Adam's Vac&Blo 500 review & interior detail

[Captain Slow]

I received my Adam's Vac & Blo 500 last Thursday. For anyone that is ordering one please note it ships from Metro Vac and NOT from Adam's and may not ship as fast as other products from Adam's. Mine took 8 business days, which was fine by me.

 

Oh and I finally got to communicate with Ashley; top notch that one is.

 

The Vac & Blo came packed in a double box. At first I thought "Wow this thing is big!" Then I de-boxed it and de-boxed it again. I spent my lunch hour playing with it. This little vacuum can suck just as well as Dyson, if you know what I mean. I then placed the hose on the other end to test the blow function and was amazed when it blew the nozzle off and across the room. (Note to self: make sure hose and nozzle are on securely.)

 

This past weekend I was totally unmotivated to do anything but play with the twins. Sunday afternoon found them down for their nap and Papa with time to kill.

I grabbed the Vac & Blo, my new Adam's Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner, a brush and the detail bag and headed outside. I took a few before pics which show a fairly decent interior but one that needed some extra attention.

Note the use of an old 'premium' MF towel to keep the cord off of the dirty car. (I'd have washed it but we have rain in the forecast every day but Thursday.) To give you an idea of how small this unit is here it is next to a container of disinfectant wipes. Notice also that the trunk is not clean, that came later. Also that stain by the top of the wipes is from a can of energy drink (has 3 claw marks on it.) I had to use APC and hot hot hot water to get that out. Then I used the shop vac and an old towel to dry it. I wonder what that stuff is doing to people's insides...

I started in the trunk, then got distracted by a black Camaro SS:

I ended up wasting three + hours talking with the Camaro owner, neighbors and my wife. I finished up the front seats tonight. All carpeted surfaces were vacuumed, brushed, then vacuumed again. I then cleaned with Adam's Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner and a brush.

 

I bought the brush over the weekend and it is too firm for this carpet. It "pilled" the fabric and ended up making me work harder, not smarter. All leather was cleaned with someone else's leather and interior cleaner. Plastic, vinyl and trim was cleaned with APC @ 50/50. (I'm cheap!) Plastic, vinyl and trim was treated to SVRT applied with a cube I cut from the foam block.

 

Leather was fed some of Barry's leather conditioner (almost out.) I made little designs in the carpet ala Adam from the DVD. Thanks for that, it's a nice finishing touch.

 

Passenger side back seat, mat replaced and seat rails dusted tonight...

A lady bug is inspecting my work (lower part of door.) Also notice back of front seat looks black, side of back seat looks gray. This is from the camera. I went back outside after uploading these pics and double checked.

Front passenger door, loving the stripes in the carpet Adam. This is also where I noticed the deficiencies of this point and shoot camera. I'm asking Santa for a DSLR!

Front passenger seat and floor.

Rear passenger seat on driver's side.

This view hasn't looked this nice since the day I bought it in April 2009.

Again, the camera captured rather incorrectly the beautiful job done by Adam's products and yours truly. After all surfaces were treated to SVRT I then went over them with an old 'premium' MF towel to even out the finish.

 

The camera though had a hard time interpreting the various tones of grays and blacks. It also made the finish seem more shiny probably due to the flash.

 

So how is this little vacuum? Excellent. I give it a 9 out of 10 or a double thumbs up. My only problem with it is the on/off switch is TOO easy to engage and twice I turned it off unintentionally.

 

In terms of it's suction capabilities I think it is as good as our Dyson Animal or any car wash vacuum cleaner I've ever used. Remember to hold it by the handle. It is so light you'll be tempted to hold it by the hose, but don't!

[MAYBEN]

I'll have one soon.. cant wait to try it.. kinda wish it had a canister built in vs the bags..

[Perez]

wow these things take for ever to come in. i ordered the perfect interior kit 6 days after i ordered vac and its gonna beat the vac here !@!!@ looks like this thing is good..hope it is i hate waiting

[Osok]

I have mine sitting in a box behind me. I told the wife I'd order my own christmas presents this year Got the vac n blow and the pad washer

[w0lfy]

Paul thx for the review of the vac n blow..... I plan this to be on my next order (as i will going to detail clinic in area soon) from the site.

I like the size comparison shots you did , really shows the size of the vac.

 

hmmm.....ships separately , i wounder ...... does that mean i should order the vac alone, i.e., separate from any other Adams purchases?

[Captain Slow]

Paul thx for the review of the vac n blow..... I plan this to be on my next order (as i will going to detail clinic in area soon) from the site.

I like the size comparison shots you did , really shows the size of the vac.

 

hmmm.....ships separately , i wonder ...... does that mean i should order the vac alone, i.e., separate from any other Adams purchases?

 

Order it at the same time. It will ship separate (from manufacturer in New York) but anything else you order from Adam's that day will not be held until Vac N Blo ships....unless on back order.

