You'd expect any vacuum cleaner with the word pet in its model name to ace Consumer Reports' tough pet fur test in which cat hair is embedded into carpet piles. And most of the pet vacuums in our current Ratings did just that. Unfortunately, some of those that excelled at pet hair removal were lackluster at other tasks. In fact, only one of the full-size pet vacuums made our recommended list, the bagged upright Hoover WindTunnel T-Series Pet UH30310, $150. It was excellent at pet hair removal and cleaning bare floors and very good at cleaning carpet. If you want an all-around top performer, don't be swayed by pet hair names and claims. The Miele Complete C3 Marin, $1,100, and the Kenmore Progressive 21714, $400, are at the top of our list of canister vacuums and both are excellent at pet hair removal. Our top upright, the Kenmore Elite 31150, $350, was very good on that task but two of its brandmates, the Kenmore 31140 and the Kenmore Progressive 31069, aced it. They both cost $200 and are CR Best Buys.

Of the pet models we tested, we found eight that were excellent at pet hair removal but had subpar performance on other tasks. Unfortunately, we also found some real dogs among the pet models. The canister Dyson Cinetic Animal, $550, was only fair at removing pet hair and was also mediocre at cleaning carpet although it did well on the bare floors test. The canister Dyson Ball Compact Animal, $450, scored only 34 out of a possible 100, but did a decent job at picking up pet hair. Two hand vacuums in our tests also make pet hair claims. The Shark Pet Perfect II SV780, $60, our top hand vacuum was very good at picking up pet hair but the Bissell Pet Hair Eraser 33A1, $35, got our poorest marks for pet hair. Judging vacuums at Consumer Reports continues all year long and we're always looking for a champ among the vacuums we test. Luckily, we usually discover a few top dogs. To see how other vacuums fared see our full vacuum Ratings and recommendations.The top performers in our reviews are the Ridgid WD1450, the Gold Award winner;

the Vacmaster VBV1210, the Silver Award winner; and the Craftsman 12004, the Bronze Award winner. Here's more on choosing a shop vacuum to meet your needs, along with detail on how we arrived at our ranking of 10 shop vacuums.einhell ash vacuum cleaner Shop vacuums are multipurpose tools that can clean up the toughest messes around your house. miele vacuum cleaner s5211 good guysMost are wet-dry vacuums with large tanks for both debris and liquids, meaning you can use them after wood projects in the garage or to dry a flooded basement. hyla vacuum cleaner germanyWheels make them portable for spills in the kitchen or vacuuming your car. Beyond suction, the best shop vacuums have a blowing feature, perfect for clearing leaves from the sidewalk.

Some convert into a blower you can carry around by detaching the motor, while others still require you to move around the tank alongside you on the ground. The two most important components of a shop vacuum are its capacity and power. That is, how quickly it sucks up debris and how much it can store before you need to empty it. We took into account that portability is also important, though not at the expense of power. Beyond this, we considered the overall design and how easy each vacuum is to move around. For our tests, we vacuumed up typical materials you'd run into in your own home or garage. We spread out 2 ounces of mulch and sawdust mixed with six small screws. We then measured how much of the debris the shop vacuums picked up after one pass. We included bigger pieces of mulch to see how well the shop vacs handled heavier projects. For suction, we sucked up 2 gallons of water and measured how long it took for the vacuum to complete the task. We found the best vacuums were up to three times faster than those on the lower end of the lineup.

After the work was done, we measured how clean the filters were and performed general movement tests, such as moving the vacuums around by the hose or over an obstacle.We obtained all the shop vacuums for this review from the companies. While our tested attributes should be leading considerations in buying the right shop vacuum, other features and capabilities should figure into your choice. Here's a rundown of the most important, with a key question for each. Design: Is the Overall Size Important to You? Shop vacuums all have a similar design. The tank usually sits on the floor on wheels and can be maneuvered around while you vacuum. The debris or water is sucked up through a long, extendable hose. Most vacuums include a top handle for picking up the appliance and racks for the attachments. You should look for shop vacs that have long hoses, multiple extension tools and power cords that lock in place. The best cords are up to 20 feet in length. Our highest-rated vacuums have tanks as large as 14 gallons, but that might be too large if you have a small shop or limited storage space.

For small jobs like vacuuming your car or keeping a vacuum in your hall closet, there are vacuums with tanks as small as 2 gallons. Filters: Will You Be Working with Fine Materials? Several different filters are available on shop vacuums. Some are cloth bags that need to replaced, while others are cartridges that you can clean out and reuse. Most models come with a pleated cartridge filter, which is easier to change and less likely to leak than a foam or cloth filter. You should pay close attention to how compatible the filter is as well. Some are hard to find and can only be purchased through the manufacturer's website. If you are vacuuming fine materials like ash or sawdust, you should look for a dust filter that better traps particles. These tend to get into the motor and lower the life of the vacuum if it doesn't have this filter. Attachments: What Jobs Do You Need Your Vacuum to Do? Attachments can really help your wet-dry vacuum stand out. Most have extension wands for hard-to-reach areas, but some come with multiple wands for added reach.

Brush nozzles work best for bulky debris, and crevice tools are good for corners or cracks. For the blower, some vacuums come with a special wide tool for covering a larger area. For wet cleanup, look for squeegees and concentration nozzles. Three shop vacuums – the Ridgid WD1450, the Vacmaster VBV1210 and the Craftsman 12004 – stood out compared to the other wet-dry vacuums we tested. The Ridgid and Vacmaster picked up every piece of mulch in the first pass and sucked up water three times faster than other models. The Craftsman left a bit behind, but it still performed better than the competitors overall with its bigger hose. It was also one of the easiest to move around. A couple of models were harder to compare directly. The ArmorAll AA255 and the DeWalt DCV581H were simply not as powerful and had trouble with large jobs, but each is designed as a portable unit that you can carry around. The ArmorAll only has a 2-gallon tank, but you won't need much more if your goal is cleaning your upholstery.