Shark MESSMASTER wet/dry vacuum – slurps up spills

The Shark MESSMASTER is a fair dinkum wet/dry vacuum that can vacuum dust, cat litter, broken glass, crumbs, mud, spilled foods, liquids and much more. It can even clean drains.

We say fair dinkum because so many power mops and vacuums claim to be wet/dry, but that is about mopping (wet) and vacuuming (dry) hard floors. This little sucker is the real thing.

Now that I have it for review, I have been looking for tasks to test it. It comes with a three-piece extension wand and squeegee, carpet, and crevice tools.

• Squeegee water from window washing (squeegee tool) ✅
• Unclog drains (hose) ✅
• Unclog sink (hose) ✅
• Mud from carpets (carpet tool) ✅
• Vacuum soft upholstery (carpet tool) ✅
• Clean car-mats and car floor coverings ✅
• Food crumbs under cupboard overhangs (crevice tool) ✅
• Cup of tomato sauce (squeegee tool) ✅
• Broken drinking glass (squeegee tool) ✅
• Remove water from washed/wet rugs ✅
• Perfect for messy babies in highchairs ✅

Unfortunately, our review unit did not have the bare floor nozzle for floors. It would have been nice to have a bristle brush tool (pet multi-tool) that would have helped with dusting. At present, these are not on the Australian site as accessories for purchase.

Australian review: Shark MESSMASTER wet/dry vacuum Model VS101

Website	Shark Clean Company site Product page Manual
Price	$249.99 but seen for less.
From	Shark Online, Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi, Good Guys, Bing Lee, Beta, Myer, Big W,  and Shark retailers.
Warranty	Two-year ACL (The manual states 3, but that is for the USA only)
Made in	China
Company	SharkNinja is a pioneer in small household appliances and cleaning. Its headquarters are in Needham, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. Mann & Noble is the exclusive distributor for SharkNinja in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Malaysia.
More	CyberShack vacuum news and reviews

We use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations), and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. We occasionally give a Pass(able) rating that is not as good as it should be, and a Pass ‘+’ rating to show that it is good but does not quite make it to Exceed. You can click on most images for an enlargement.

First Impression – compact and well-made

No, this is not some high-tech thing with an app. It’s a relatively new mini-wet/dry vac that has been cleverly designed to be portable for home and small workshop use.

Shark MESSMASTER wet/dry vacuum fills a void; most people don’t realise they’re missing something until they have it. It is a smaller, more compact, indoor-friendly version of a wet/dry Vax.

It is smallish at 34.3cm H x 26.6cm W x 41.9cm D x 4.4kg and has a 4.5m power cable. The extension vacuum hose is about 1m and way too short. Shark knows this, and I would not be surprised to see a longer hose as an accessory.

The three-piece extension wand (30.5cm each or 1m) is handy for floor and ceiling work.

ANYBAG – Pass+

The bin holds up to 2 litres of liquid or 4 litres of dry.

You can use any plastic recyclable bag from about eight to fifty litres to line the wet/dry bin. Or if you don’t mind emptying the bin, no bag is needed. We found it very effective with one caveat – the broken wine glass shredded the bag – no biggie.

Cleaning effectiveness – Pass+

Shark does not publish air watts or Pascals, so the best we can say is that it is fit-for-purpose on wet and dry detritus.

One of our panellist testers tried it on her feature rug, and it was good for removing pet hair but not great.

The smaller tools focus the cleaning suction very well.

 Self-Clean – Exceed

Put at least 300ml of water in a jug and suck it up. We found that repeating the clean cycle was even better.

Maintenance – Easy

While self-clean suits the hose and unit, you will get the best results by washing the tools and wand in warm, soapy water or a dishwasher.

The two pre-filters (foam and felt) and the post-motor filter are washable in water but must be air dried before reuse.

Noise – Pass

Between 60-70dB.

Power – Pass

It is rated at 240/3.25A/780W but draws about 1030W, meaning it uses about 30-60 cents per hour (depending on time of day tariff).

Commercial Use – no

It is a home-grade device perfect for cleaning a small workshop, car, van, or boat. While I am sure you could use it all day long, the cleaning tools are smaller and more for spot cleaning than overall cleaning.

CyberShack’s view: Shark MESSMASTER wet/dry vacuum is the wet/dry vacuum you didn’t know you needed.

I find that people who know Shark love it, and I am a Shark convert. Its Shark PowerDetect IP3251 stick vacuum with Empty station blows Dyson away and its Shark Wandvac WV203 – hand vac with attitude occupy pride of place in my cleaning repertoire. The PowerDetect replaces a relatively new Dyson Gen5 Detect and outperforms it in every way. The Wandavac is a perfect, dry, portable handheld.

 I occasionally need a wet/dry vac and have a 20l VAX wet/dry barrel vac in my ‘workshop’. But it is heavy, inconvenient, messy to clean and a PITA to use in the home.

This is small and portable, has excellent wet/dry suction, is bag- or bagless, and is self-cleaning. It now joins the cleaning repertoire for occasional indoor and outdoor use. Mains power is not an issue, and the 4.5m cord is fine. It is a device that I don’t mind getting dirty!

Shark MESSMASTER wet/dry vacuum ratings

We rate it as a home portable (although corded) wet/dry vacuum cleaner, but it does not replace a corded or cordless stick vacuum cleaner intended for larger-area use.

A pass mark is 70/100.

• Features: 85—It would have scored more highly if it had the bare floor and pet multitool.
• Value: 90 – It is class-leading
• Performance: 85—It has fit-for-purpose suction power, a 2/4L bin size, and handles household spills very well. It was good on pet hair, but not great.
• Ease of Use: 80—It has a 4.5m cord. It is OK to handle 4.4kg plus wastewater, but the hose is way too short—2 metres would be ideal. I found myself carrying it most of the time.
• Design: 90 – Well-conceived, well-made and quite portable.