# Ash Vac on sale at Tractor Supply this Friday..Any good ??



## Drifthopper (Nov 26, 2013)

I already received Tractor Supply’s Black Friday ad,  they have a Red Stone Ash vacuum on sale for $59.99 , just wondering if anyone has this unit and if it works up to expectations.



Type : Ash Vacuum | Product Size : 4 gal. Package Weight : 10.8 lb. | Capacity : 4 gal. | Material : Steel




Any input is appreciated..!!


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## Halligan (Nov 28, 2013)

I was wondering the same thing myself.


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## xman23 (Nov 28, 2013)

Wonder if that's any different than a shop vac. It says cold ash.


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## Halligan (Nov 30, 2013)

FWIW I purchased the shop vac brand ash vac at Lowes. It cost me $100 but at least it's a name brand.


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## clemsonfor (Dec 1, 2013)

Why buy a special vac just to suck cold ashes?  I use my shop vac brand vac that I got 4 yrs ago on black Friday at Lowes for $29. Its like 17 gallon but has a smaller hose than most the normal ones I think k its a special sale run.  I only use it on hand in ashes cold ones usually at beginning and end of season.


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## Drifthopper (Dec 2, 2013)

TC had bird seeds on sale also,,,, so I went on Black Friday.

Got to the store shortly after it opened, got my bird seeds, then went to look at this vac.  It must have been a hot item cuz couldn’t find one on display, when I asked, he said they’re right up front. I whole pallet of them were gone,  had to go in back to get one, so I bought it. 

Its ok.

Is it worth $60…. ???..maybe..but .. I wouldn’t have paid the $99 reg price.

Its got :

Metal can, metal hose, but a plastic vac top and motor housing. 

Its got decent suction, but not sure how its going to be after the filter gets plugged with ash.

It came with a spare filter, and it shows up can wash/rinse them as they get dirty.

The can is small, 4 gallons,  so I can see that filling up pretty quick.

Haven’t tried it yet, vacuuming ashes, but I could see vacuuming hot ashes as long as you emptied it right away.



And… clemsonfor.. ain’t that hose a pain in the butt… I got the same shop vac but rigged up a larger diameter hose I had from a old craftsman vac so it can suck up bigger bark pcs.


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## clemsonfor (Dec 2, 2013)

Yea the hose is a pain. Gets stuff stuck in it all the time!! 

I think it has the small diameter hose to get a better suction as I think the motor is not as strong as the normal Vacs,  the smaller diameter will increase the air velocity over the large hose those increasing the suction for it .


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## Drifthopper (Jan 3, 2014)

Bringing this one back to the top…..



Well… this is being returned to the store today.



I used it over Christmas, and it just plugs with ash.  When buying it, I knew the can would be a bit small, they claim 4 gallon cap, but the ashes fill up to the bottom of the filter, probably like 2 gallons, then the ash just plugs the filter solid.

With the small can, I was thinking, vac, empty, vac , and empty…. But you’d have to go thru the trouble of cleaning the filter each time… just too much of a pain.

It may be ok for a small stove, or fire place, but not for a wood furnace.



Two thumbs down…. not worth the $60 , even on sale,,,, Not recommended.


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## windchaser (Jan 3, 2014)

Not certain of the model but I like my ash vac. - has metal hose and can - and the motor is tuned so that it is more of a low pressure suck and doesn't send ash flying around the same way that a shop-vac can - also has a an internal ash exhaust air filter so your discharged air remains clean and a vibrting feature that can help shake build-ups free. Best part is that you can vacuum a warm fireplace and get your fire going that much faster in the really cold times of the year.


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## Grateful11 (Jan 6, 2014)

What about this ash vac? Seems to get good reviews. Looks like it sells for around $100 at most places, I need one.

http://powersmithtools.com/portfolios/ash-vacuum/


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## AK13 (Jan 18, 2014)

clemsonfor said:


> Why buy a special vac just to suck cold ashes?  I use my shop vac brand vac that I got 4 yrs ago on black Friday at Lowes for $29. Its like 17 gallon but has a smaller hose than most the normal ones I think k its a special sale run.  I only use it on hand in ashes cold ones usually at beginning and end of season.



Just make sure you take that shop vac away from your house when you are done. Embers can live in cold ashes for a very long time. 

I think that most people who use an ash vac (like me) are using them during the season. I am also only vacuuming cold ashes of course, but there are often hot embers from the day before buried deep in the ash. And the other issue is of course clogging up the vac.


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## AK13 (Jan 18, 2014)

I use the fancy Loveless Couger model. Its price (over $200) but it works well and it gets used twice a week on my two stoves so its worth it. And it is made in the USA!

You can still get it to plug up if you aren't careful. The key is to hold the nozzle down to the bottom of the stove so only ash goes up and not charcoal.  



I use the fancy Loveless Cougar vac. 
I use the fancy Loveless Cougar vac.


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