Question about using a shop vac for ash cleanup

Last Tuesday I was cleaning out a fireplace in an old house near Springfield and I finally tried using a shop vac with a HEPA filter instead of my usual bucket and scoop method. Man, what a difference it made. I finished the job in about 25 minutes instead of the usual hour. The best part was how little dust got kicked up into the room. I picked up the vac at Home Depot for 60 bucks last month and it already paid for itself on that one job. My back feels way better too from not having to bend over a hundred times. Anyone else switch to a vac setup and have tips for keeping the filter from clogging too fast?

2 comments

2 Comments

karenw2312d ago

That 60 bucks sounds like a steal honestly, I've seen some of those HEPA vacs go for way more. I tried the same thing last winter and my filter clogged up within like ten minutes of heavy use on a really ash-filled fireplace. Did you do anything special before you started like maybe wetting the ash down a little or using a finer pre-filter? I'm wondering if the type of wood they burned matters too, like if pine with all that creosote clogs it faster than seasoned hardwood. Also, how often are you having to stop and tap the filter out during a job like that?

the_fiona12d ago

Wetting the ash down first is actually the last thing you want to do - that turns the fine dust into a cement-like paste that'll ruin your motor. Tapping the filter every few minutes is just part of the deal with ash vacs, no matter what wood they burned.