Shop-Vac Leaf Blowers
 

Does anyone have any experience with the Shop-Vacs that can be used as leaf
blowers? If they really work it would be a nice benefit (and cause me to go
buy one now) but if it's a half-assed solution, better to know now. It
seems like an "oh yea, and you cal also do this".

Ian

Shop-Vacs suck and leaf blowers blow. Neither crosses the line very well.
Owner of both.
"Ian" wrote in message
. ..
Does anyone have any experience with the Shop-Vacs that can be used as
leaf
blowers? If they really work it would be a nice benefit (and cause me to
go
buy one now) but if it's a half-assed solution, better to know now. It
seems like an "oh yea, and you cal also do this".

Ian

Ian" ianstock"antispam wrote:
Does anyone have any experience with the Shop-Vacs that can be used as
leaf
blowers? If they really work it would be a nice benefit (and cause me to
go
buy one now) but if it's a half-assed solution, better to know now. It
seems like an "oh yea, and you cal also do this".

Ian

I have a very old Sears, that works. However I bought a battery powered
B&D yard tool set (hedge clippers, string trimmer and blower) and it works
as well and no cord needed.

--
Joseph E. Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math

It will blow grass clippings off your sidewalk and make noise. Forget about
doing a big fall leaf cleanup with it.
A seperate Toro electric blower (super blower Vac?) has lots of power for an
electric model.

On Tue, 12 Oct 2004 12:32:16 -0400, "Ian"
wrote:

Does anyone have any experience with the Shop-Vacs that can be used as leaf
blowers? If they really work it would be a nice benefit (and cause me to go
buy one now) but if it's a half-assed solution, better to know now. It
seems like an "oh yea, and you cal also do this".

Ian


I bought the most powerful leaf blower (a backpack model) I could
find last year and now I'm glad I did. It wasn't cheap, about $500.
The force of the blower can easily tip you off balance if the nozzle
is directed toward a wall. It cleared an acre lot in less than an
hour yesterday, and moved a 5-foot high mound of leaves with ease.
Ear muffs are needed.

According to Ian :
Does anyone have any experience with the Shop-Vacs that can be used as leaf
blowers? If they really work it would be a nice benefit (and cause me to go
buy one now) but if it's a half-assed solution, better to know now. It
seems like an "oh yea, and you cal also do this".

Define "work".

Blow really large dry leaves off a sidewalk?
Or, blow sopping wet pine needles out of 8" grass?

Generally speaking, I wouldn't expect a shopvac unit to succeed beyond
the dry leaves on pavement level. They're optimized for different
things.

Purpose-built blowers are almost always going to be better than
a kludge.

I've reserved my shopvac (a small and very old ordinary one,
not a "convertible" that I got at a garage sale for $5) for
blowing out pool lines.

I have a weedeater electric blower. It's not bad, but can't
handle even slightly damp leaves on grass. I wouldn't have
bought one, but it was free, and it gets used for blowing dry
stuff off paved surfaces and is occasionally useful as a second
pass after the slave teenagers finish raking ;-)

Warning: if the impeller explodes (it's plastic), you'll think
you've been shot. Don't ask... Yes, you can repair housing
cracks with ABS DWV glue.

Decent (as in backpack mount) gas blowers are really good.

If you need to blow any significant amount of leaves off grass,
I recommend forgoing buying a blower, and rent a real one when
you need it. And get weather-cancellation insurance ...

Walk-behind vacuum leaf shredders work well too. But _rent_
one (the Cub Cadet unit was $1300 CDN when I drooled over the
sales fliers).
--
Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est
It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them.