Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum

How do you keep your shop or other areas clean?  For me, I have a couple of vacuums but they are all the box style vacuums.  The box style is great for quick pickups but if I have to vacuum a larger space, it’s a pain in the knees.  Stick vacuums have been an option but not all stick vacuums are great.  I have only found a couple that I really like.  Well that all changed with the Makita vacuum and the Cyclonic attachment.  I found a system that is not only powerful but has a great runtime and really works well.  So let’s take a look at the Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum.

Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum Overview

I haven’t counted the Sku’s in each power tool manufacturers line up but I believe Makita has the largest line of vacuums.  They have everything from corded dust extractors to cordless backpack vacuums to stick vacs and more.  They offer vacuums in both the 12V line as well as the 18V line.

Today we are looking at a two-piece system.  The Makita XLC02Zb is a stick vacuum based on the 18V battery and has been available for a while.  The vacuum is a great vacuum and has gotten great reviews.  Recently Makita released a Cyclonic attachment (199553-5) for better performance and better dust management.  This is a small container that integrated with the XLC02ZB.

Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum Features

The Makita cordless vacuum, model XLC02ZB is a bagless 2-stage cloth filtration system. The vacuum only weighs 3.2 lbs and is designed for anything from clean a shop, to a truck to an RV or anything else you need to clean.

The motor delivers 46 CFM which is powerful for a small cordless vacuum.

The vacuum is a three-piece system with the motor and canister, then you have the extension rod and that ties into the head attachment.

While you can use other 18V Makita batteries in the vacuum, it works best with a 5Ah battery and will give it around 33 minutes of runtime.

To turn on and off the vacuum, there is a simple trigger you depress, jst like a drill.

Cleaning and emptying the vacuum is very easy.  All the filters are easy to clean and install.

The Cyclonic can be purchased separately or in a kit.  For me, I think this is a cool add on as it captures up to 90% of the debris that enters.  This means that the main canister stays clean and free of debris which means longer runtimes and fewer cleaning filters.

The Cyclonic is easy to install.  The unit installs between the main canister head and the long wand.  The canister will rotate 360 degrees so it never gets in the way when vacuuming.

Depress two buttons and the canister is ready to cleanout.  Very simple to install, very simple to clean and real performance enhancement with the cordless vacuum.

Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum Performance

We used the vacuum for a while at my house and around the shop.  Above is one example.  As you can see it’s a doorway where there is a lot of foot traffic and it grinds in the dirt.  People are walking in from the woodshop which has a ton of dust on the floor and also other debris and then it gets stepped on over the last week.

As you can see, it really does an awesome job of picking up the dust and other small debris that has been hit with heavy foot traffic.

What really amazed me was that the vacuum didn’t have any dirt in the container.  This means that the filter isn’t getting clogged up and reducing suction or causing more wear and tear on the vacuum.

All the dirt and debris were collected in the Cyclonic compartment which is easy to dump and lets the air flow freely to the top vacuum unit.

For all the time we used it, the battery life was great as we were using it with a 5Ah battery.  Time and time again it did a great job picking up dirt.  Sure it wasn’t picking up large screws but let’s face it, most large vacuums don’t even pick up large screws.  For your daily dirt and debris, it does an awesome job.

Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum Value

You can pick up the vacuum and Cyclonic vacuum for $105 on Amazon.  If you own the vacuum and just want to buy the Cyclonic attachment, you can expect to pay about $35.  However, if you just want the cordless vacuum, that will run about $70 as a bare tool.

For me, I think $105 is a good value to have a vacuum that really works, has a decent runtime and I don’t have to worry about dragging a cord around, it’s worth the cost.  Now if you are not in the Makita line, the batteries will really make the price jump and not sure if I would be a buyer.  But if you are in Makita tools or going to invest in the Makita line up, it’s worth the cost.

Makita Cyclonic Cordless Vacuum Wrap Up

Makita probably has the largest line of cordless vacuum.  They have the experience and build quality to back it up.  Considering the cordless vacuum was a leader in its pack, adding the Cyclonic makes it that much more of the leader of the pack.  Strong suction, low noise, and great runtimes make this a buy for anyone who wants to clean up when they are done with a job, clean their shop, clean their truck or all the other places you want to keep clean.