Location: RCoBerkshire
x 2

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Way2go »

I've used the wet/dry early style VAX for many years on the car and cleaning up where plaster & solid debris have resulted from DIY tasks. High level of suck and good for wet cleaning of the carpets and seats etc. Not had any filter problems and the filters last for ages if you "groom" them with another house vacuum cleaner periodically.
Robert Dyas are offering these @ £99 and even with free delivery if you require it:

http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/product.php ... &utm_term=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;{keyword}&utm_campaign=PLA&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=vw435vHC|35121821252|||&gclid=CPOW9_i7k7gCFQTItAodQhcAGw
1991 BX19GTi Auto
User avatar
Caffiend
Reluctant BXpert
Posts: 1222
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2011 1:39 pm
Location: Hertfordshire

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Caffiend »

What's this, +6 on Henry? The only thing that annoys me about him is that he's too chubby to sit on the stairs. Not an issue when hoovering the car.
Diagonally parked in a parallel universe
1991 TZD hatch (Triton Green)
1992 Hurricane
citronut
Over 2k
Posts: 2781
Joined: Wed Oct 31, 2007 7:55 am
Location: EAST SUSSEX UK
x 1

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by citronut »

the big yellow wet and dry one i bought from Lidl a few years ago hes very good suction, and is still going strong,

it think it was around £34 quid,

and it had a power point for pluging power tools into,

when you turn your tool on that is plugged in the vaccum starts up on its own for dust extraction whilst drilling sawing and the likes

regards malcolm
curent ride
K reg BX 17TD TZD est
also own
K reg D special

no longer have
H reg CX saffari 2.5 TRI (now gone to Malaysia)
R reg xantia 1.9TD est (gone to meet its maker)
User avatar
Vanny
Merseyside resident
Posts: 3581
Joined: Tue May 17, 2005 11:48 pm
Location: BXProject
My Cars: BX 16v Ph2 - Jazz
BX 16v Ph2 - XPO
x 79
Contact:

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by Vanny »

Henry is not the most powerful of vacuum cleaners imho, but as noted by others, you can't kill them, ever!

Best way to obtain a good suction vacuum cleaner is to buy two broken non-upright dysons off ebay and build them into on. Last one i built cost less than £50 including buying some spares from a dyson dealer
User avatar
MULLEY
Over 2k
Posts: 8406
Joined: Thu Jun 22, 2006 11:10 pm
Location: Derbyshire
My Cars: 1999 Xsara LX 2.0HDI (90) Hatch - Fern
2002 C5 2.0 HDI (110) Estate - Jasmine - SORN
2011 Mini Cooper D Clubman - SOLD
2016 Mercedes A180D Sport - Auto refinement
1992 TZD Turbo - Bluebell - SORN
1992 TZD Turbo Estate - SORN
1991 Gti 16V - Blaze - crash damaged, will get repaired - SORN
1990 Gti 8Valve SOLD - looks like it's been scrapped
2002 Mini Cooper S - SOLD - i miss this car
1992 TXD - Scrapped in March 2014
1988 CX 25 GTI Turbo2 - SORN
1996 - AX Memphis 1.5D - Dream - SORN
x 8

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by MULLEY »

I've recently bought a Dyson DC40 Multi Floor model, ok it cost more than the bloody car, but it should last 10 years so in the scheme of things its not too bad a value for money. The suction is amazing & i also bought a special non hair/fluff tool that really cleaned up the seats etc....also came with a bendy tool that can squeeze into small recesses.

I've also got a VAX Wet carpet cleaner, forget which model, but when i used the attached hose to clean the inside of the bx, the colour of the water was to be-hold, it went brown, the car hadn't been cleaned properly for nearly 20 years, & that was after i'd attacked it with our previous dyson.

Perhaps buy a 2nd hand Dyson for the same cost of a new but crappier hoover?
2002 C5 2.0 HDI Estate - Jasmine - Now SORN
2011 Mini Cooper D Clubman - SOLD
2016 Mercedes A180D Sport - Auto refinement
1992 TZD Turbo - Bluebell - My daily
1991 Gti 16V - Blaze - crash damaged, will get repaired.
1990 Gti 8Valve SOLD - looks like it's been scrapped
2002 Mini Cooper S - SOLD - i miss this car
1992 TXD - Scrapped in March 2014
1988 CX 25 GTI Turbo2 - SORN
1996 - AX Memphis 1.5D - Dream - SORN

I'm not just a username, i'm also called Matthew.
User avatar
JayW
1K Away
Posts: 1590
Joined: Thu Dec 07, 2006 6:40 pm
Location: Now listen here you mullet...
x 13

Re: Powerful Vacuum Cleaner

Post by JayW »

+1 for the Numatic range! Henry is and always be the best all-rounder, but Edward has a larger crap-stuffing capacity.

If you'd like to change the orbit of the moon (and have deep pockets) you could go for the 570 which is a twin-engined monster whereas the 900 adds water-sucking loveliness!

I generally find VAX to be pants, if you want to clean carpets, get Henry's uncle George!


Yours sincerely, over-enthusiastic Ex-Numatic repairs engineer with huge cupboard of NV200 spares ;)
I have zero patience for your tedium.
Post Reply