Milwaukee M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum Review 

Milwaukee 0885-20 M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum
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We took a look at the Milwaukee 0885-20 M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum. Milwaukee calls it a 3-in-1 vacuum because there are three ways to carry it:
A removable harness
A handle
An integrated hook
Removable Harness
The vacuum is a DRY vacuum, and is set up to be worn like a backpack, an easily transforms, with a click of a button, to a hand carry handle. Finally, the hook can be used to hang the vacuum on ladders, scaffolding, or any 2x lumber. The crevice tool and the dust extraction adapter have spaces on the lower backpack harness.
Handle
When the backpack harness is removed the Milwaukee 0885-20 M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum can be carried vertically with a top handle.
Integrated Hook
The hook, is located at the top portion of the vacuum, and retracts into the vacuum when it’s not needed. There’s also a strap connected to it, presumably to prevent the vacuum from accidentally being knocked off a ladder or lift. It hangs easily with an extendable hook on lifts and scaffolding for common tasks like overhead concrete drilling.
Milwaukee Job Site Research
“During our job-site research, we found that users are still relying on bulky, cumbersome, and corded vacuums to complete almost every clean-up task, regardless of the environment. In many situations, they are limited by the cord and sheer size of the vacuums, highlighting the need for a vacuum that has the versatility to go anywhere on the job-site to clean up a wide range of materials quickly and efficiently,” said David Mobarak, Product Manager for Milwaukee Tool.
“It is from this research that the M18 FUEL™ 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum was born. This new solution combines our advanced cordless technology with an adaptable design, providing users with a vacuum that can tackle a wide array of clean-up tasks.”
Weight and Maneuver-ability
The Milwaukee 0885-20 M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum weighs 15.3-pounds as a bare tool. Adding as 9 Ah battery adds 2.5 lbs and a 12 Ah battery 3.5 lbs. It is easily carried on your back, and maneuverable. One learning point, we noted,when wearing this as a backpack was to be spatially cognizant of hitting finished work with the protruding canister protruding from your back. This is especially true when working around finished trim, walls or cabinets.
Fit and Finish
The fit and finish of the Milwaukee 0885-20 M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum is excellent. The hose is excellent quality and durable, as is the telescoping and accessory sweep. The wand extends from 25 to 40 inches.
A smartly-designed, pivoting-hinge protects the hose where it comes out of the vac housing. We feel that this pivot hinge is functional and will be crucial when hanging or using the vac on a personnel lift and moving around with the hose.
The vacuum hose is an accordion-style hose and stretches from 18″ to 6-feet with no negative affects. Most vacuum hoses are unwieldy, but this one bends nicely, and retracts to its original position nicely. Kinks are a major failure of vac hoses, over time, and this hose was designed to avoid that.
The vacuum works off of cyclonic technology, one thing we noticed on this vacuum was the number or rubber seals it has, at the debris canister, and filter section. These seals are the “secret sauce” that allow the vac to maintain is cyclonic-action and maintain suction-efficiency. Leaks and losing seal, are the biggest killers to CFM and vacuum efficiency.
Run-time
Powered by an M18 REDLITHIUM™ HD 9.0™ battery pack, the vacuum has a run-time of up to 25 minutes on High mode, and more than 40 minutes on Low. It will run for approximately 35 minutes on high and 55 minutes on low with a 12.0 Ah battery.
Decibel Rating
We measured the decibels of this vacuums and compared it the Milwaukee stated 76 dBA, we recorded 74 dBA as a max. at user ear height.
Decibels is not the only story, while designing this tool Milwaukee also looked the frequency of the vacuums noise. This is evident when you listen to the vacuum running in an occupied space - its quieter and not annoying to hear.
Milwaukee M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum Review