Shop vac remote control

I'm just a novice machinist, but I wanted to share my most useful machine shop innovation so far. I give you the remote controlled shop vac!



Seriously, it's just a $20 RF remote control outlet (you can find them for $10) with the control taped to the end of the vacuum hose. I use it constantly and it saves a lot of running back and forth to the vacuum on the wall, which is tucked back between the milling machine and lathe and is hard to get to. Ridiculously useful for 30 seconds of installation work.

Yep. They make them for 220V stuff too. Woodworkers use them all the time to turn on/off dust collectors.

madsci said:

I'm just a novice machinist, but I wanted to share my most useful machine shop innovation so far. I give you the remote controlled shop vac!

View attachment 147078

Seriously, it's just a $20 RF remote control outlet (you can find them for $10) with the control taped to the end of the vacuum hose. I use it constantly and it saves a lot of running back and forth to the vacuum on the wall, which is tucked back between the milling machine and lathe and is hard to get to. Ridiculously useful for 30 seconds of installation work.

Click to expand...

You can get them with muli channels also. I just installed a 2 channel in my house for some vent fans ( home made also because the off the shelf were noisy as hell and not easily adjustable) to move warm from the pellet stove in the living room to other rooms. You can turn one or the other or both on and off. Pretty neat and cheap 29 bucks for two channel, $49 for four channel.

Look around at Christmas time for remote light switches. They go on sale befor e the 25th.
Bill D.

Brilliant!
I just spent several days machining a trough in some 6061 bar stock that is going to be a front gate w/ glass panels.... must have worn out my lower back bending down to turn the shop vac on and off about 300 times....
Many thanks!

There are also devices that will turn on an outlet automagically when the primary outlet is called on to deliver power. So, plug dust-making device in controlling outlet, plug shop vac into controlled outlet, then the whole works into the wall socket. Fire up dust-making device (with its own, normal switch) and shop vac comes on also, and runs until primary device is shut off. No finding the other remote. You can even add your RF switch to the control outlet via splitter, and use it to control an arbitrary load (like a lamp, or fan) which will turn on the shop vac "manually" like you have it set up now.

The auto-switching device is a common item at Sears, KMart and Ace, stores, or usually wherever Cr@psman tools are sold.

Chip

Those remotes work really well and save on the amount of floor who may have to cross daily. A while back I introduced a new engineering intern to the crew in the shop. He did own up to the fact that his knowledge of shop procedures and equipment was pretty green. I told him to hang for awhile and talk to everyone learn something I said. A few days later I walk by the shop and notice the intern with one of the crew. The moldmaker pipes up and says VACUUM ON and the shop system comes up to speed then says vacuum off system powers down. Another member of the crew has the remote in his pocket. Then he say ok you try it. The kid pipes up nothing happens Old fart says wait your voice is not programmed in the system hang on we will fix that he pulls out his phone fiddles around has the kid speak up and then tries it again no go. This goes on for a couple of days and now the whole shop is in on it. I am going to let the kid suffer for a while longer.