[1anonly]

I just got my Vac N Blo yesterday. I did my Adam's order the day before Thanksgiving. So it took 6 business days to get the Vac N Blo....... 2 for my Adam's.

[Perez]

i ordered mine the day before thanksgiving to and i still havent gotten it. so upset i havent been able to play with it.

[TheCarBarber]

great review and I now know it works great as a vacuum but I am still curious as to how well its blows?

does it blow strong enough to dry a car with it?

[Captain Slow]

great review and I now know it works great as a vacuum but I am still curious as to how well its blows?

does it blow strong enough to dry a car with it?

 

It blows quite well, as I noted in the review. I blew one of the attachments across the room. Last week my lovely wife was using the vacuum after cleaning up her TBSS interior and complained to me that the thing blew too hard, knocking the hose off. (She was using the pointy attachment to blow kid crumbs from around the bolts that hold the seat rail in place.)

 

It will get the water out of the door jambs, trunk/hood nooks and crannies. If you intend to dry the whole car, well don't try it. You'd be at it a long time.

 

BTW: Sorry for the delayed response.

[Captain Slow]

.....I then placed the hose on the other end to test the blow function and was amazed when it blew the nozzle off and across the room. (Note to self: make sure hose and nozzle are on securely.)

 

ok one more question. how well does this thing blow?

The above may not answer your question, but if you're expecting air compressor velocity you'll be disappointed. If you want to remove the hidden water from your vehicle, this will do the trick. If the honey-do list isn't too long this weekend I'll try to get out in the garage for a quick video...

[arvizu360]

hello there my first post on this forums.. I just purchased that vac from ebay before i knew adams sells it too well im waiting for it to arrive. my question is.. is it a wet/dry vac? i dont want to vac wet floors and stuff like that.. i just want to vac slightly wet floor mats and stuff like that. will this vac work? also my vacs name is metro vac n go 500.. slightly different name idk if that matter.s

[DaveVY]

hello there my first post on this forums.. I just purchased that vac from ebay before i knew adams sells it too well im waiting for it to arrive. my question is.. is it a wet/dry vac? i dont want to vac wet floors and stuff like that.. i just want to vac slightly wet floor mats and stuff like that. will this vac work? also my vacs name is metro vac n go 500.. slightly different name idk if that matter.s

 

Armando,

 

Be sure to introduce yourself in the"New Member Check-in" area.

 

This vac is not a wet type of vac. I have one of these but due to its design would never use it for wet or moist areas.

[ouarkie]

Paul interior looks great. Those Metro Vacs are great tools. I never thought something that small could suck as well as they do. You mentioned you used SVRT on the dash, how is the glare on the windshield? I was always scared to use it because I didn't want the terrible glare you get when you use the greasy stuff (Arm** All), definitly not Adams products. The LC seems to work pretty well if you wipe it down when your done. Just wonder if you used LC before and what difference was in glare?

[AudiOx]

Ok. I'm having 2nd thoughts.

I bought the Blaster Sidekick instead of the Vac n Blo 500, but haven't received it yet.

 

I had the Vac n Blo in my cart and swapped it for the Sidekick before placing the order.

Did I screw up? It seems the Vac n Blo covers both functions.

[DaveVY]

Ok. I'm having 2nd thoughts.

I bought the Blaster Sidekick instead of the Vac n Blo 500, but haven't received it yet.

 

I had the Vac n Blo in my cart and swapped it for the Sidekick before placing the order.

Did I screw up? It seems the Vac n Blo covers both funtions.

 

I don't think you screwed up. Yes, the Vac n Blo does have a blower function and I tried it as a blower when I first got it. But I am concerned about using it to blow when it is also used to suck up dirt and dust. Yes, you can remove the paper filter bag but I assume, like many other vacs with bags, that there is still residual dust/dirt in the motor that could be blown out (though probably not much). I don't have a Blaster Sidekick but from what I have seen it is a much better blower than the Vac n Blo.

 

If I had to do it over again I would probably skip the Vac n Blo and go for the new pro wet vac that Adam's carries. More consistent suction (the little bag on the Vac n Blo can clog quickly when doing a 'normal' person's car) and can do wet extraction also.

 

Let us know how you like the Sidekick!

[Team Adam's]

The blow side of the 500 (IMO) isn't good for drying... I use it more for blowing dust and stuff from the cracks of the interior.

 

The blaster is far more powerful and does a better job with drying.

 

Plus, its never the best idea to use a tool that picks up dirt to dry your car. Any small particles lodged in the housing or hose during the suction could easily be dislodged and pushed out on the blow side.

 

*EDIT - great minds think alike DaveVY

[AudiOx]

The blow side of the 500 (IMO) isn't good for drying... I use it more for blowing dust and stuff from the cracks of the interior.

 

The blaster is far more powerful and does a better job with drying.

