Ryobi RBV3600/RBV3650
Verified44 reviews
Since my last review of this rubbish product a few months ago I've now had to replace the failed battery charger. So far I've had to replace the 36v battery, two collection bags and now the battery charger unit - what disgrace this product has been for me. They say doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the… Read more
definition of stupidity - well, I'm stupid for wasting money on this lousy product. Think carefully about buying this Ryobi product.
Design fault creates enormous mess – Worst blower vac ever. The bag closing mechanism is faulty, causing the mulched leaves to explode during use all over the user. RYOBI customer service was completely disinterested in resolving the situation.
Would not recommend – I wouldn't highly rate it. The bag did not last so I ordered my partner a replacement and it is worse than the bag it came with. Pretty disappointing
Reviews with attachments
Cliche - just blown away ;-) – Well here I am again on the best review site I’ve ever found, talking to you legends about this great Ryobi gear! Anyone would think I was sponsored by them (hint hint) but I’m not, and have purchased all of my Ryobi gear at full freight. This blower vac is a trooper. It’s not the kind of trooper you’d find in Star Wars though... no no... it’s… Read more
above all that. Y’see, it’s not often you come across a tool with a battery that cuts the mustard when compared to its petrol equivalent. Unless you have the Ryobi 36v one, that is.
This sucker is nice and light, and so well designed that you can pull the bits off it that you don’t want (like the vacuum attachment) if you don’t need to use them. Makes it a bit lighter on an already light machine.
Then there’s the hand throttle. That’s a great idea, so you don’t get trigger-finger when blowing the neighbours chickens out of the yard, among other things. They can stick around a bit those chickens, but they do roast well.
Then there’s the battery life - epic. When combined with other 36v Ryobi gear, you can do the whole yard without having to charge in-between. I’ll add a video to this review so you can see it doing it’s thing.
Plenty of satisfaction with this blower vac at this household, I definitely recommend buying it.
Hooroo
disappointed in the build/ design the vac keeps blocking up – I am surprised, Ryobi has no idea what they were doing. Why would you make a blower vac with a two piece tube with clips and screws holding it together on the inside of the tube, leaves and small twigs jamb on the intrusions and block the vacuum shaft. I thought the product would have been better with a smooth inner bore to prevent blockages, the… Read more
battery doesn't last long at all so I bought the bigger at great expense and it's not much better. my old Ozito brand vac worked heaps better which proves price does not equate to quality. Very disappointing
Terrible design, wheels fall off and bag breaks – Use as a leaf vacuum mulcher. Duct taped the front to stop/fix the blowing while vacuuming issue others have reported, the wheels are extremely flimsy and replaced with kids duplo Lego car base, on our 2nd bag that has now also failed (zipper breaks), cheap and poorly built product Show details
Useless – Oh I wish I had read the reviews before I went to Bunnings last week and bought the RBV3600 ( then plus battery and then plus charger). No strength to either the vac or the blower and way overpriced for what it does. When in vac mode and with the bag fully closed it still spits out flower petals that I had vacuumed previously on the other side of the house. Battery lasts no more than 10 minutes. If working close to power buy a cord unit. Show details
In-depth reviews
Effective blower-vac & easy to assemble & use – As an owner of a large deciduous tree autumns are difficult for me. I always have mountains of autumn leaves covering my front lawn that I need to tidy up, and never enough room in the green bins (yes, multiple!) to dispose of all the waste. I therefore finally caved and bough a blower-vac - and I wish that I hadn't waited so long to take that… Read more
step! As I already have the Ryobi 36v battery pack, and have been happy with my other Ryobi 36v garden appliances, I decided to give this one a go. Assembly took all of 5 minutes and did not require anything more technical than a Phillips-head screwdriver. It is easy to use, and effectively mulched up the leaves into a fraction of their original size - I'll now be able to fit all the waste into 1 or 2 bins. The suction was powerful, and battery life satisfactory. I do use a 9Ah battery, though, so if you are using a much smaller battery this may affect performance. As a combined blower and vac, the blower is probably not as powerful as if you just bought the blower unit alone, so if you are looking primarily for a blower, maybe consider buying the separate blower unit. The weight of the unit is reasonable, but it can get heavy as the bag fills.
