Canned air alternative?

[neptronix]

I found another contender, the datavac:
DataVac® ESD Safe Electric Duster – Powerful & Anti-Static



Power tests show that it's up there with the best of them. 500w rated brushed motor. 3lbs. Steel body.

It's got a 12 foot cord. USA made. About $200 to get the variable speed unit that's 'ESD safe'. 3 year warranty.

I like this option because i'm betting it's more reliable ( no battery or charger to break, probably no complex parts inside ).
Small company but they've been around since the 30's and have made this for almost 2 decades.

Added bulkyness and wall power dependency aside, i think this is my #1 pick so far because it seems closer to a 'buy it for life' item

 

[99t4]

They're really pushing the "ESD Safe" aspect. I wonder what makes this model ESD safe, over other (not specifically advertised as ESD safe) models. I see the grounded wrist strap in the photo. Is that what makes it ESD safe? For that matter, is common canned air ESD safe? (Maybe yes if it comes with a grounded wrist strap?)

I'm presuming your area can generate a lot of static electricity during dry windy weather.

 

[mrmojorising]

They're really pushing the "ESD Safe" aspect. I wonder what makes this model ESD safe, over other (not specifically advertised as ESD safe) models. I see the grounded wrist strap in the photo. Is that what makes it ESD safe? For that matter, is common canned air ESD safe? (Maybe yes if it comes with a grounded wrist strap?)

I'm presuming your area can generate a lot of static electricity during dry windy weather.

From what I understand, the materials used and all the grounding (power cord + wrist strap) prevent ES build-up. It's all steel construction & ceramically coated. The attachments are all designed to dissipate ES charge. Plastic turbo fans tend to build up charge and have no form of grounding.

It's likely overkill and unnecessary for your average Joe. Having that "ESD safe" guarantee is aimed more at business/professional use

 

[marty]

Being a PC technician

Are you blowing dust inside or outside? I take the computer outside so dust don't go all over inside the house. Might have a hard time finding a receptacle outside. I like battery stuff way better then dragging cords around.

 

[marty]

Inhaling helium won’t get you high but it will make your voice sound like Mickey Mouse. Try it.

It will make your bike lighter if you fill the tires with it. We can do the math to see how much. I bet it’s at least a few grams. The big downside is helium will leak out much faster than air.

Have watched people inhale helium and talk funny. I don't have to do that because I talk like Mickey Mouse all the time.

 

[TPEHAK]

I blast PCBs with Wolfbox after cleaning them with alcohol. It works pretty good.



You still need compressed air if you need to blow air into a small tight space through a straw or a small diameter tube because of all those blowers can not generate enough pressure. They can blow strong only though a big unobstructed opening.

 

[Jeff23spl]

At home, i use 2 old refrigerator compressor to make air pressure and a portable tank. (15 or 20liters) Freon was already removed (either by leaking itself or by the reparator that sold them to me 20$ each) You connect to the large pipes. one is discharge and one is vaccuum so take the right one. It fill the tank relatively soon and the noise is very low since the motor is in an oil bath. Only bad side is the need of an oil filter at the output because old one could leak a bit of oil or it is mixed humidity with oil film.

It get very handy to inflate a tire or just blow out the dust inside something.

I got a chineese portable blower and that thing make more noise than my 5hp 4heads garage compressor and it is not making much pressure, it makes flow but pressure is limited.

Maybe you can find or make an air gun with a smaller tip than usual gun. I think it is like a 3/16'' pipe and the tank get empty faster than i would like. Or glue a red straw at the output???. Or use it to refil your air can ?

 

[neptronix]

Are you blowing dust inside or outside? I take the computer outside so dust don't go all over inside the house. Might have a hard time finding a receptacle outside. I like battery stuff way better then dragging cords around.

Usually outside, ok to use an extension cord.

It's likely overkill and unnecessary for your average Joe. Having that "ESD safe" guarantee is aimed more at business/professional use

That would be me
They have a notably cheaper non-ESD version.

 

[marty]

extension cord

Might be time to be like all the other kids. Its not 1990 anymore. How much time have you wasted looking for a outlet? Winding up extension cords? Ever trip over a cord? Worse, ever have someone else trip over your extension cord?

DeWalt has a dust blower also. I would just get whatever you already have batteries for:

My thoughts on Makita and Milwaukee 18V tools because that's what I got. Makita batteries are smaller and lighter. Makita higher Ah batteries are the same size. Milwaukee batteries get larger as Ah increases.

Its 2026, time to make the big decision. What kind of kid do you want to be? Apple or Android? Milwaukee, Makita, Dewalt, or something else? Any future dreams? Cordless nail guns? Auto impact gun?

Read:

Milwaukee,Makita or Dewalt

Why would you pick one over the other? I am referring to cordless tools. I have none of the above but they all have a good strong following. I like the offerings of the Milwaukee and Makita the most. :)

www.garagejournal.com

Milwaukee vs Facom vs Makita vs Dewalt comparison thread

Well I think that should be a nice post for everyone to write down his opinion or preference between these 4; Everyone who'd like to throw other names in the game ,feel free to do as you wish. But between these who would you choose in terms of all-around functionality . Let's say actually the...

www.garagejournal.com

 

[99t4]

Walmart has entered the arena:

New Walmart Meme Tool: Hyper Tough Cordless Blower

toolguyd.com

 

[marty]

Walmart has entered the arena:

New Walmart Meme Tool: Hyper Tough Cordless Blower

toolguyd.com

Nice $35. Buy extra battery for $25. Battery tool without 2 batteries is sad day when battery dies

Robot or human?

 

[neptronix]

Gee, at the cost of 4 cans of air, that's hard to ignore! i do wonder if the power is really sufficient. lack of a finer tip nozzle is concerning. I'm sure youtube will review one for us!

