I know that some people use handheld vacs for sucking poo. To me a "hand vac" is this:
Black & Decker Power Tools
I also know that some use shop vacs. To me a "shop vac" is this:
Sears.com Tools Wet-Dry Vacs
Yet others use regular household vacuums that are dedicated to poo's too.
I'm in the process of writing a script for an extensive video on using fleece for bedding and I'd like to hear more about people's experience with different types of vacuuming machines.
When I went to purchase a handheld for using with my fleece, I had a hard time deciding which one, since I wanted something that was a 'wet-dry' style. I live where it's humid, and dustbusters get moldy really fast here. My last one I threw away years ago, because everytime I used it if there was anything even slightly wet inside it would mold in the filter.
Wet Dry Dustbuster style vacuums are pretty expensive and so I shopped around quite a bit. Then one day in the hardware store I stumbled on this:
Sears.com
Since it was powerful enough to suck up hay and hair as well as poo and it was LESS expensive (at $30USD) than the hand helds I was looking at I went for it.[FONT=Arial Narrow]
[/FONT]I find that mine is perfect except that the smaller hose allows hay to get stuck so I have to mess with it a bit once or twice while cleaning and it's really loud. So loud, in fact, that my ears ring after using it.
[FONT=Arial Narrow]To solve that problem [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial Narrow]I eventually added an extra long hose from the "car kit, (another $20) which allows me to vacuum the cage without removing the pig or busting my eardrums. I just put the vacuum outside their bedroom door and the noise problem is solved for both my ears, and my boys.[/FONT]
I think I need to know more about other people's experience with "suckin' poo" so that I can help others figure out what will work for them. You know us here at
GPC, we all come up with creative solutions to solve our problems and I'm sure there are lots of you who love what you are using.
For those of you using Handheld Dustbuster Style vacs:
Do handhelds work for people long term ? For example how long do they usually last for you? I wonder about the hay problem, and how you manage it, if at all. In my mind they seem like they would get clogged easily with hay bits and it would require several emptyings while cleaning. Is that a wrong assumption?
What types have you tried? Which ones worked wonderfully and which ones failed miserably? What do you wish yours had? What's your favorite part?
For those of you using Shop Vac style vacs:
What size do you use? What is the horsepower? Does yours have that giant hose? Is it hard to get around the cage with the bigger hoses at all?
In addition, if you have an unusual vacuum like this one:
at $60 it seems like it must be something pretty amazing before making it worth it to use for suckin' poo.
Can you tell I like to say, suckin' poo?
Anyway, if you just use a regular vacuum, is it bagless? How long have you used it? Is it dedicated to poo's? ..sometimes I wonder if I picked up a $10 second hand one if it would have worked just as well.