Great unit! Crap bag! – Purchased in January 2018 to add to my mower, whipper snipper and edger. All great gear that I have had for over 5 years. Went well for about 4 or 5 months when the bag blew out. Took it back to Bunnings who were great and they supplied me with a replacement bag under warranty. Since then I have had 5 or 6 bags replaced (last one 2 days ago).… Read more
Warranty expires in 11 days and then l,m stuffed. Bunnings have been brilliant throughout the whole process (although I sensed some animosity on the last visit). In each and every instance the zipper "blew out". I vacuum about twice a month and am currently blowing a zipper every 2nd use (so a bag a month). I got onto Ryobi customer service and grizzled to them and was told that the bags were "consumerables" and were expected to be replaced periodically. I have no issue with that, but every 2nd use (monthly). They're having a lend of me. After reading the reviews today I realize that they're having a lend of all of us for the last couple of years. They have a product that is not "fit for purpose " and sho8take a good hard look at their customer relations policy.
Tons of Power - Great for tidying and not pushing it into the street or neighbours – This unit has tons of power. Great for vacuuming leaves off the patio, around the pool, etc. My neighbours love it, and even got one because we stopped pushing debris back and forth between our lawns :) Another review mentions noise, but trust me, this is quieter than any other petrol unit or cordless blower in general. It is the nature of the… Read more
tool. The bag on my unit has been fine, the key to keeping the zipper working is the actually blow the zipper after you empty the bag. It helps free up alot of grit out of the tracks... but honestly all blower vacs suffer from this (someone come up with a new idea). The bags are referred to as a wear item in the manual which means they expect you to change them (i guess like a traditional older vac used to have a bag).
The battery can be tricky as I saw in reviews of the old model... a bit of vasoline on the rails of the battery helps ease things.
If you accept that, then it the benefit of having a tidy lawn/patio/ pool is great, and you don't have the added step of having to pick up everything after you blow/ rake/ sweep it into a pile!
Positive reviews
Finish the job properly, blow by blow – This light and easy to use ryobi blower makes you feel like a professional gardener and at the end of mowing it's such a great clean-up tool with ample battery power for large lawns. No dissapointments here. Show details
ryobi blower vacuum bag – ryobi have a new bag for this model its much better than the old one , my ryobi blower vac lasted me 11 months, and gave up, i returned it to bunnings and they replaced it, the new model is much lighter ant the bag has been replaced and leaves are not sticking Show details
Exactly what I wanted – Had concerns reading reviews saying it’s not powerful enough. Not sure what they were trying to pick up but this picks up everything I have asked it to. The vacuum is what use most for grass clippings and leaves and it sucks it up fine. Larger leaves don’t fit up the tube to well but every now and then I lift it upright and gravity helps. These… Read more
leaves are 15cm big so not small. Battery life is ok but it does use it more than other items. Probably 20-25min non stop (5ah). Blower is weaker than other blowers I have used. Best thing is a leaver is all you need to move to change between blowing and vac. Point deducted for tube size and blower power but very happy for what I use it for which is vac. Can’t comment on longevity due to only having a month.