 

[99t4]

Wouldn't it be funny if the guts of all of them were shockingly similar?

 

[neptronix]

So, i bought a hyper tough because i happened to be at walmart.
Thanks to 99t4 for the mention of this

The battery is close to depleted within a minute on the max setting.
But within that minute, i dusted 3 computers, 2 box fans, and 40lbs of expensive air filters.
It did as good of a job as canned air, but much faster.
This would have consumed ~1.5 cans of air, so i'm well on my way to the device paying for itself.



It tends to leave a little bit more of a film of dust on things than canned air. This is probably because it has such a high spread due to the 15.5mm nozzle diameter.

I'd say it's 90% as powerful as a fully charged can of duster ( but with WAY higher spread ), and if we were to 3d print a substantially narrower nozzle, making the air more like a laser beam, i'm very certain it'd be better at attacking that dust film than canned air. And we could get into tight spaces much easier.

Despite this huge nozzle, i still got the amount of dust out of the big filters that i expected. And the slightly gentler output vs a can of air is better for computer fans when blasting them.



On the back, we have a removable screen that gets blocked up *very* fast during use. During my dust-a-palooza, i have to unlock it, pull it out, and blow on it to get it unjammed. This isn't a surprise since we are moving an enormous amount of air.

I was surprised to find on the box that it has a 3 year warranty, and a brushless motor.
The battery is charged by removing the battery and plugging a USB C connection into it.

I'd say Walmart knocked it out of the park for the price paid.

 

[Zambam]

The battery is close to depleted within a minute on the max setting.

One minute? Is that a typo? Was battery fully charged?

 

[neptronix]

Saw this on X about the Datavac. Impressive if true.



Many commenters in the thread report 10+ year lifespans.

I think if the hyper tough craps out on me, i'll absolutely buy one.

 

[neptronix]

One minute? Is that a typo? Was battery fully charged?

As far as i know, it was fully charged. Balanced? can't tell. From 3 bars to 1 after all the dusting at the maximum power level for about a minute.

Let me know if you want a more precise measurement

You can swap the 1.5ah battery for a 4ah one.

 

[99t4]

On the back, we have a removable screen that gets blocked up *very* fast during use. During my dust-a-palooza, i have to unlock it, pull it out, and blow on it to get it unjammed.

I wonder if you could attach a prefilter over that. Something like a piece of common window A/C 1/4" thick washable foam filter?

 

[sternwake]

The hypertough duster looks promising.
I want, but don't need one.
I wonder what 1500mah cells it uses for its 3s1p, and how easy it would be to replace them with Ampace JP30's, and how much airflow would increase on max setting with the tabless' far less voltage sag.

I replaced 7 25amp 2500mah Sunpower cells inside a vacuum with JP30's for a significant gain in power and runtime.

I then Put 5 of those lightly used Sunpower cells into a Ryobi 5s1p that originally had 1.5ah 22amp cdr LG cells(1 failed) and the battery perform pretty well, nearly as well as a 4.0 ah 5s2p ryobi battery, in a leaf blower.

 

[neptronix]

That extra filter would be a great idea.

Some disassemblies of the "12v" packs reveal that it's 3s1p and made of 18650's.
Would be nice to put some tabless cells in the original case and avoid the bulkiness of the optional 4.0ah battery.

Being 1.5AH, i'm betting we have a cheap but very high C rate cell.
I didn't notice the power lowering when i hit low battery, so that's a good sign.

 

[sternwake]

Some disassemblies of the "12v" packs reveal that it's 3s1p and made of 18650's.
Would be nice to put some tabless cells in the original case and avoid the bulkiness of the optional 4.0ah battery.

Being 1.5AH, i'm betting we have a cheap but very high C rate cell.
I didn't notice the power lowering when i hit low battery, so that's a good sign.

I saw one teardown of a 2.0ah hypertough 12v, and it used KAN cells, which I had never heard of before I bought a Phalanx rotary tool with one inside.

I was not able to find any info about my KAN cell, or any KAN cells, but when I used the tool pretty hard, it easily reached 55C+.
It was 55C after I removed all the screws and got My IR gun onto it's light blue wrapping(poor emissivity), so It is likely to have exceeded 60C, and is likely only rated to 60C.

I could certainly have run the tool harder.

I've not yet swapped the battery.
I was thinking a Murata vtc6 would be more than enough cell for this tool, that the JP30p1's ability would be wasted, but I suspect that 3 JP30's powering the blower would be a serious improvement in performance over the stock KAN cells.

 

[neptronix]

Long time, no see.
I would like to report that i love this Hyper Tough blower.
After some usage, the battery can last ~1.5 minute at full blast.
Due to the wide nozzle, it tends to not overload PC fans etc.

On this small battery, i can dust out:
- 3 computers, 2 which are very powerful desktops
- 3 giant air filters + their housings
- Any cats in the vicinity. They are terrified of the sound. Our of kindness, i emit a short blast before i start dusting so they can gather their belongings.

That's easily 1.75 cans of air! payoff is quick!

 

[wturber]

Interesting but i don't have a good place to operate an air compressor, noise wise.

Some things i need to dust need beyond canned air levels of power and get closer to an air compressor being more ideal:
- air conditioner radiator / internals, every other year
- 30lbs air filter, every quarter

In addition to:
- dozens of computers, in the field or at the office, with the occasional one that needs deep cleaning due to customer neglect

I have a large compressor I use for car tires. One thing I notice is that a lot of ice crystals form when I bleed the tank of compressed air for storage. The rapid expansion cools the air rapidly and that air and the air around it contains moisture. Not sure if this would be a problem for a DIY compressed air scheme or not. But it is maybe worth considering as a potential issue.