Shop-Vac Vacuums

Shop-Vac nearly disappeared in 2020. The Williamsport, Pennsylvania company, which had built heavy-duty wet/dry vacuums for more than 55 years, closed its factory abruptly that September and laid off roughly 437 workers. GreatStar Tools USA, part of China's Hangzhou GreatStar Industrial, bought the assets on Christmas Eve 2020, promised to reopen the plant and rehire staff, and said it would build with a mix of Asian and US manufacturing. The company still lists its address on Reach Road in Williamsport.

The model here, the 5 Gallon 2.5 Peak HP Wet/Dry Vac 2035089 ($74), is a plain small-garage unit. Shop-Vac lists 60 CFM of airflow, a 1-1/4 inch, 7-foot lock-on hose, a 7-foot cord, easy-roll casters, a blower port, three extension wands and a wet/dry nozzle. It comes with a foam sleeve for wet pickup and two reusable dry filters, so you can swap in a dry one while the other is drying.

The warranty is the strongest part of the deal. Shop-Vac's page for this model gives a full lifetime home-use warranty to the original purchaser, though filters and accessories are excluded and commercial use voids it. Some other Shop-Vac models carry only a 1-year limited term, so a different 5-gallon SKU on the same shelf may not match. The limit to plan around is the 7-foot cord, which means an extension cord in most garages.