cordless wet dry vac

[Jeff_in_The_Dalles]

I got a Christmas gift that I'm really impressed with. Though it's not specifically an RV product, I think that is where I will find it most useful.

It's a Coleman 1 gal wet/dry vacuum. It is cordless, and comes with a wall transformer and a 12v cig lighter plug to recharge. It has high/low speeds, LED's that show charge state while being used and while recharging, and there is a sight glass in the side so you don't overfill if you use it for liquid.

It handles jobs that are too big for a dustbuster, yet is way handier than dragging out a big shop vac and extension cord. Plus it is small enough that I will find a place for it in my 5th wheel.

I didn't know such a thing existed, and it really works well so I thought I'd post about it. It gets the sand/soil out of the corners way better than a brush and dustpan.

[Jeff_in_The_Dalles]

I got a Christmas gift that I'm really impressed with. Though it's not specifically an RV product, I think that is where I will find it most useful.

It's a Coleman 1 gal wet/dry vacuum. It is cordless, and comes with a wall transformer and a 12v cig lighter plug to recharge. It has high/low speeds, LED's that show charge state while being used and while recharging, and there is a sight glass in the side so you don't overfill if you use it for liquid.

It handles jobs that are too big for a dustbuster, yet is way handier than dragging out a big shop vac and extension cord. Plus it is small enough that I will find a place for it in my 5th wheel.

I didn't know such a thing existed, and it really works well so I thought I'd post about it. It gets the sand/soil out of the corners way better than a brush and dustpan.

[AL]

Hey Jeff,

Wow sounds like a great gift, thanks for the info,and if you don't mind keep us posted on it's preformance as time goes on!!

[Jeff_in_The_Dalles]

Well, I've used it several times now...

It seems to run for about 20 minutes on a charge, and its performance drops off sharply when it runs out of juice. I thought that was pretty decent battery life, considering how small and light the unit is.

The only thing I've found that I thought could have been done better is the shoulder strap. It attaches at the top of the dirt bucket/bottom half, and once you hook the hose to it and start reaching around, the thing has a tendency to want to flip upside-down. If the strap attached to the top handle, I think it would work better, but it is not a big deal. Actually, it is easy to tip over any time you don't have a hand free to hold the unit, just because it is small and light.

It sure won't completely replace my big shop-vac, but for the things it was designed for, I still find it works very well. If it is like most of the other rechargeable stuff I have, hopefully the batteries will go about 4 years...

[FatDog]

interesting tool. I'll check it out, wonder how much it costs. we carry one of our old plug-in upright vaccuums with us all the time in the 5er, but it obviously doesn't do liquids or corners.

but there is certainly an allure to a cordless wet-dry vac.
(and about a year or two ago i caught a little ribbing here as i recall, for spouting the benefits of a gas-powered margarita tailgator blender. You obviously are the kind of person who might have an appreciation for that particlar tool as well. )

[Jeff_in_The_Dalles]

I'm sure there is a joke in there somewhere about how someone with a gas powered margarita blender may later need a cordless wet/dry vac...

[Jeff_in_The_Dalles]

By way of update, in case anyone is interested:

This January I was replacing my water heater, and I grabbed the little vacuum to clean out the pan before installing the new heater, and even though the vacuum was reading full charge, it wouldn't run.

I figured that battery life would limit the useful life of the vacuum, like most cordless products, but I thought this was pretty disappointing considering it's been kept charged, kept out of freezing or hot temps, and not that old or used that much.

Anyhoo, my usual experience with dead cordless products is that you either can't find a replacement battery, or they cost more than the device they go in.

I let it sit around until recently when I decided to pull it apart. I was happy to find it has a standard UB645 lead acid battery. Though it read more than 6v, as soon as any load was applied it dropped to less than a volt, confirming that the battery was shot.

$15 at Radio Shack had a new battery drop shipped to my door, and its back in good working order.

I guess that although I was disappointed in the original battery life, I was impressed that the case was simple to open with just a Phillips screwdriver, and that they didn't use some proprietary battery.

Though a lot of folks wouldn't consider it worth their time to fix, it seemed like a waste to consider throwing the unit out when everything but the battery was like new, and also I would have torn it down anyway in order to properly dispose of the battery (super-toxic, and shouldn't go to the land fill). It's also nice to see cordless products designed with quick and easy disassembly in mind, as it encourages people to properly dispose of the battery when the item has reached the end of its useful life.

[Joe-K]

Jeff,

Thanks for the followup on the product. Perhaps someone else with a similar rechargeable product will now know how to change the battery.