 

Plus, its never the best idea to use a tool that picks up dirt to dry your car. Any small particles lodged in the housing or hose during the suction could easily be dislodged and pushed out on the blow side.

 

*EDIT - great minds think alike DaveVY

 

Cool. My main purpose was to dry the car so, whew, I feel better now.

I've been using my shop-vac for the vacuuming part, so I may pick up the 500 at some point anyway (after the dust has settled from my latest purchases.....hahahahah......hahahah....haha....heh.....)

[Team Adam's]

Cool. My main purpose was to dry the car so, whew, I feel better now.

I've been using my shop-vac for the vacuuming part, so I may pick up the 500 at some point anyway (after the dust has settled from my latest purchases.....hahahahah......hahahah....haha....heh.....)

 

Since I have access to both the shop vac and the 500 for full blown details and interior cleanup I use my shop vac, for in between cleanup I pull out the 500... its much easier to do that than uncoil the shop vac.

[Captain Slow]

Paul interior looks great. Those Metro Vacs are great tools. I never thought something that small could suck as well as they do. You mentioned you used SVRT on the dash, how is the glare on the windshield? I was always scared to use it because I didn't want the terrible glare you get when you use the greasy stuff (Arm** All), definitly not Adams products. The LC seems to work pretty well if you wipe it down when your done. Just wonder if you used LC before and what difference was in glare?

I diluted it 50/50 with distilled water which I then spray on one of these cubes that I've cut just for this application. This keeps over spray to a minimum reducing later work.

The glare is almost non existent due to the funky G8 dash. Besides I always wear polarized sunglasses in the day time which would block almost any glare I may introduce.

 

 

 

BTW: Dylan you seem to be talking me out of this purchase and into the Blaster Sidekick...hey wait a minute! Stop with the Jedi mind tricks, my mod/detail money is still in need of replenishment.

[Captain Slow]

Very nice Paul. Your interior looks great. Sorry I've never gotten around to doing my own interior! So you used SVRT on that weird trim at the top of the doors and on the textured stuff on top of the dash? Good idea. I think it looks really nice (odd colors notwithstanding). Good work!

 

One question: how long is the cord for the vacuum?

 

Time for me to get on my own interior. Well, tomorrow that is. And I really need one of those vacuums too!

 

Thanks Sean. I got the idea from you about using SVRT on that funky textured dash we have. I applied side to side,then front to back to make sure I had even distribution. I then followed up later with a MF towel wipe down. Today a coworker was looking at this thread and commented to me that "your interior is black, why does it look gray?"

 

I don't feel like running downstairs to get a tape measure, but my eagle eye tells me the cord is 10 foot. I used the same heavy duty extension cord I use with my DA polisher, so I was good to go.

[Chris@Adams]

Glad you like your new vac! Metro makes a great product!

BTW Nice job!

[JPEGXP]

Metro's customer service is fantastic as well!

[briand]

Excellent job! It looks great

 

Again, the camera captured rather incorrectly the beautiful job done by Adam's products and yours truly...

 

The camera though had a hard time interpreting the various tones of grays and blacks. It also made the finish seem more shiny probably due to the flash.

 

What brand and model of camera do you have? Sometimes point and shoots let you can set the white balance to a setting for use with the flash. I'm pretty familiar with most Canon point and shoots and usually setting the white balance to Tungsten or (some models have) Flash will help.

[Team Adam's]

Came out really nice Paul, I'm sure you're in love with that little vacuum now huh? Its an item that until you get a chance to use you have no idea what a nice piece of equipment it is.

 

Also, just a suggestion for that back seat leather:

 

http://www.target.com/Black-Two-Stage-Seatsaver/dp/B000083GHY/ref=sc_pd_gwvub_1_title

 

I use one in our cars with the car seats, helps protect the leather from being discolored or damaged by the constant pressure of the seat. May keep that resale value up if the day ever comes that you need to unload it. Just a thought.

[Captain Slow]

Came out really nice Paul, I'm sure you're in love with that little vacuum now huh? Its an item that until you get a chance to use you have no idea what a nice piece of equipment it is.

 

Also, just a suggestion for that back seat leather:

 

http://www.target.com/Black-Two-Stage-Seatsaver/dp/B000083GHY/ref=sc_pd_gwvub_1_title

 

I use one in our cars with the car seats, helps protect the leather from being discolored or damaged by the constant pressure of the seat. May keep that resale value up if the day ever comes that you need to unload it. Just a thought.

 

I agree on the vacuum; how did I get by without it? No more lugging Dyson out to the garage and hoping it doesn't tip over No more using the Shop Vac and it's big cumbersome hose.

As for the seat protector, we had tried two others but found the seats moved around too much laterally for our liking. I'll give these a whirl. I don't worry about resale value since I've told my wife I intend to teach the twins to drive in it....in 14 years!