Customer Reviews

Porter-Cable 7814 15 Gallon 1-1/2 Horsepower Tool-Start Wet/Dry Vacuum

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After several models of Shop-Vac vacuums (they're all junk as far as I'm concerned) i decided to dig deeper in my pockets and get a decent vacuum. That led me to the Porter Cable.

Decent is an insulting understatement. This thing has power!!! With a clean filter this thing loves to eat nails, screws, rocks you name it.

This vacuum accidentally fell 9 feet to the floor below where I was using it. Nothing broken or bent. It didn't even come apart. Now that's durability.

With respect to the noise level during operation, it's the quietest vacuum I own (i have 2 shopvacs and a Sears Kenmore canister). It's even quieter than the Sears vacuum with bogus Whisper feature.

The only problem I have with this model is its weight. It's tough to carry up and down stairs even with the carry handle on the top.

Lastly, if you get the filter bags for this from Amazon, make sure you're getting the 15 gallon bags. the 10's are the ones they usually show you in the "related accessories" area. I ordered a bunch of them (the 10's) thinking they were 15's. The 10 gallon bags do not work well in the 15 gallon vacuum (they rip apart from the weight of what they're holding).

In a nutshell, you want quality? Buy this or the 10 gallon model. You won't be sorry.

I purchased this vacuum for a small cabinet shop and am pleased to report that is quite superior to the Crafts**n (no names please!) unit I had been using. It has similar suction power, albeit through a smaller hose, but is vastly quieter than the "red screamer". The filter stays clean longer with fine dust due to the use of a 15 gallon bag prefilter, and the two stage filtration exhausts cleaner air than any single stage unit I have tried. The wheels allow for easier movement than the typical four swivel casters on most "shop vacs". My only complaint would be in the meager amperage limit of the built in 120 volt outlet which activates the device when used with devices like random orbit sanders. I would like to be able to use it with larger tools, such as a router, as well.

I just wish, for $330 they included a couple of attachements. It's not that I'm going to vacuum my living room, but just the 2 nozzles from the accessory kit to pick up some saw dust or something after I make a mess.

They make an accessory kit for another $60. A Brush, a wand and a wide attachement, plus more hose and extensions. $390 total.

I use it with my router, sander and chop saw. Not a lot of noise and great suction. Obviously what it was designed for, wandless tool dust collection.

Heavy to lug up stairs so I try to keep in in the shop.

Nice long cord and hose. a Very nice vacuum overall.

I agree with the other reviewers, when this thing works it's the best shop vac I have owned. The first one I purchased from Amazon lasted two days and the auto trigger went out, thanks to Amazon they shipped another the next day, thanks again Amazon your great. In less than one year the secound vac's auto trigger stopped working, and after one weeks of using it without the auto feature the vac stopped working completely. I can not recommend this vac to anyone.

I have had this Porter vacuum for a couple of years now. No troubles to report. Previously I owned a Shop-Vac. The Shop-Vac was about the same size but with a stainless-steel container. Stainless-steel is very-good but all plastic is even better for my dock-side work. Overall the Porter is a more sophisticated, made in Italy, design. I would have purchased another of the Shop-Vacs since it provided many years of good service. However, I bought the Porter because of the power-outlet feature that I need for my sander. The Shop-Vac was somewhat more powerful. The Shop-Vac was completely stable when rolling around on its wheels. The Porter has a tendency to tip on even the slightest of irregular surfaces. The wheel's track is too narrow. The Porter is blessedly free of exhaust-dust. There are aftermarket filters available from Gore that help the Shop-Vac blow less-dust than its factory-filter, but still the Porter can't be beat in this department. The Porter is quieter than the Shop-Vac, but as I said a bit less powerful as well. The Porter does have an extra-long heavy-duty cord. Would I buy another Porter? Perhaps, but I would also consider another Shop-Vac with an aftermarket, external, automatic-power-outlet unit available elsewhere on Amazon. All of my old Shop-Vac accessories work fine with the Porter.

Avoid this vacum! You would think that anything with the PorterCable brand on it would be top shelf but this vac is living proof that name brand is indeed what your are paying for and NOT quality. On mine, the auto trigger died after about 2 months of light use(vac mostly sat in a corner) Amazon told me to go to the manufacturer to honor the year warranty. What a nightmare ! After going through PC's maze of customer service I finally got hold of a tech who told me that I would have to box and ship this heavy vac out to the service center. It cost me $30 to ship to them and month plus for them to "fix" When I finally got it back -guess what- it crapped out again not 3 days later!!
So,after more hassles with the inattentive techs I was told to ship it back out at my own expense(AGAIN!)and they would replace some more parts! Do yourself a favor and stay away from this tool . I've since picked up a Fein wet/dry and couldn't be happier

Seems like an ok unit suctionwise--I just got it--but make sure you notice before you order: All the stuff you need to actually sweep anything up is SOLD SEPARATELY. 65 more bucks and another wait or else a trip to the local dealership. Looks like I will clean the floor of my shop this weekend just by shuffling the hose around on it. Also, I will need to jury-rig or buy yet more accessories to get it able to vacuum sawdust from my non Porter-Cable miter saw. The port and hose sizes are way different. Would it have hurt P-C to include a few cheap plastic adapters so that people with other tool brands could use the thing with 'em?

This is a well designed and built vac. The shape is great for manuverability and storage. The filtration is finaminal, it is extremely quiet, and the tool powered switch works great and is a handy feature for sanding operations. I think the suction is slightly less than other brands but that is something I am willing to sacrifice for filtration and quietness of operation, I can actually have a conversation while it is on!

I bought this PC 7814 15 gallon vacuum and I love it. the tool-triggered fiture is the best keep up the good work PC. But I found this this new dust collector that you connect between your vacuum and tool. It use's water as a filter, has a drain on it, can be mounted on the wall or a cart. Found it on I think bagkeeper.com