Find out how Ryobi RBV3600/RBV3650 compares to other Electric Blower Vacuums
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Negative reviews
Battery life is terrible – The blower is fine it’s the battery that lasts five minutes and then runs out of juice. Seriously why make a product that promotes its double the voltage of the 18v battery and lasts for such a short time. A shame. Show details
Ryobi electrical garden equipment – Blower/vacuum unit is a load of rubbish. Mower is just passable but you wouldn’t want a big lawn. Hedger & Whipper Snipper are quite good. Show details
What’s up with the bag – So the bag has the zip right on the bottom, which rubs on the ground, and is of poor quality so broke quite quickly. I then paid $45 to replace it with what was suppose to be a superior bag which has a sharp plastic slide closing mechanism along the bottom. This mean as soon as you use it, the pointed plastic edge catches on everything, meaning… Read more
it’s pretty unusable. It also doesn’t fit the blower correctly meaning it’s just frustrating. Design is ridiculously not user friendly, pretty annoyed I paid an extra $45 to have an even worse bag…. How hard is it? Apparently too hard.
Recent reviews
Worst ryobi product I have purchased – Worst ryobi product by a country mile. Absolutely gutless as a blower, only slightly better as a vacuum. Broke after 12 months of use. Would avoid at all cost, their stand alone blowers perform a mile better. Show details
Good unit….But – Very pleased when I put this together and then tried it until I discovered that when switching from to blower to vac the vent switch design does not fully close off the blower function. This means as you approach leaves to vacuum they first get blown a little further away and you have to chase them a little before you try suck them up. Ryobi must be joking. Show details
Twice failed over about 5 years – I love Ryobi's range of battery-powered tools and have half a dozen of them at home. But the Blower Vac has a serious problem - twice the machine has stopped working. Bunnings happily replaced it the first time under warranty but I can't find the receipt for the replacement so that's it - into the bin with it and no replacement. Admittedly, the… Read more
second one was about 3 years old but it failed on the vac cycle and I only use it as a vacuum every 2 or 3 months, so it really hasn't had a hard life. I suspect a design fault.
Rubbish. Don't buy – First unit dead on arrival. Would turn on for no more than 3 seconds then automatically turn off. Second unit dead after first battery cycle. Cycle only lasted 10min which is hardly enough for a decent size yard. Show details
Decent Blower Vac – I bought the blower vac kit in 2015. The blower vac itself is well-built. Though I did have to get a new replacement battery after a few years. My only complaint is that the bag needs to be replaced more often than expected. Show details
Poor battery life – My fault as should have checked this first but battery life is terrible and thought my unit was faulty until I checked on line. Very heavy unit and if I could would demand my money back as no good for working on the garden. This is the first ever product review I have posted as so unhappy with this product, waste of nearly $500. Show details
Find out how Ryobi RBV3600/RBV3650 compares to other Electric Blower Vacuums
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Not worth the cost, but not many other options out there – I was quite disappointed with this and about to take it back. The battery in mulching lasts for maybe 6 or 7 minutes, im not even getting 10 which most others are getting. with the 4000MAH pack its barely fit for use. It does work ok enough to suck up the leaves, however when it wont even finish one side of the house and then you have to wait 3 hours for the battery to charge its pretty embarrassing . Show details
Regret buying – Extremely Cumbersome, heavy, blower rubbish and battery only lasts about 10 min. After 10 mins of use I was already regretting the money spent on this purchase. Expensive! If I could return it I would. I already had the Ryobi hedge trimmer so thought I was buying a product of similar standard. Big disappointment!! Not had it long enough to experience the issues with the bag. Have that to look forward to. Show details
Ryobi BIG DISAPPOINTMENT – Purchased my Ryobi and for the price its a big disappointment. Vacuum function is not that powerful and blocks up easily. The blower is no where as powerful as they make out. Battery life is also short only around 12 minutes continuous use. On the bright side it's light and switches between vac and blower easily. I also have the Ryobi 36v Hedger which is a great product so you can understand my disappointment with the blower Vac. Show details
Bunnings Should stop selling this product.
Do not buy this ryobi rubbish – Totally bad designed product, I’m over 6 ft tall and the bag still drags on concrete paths etc causing holes, the zipper is also absolute rubbish, new bag required every 3 to 5 hours of use, noisy and way underpowered compared to petrol, and like all the ryobi 36 volt range the battery self destructs at about the 3 yr Mark, check the price of… Read more
ryobi 5.0 battery’s lol, they have to be kidding, Bunnings need to take this product off there shelves to save there reputation, don’t waste your money
Not good – Heavy, expensive with inadequate battery life. For $500 plus I would pass. Have purchased many Ryobi 18 volt battery tools and they are great. Unfortunately I forked out good money for a 36volt blower/vac unit.Unless you are very fit and looking for a workout ,steer clear. Buy a good broom. Show details
Faulty zipper – Like many other reviewers I have to replace the blower vac bag 6 times over a period of 2 years. The last zipper separated from the seam in only 4 weeks. Cannot possibly believe that Ryobi does not redesign a more robust zipper they must of hundreds if not thousands returned faulty. The machine is brilliant especially if you are running it with the 36v 5amp battery. Show details
always little issues – When this machine works its great , but its too heavy , even with shoulder strap . Every time I go and pull it apart to clean up a blade jam for a twig or something I can never get it going again , have to take it to service centre . I wouldn't buy another one . The battery set up and swaps for other tools is really confusing and try to get a… Read more
sensible answer from someone at bunnings . I have other ryobi products , too any in fact , but they are good compared to this terrible device .
Reasonable product till battery needs replacing – The blower vac worked reasonably well from purchase in 2015 until I needed a new battery. A new battery from Bunnings is $299. I can purchase a new kit for $449 from Bunnings. I also purchased a hedge trimmer but now both are useless as I cannot afford $299 for a new battery. There are other makes on the market at a fraction of the cost & if one needs a new battery then you are not being ripped off. Show details
piece of crap – safety feature cuts it off - and doesnt work - used twice from new and taken back several times - not worth the money and stress of not working when you want it.. Show details
Bad zipper on bag – I am very happy with the actual product, but the bag is a disaster. The first bag supplied with the machine lasted less than 2 months, and I then purchased a replacement "premium quality" bag, which lasted approx 10 minutes before the zipper actually "blew out" whilst I was vacuuming. How can they sell a bag with such a cheap zipper, when all… Read more
they needed to do was to provide a decent heavy duty zipper with proper stitching.
Since I am very happy with the performance of the actual product, I intend to investigate having a heavy duty zipper installed by a canvas or similar business to see if I can solve the problem.
Convenient improvement on electrical model – Definite improvement on electrical model, comes with 36V lithium-Ion battery recharges over 3hrs. No more tripping over wires in the garden or untangling wires from around garden objects. The battery lasts just long enough before it gives out and by that time you are tired anyway (female reviewer) BUT and its a big but there is a major PROBLEM… Read more
with the BAG, I use the vac about twice a week to suck up the fallen leaves I do not use the blower very much at all AND as with the electrical model the bag gives out very quickly. I purchased the new lithium model in April 2018 and the zip on the bag has broken already the vac cost $450 and was rendered useless by a $5 zip. I had bought it from Bunnings and they replaced the bag under warranty BUT that is not the point. Obviously it is going to happen again so when it is out of warranty does that make the product redundant again. $450 product made unusable over a $30 bag. I am quite happy to purchase new bags but Bunnings informs me they are not available to their knowledge. Is this a new low with the bean counters, the throw away society. I have not been in touch with the product arm of Ryobi as yet but intend to when I have a spare moment, apparently they have a new model out whereby you can purchase a normal bag (1yr guarantee) or premium bag for a (2yr guarantee) If the bags are a problem why hasn't the the company Ryobi made extra bags that we can purchase. Its a way they can value add to their product and save us the customers irritation and stress when we could have a stock of bags on hand. (All common sense to me)
9/10 – I bought the RBV3650D from Bunnings in Christchurch in New Zealand on 28/01/18. Even though the reviews were not that great on here I still bought it. The $500 I paid included the 36V 5Amp battery and charger. It is fantastic and better than I expected. Of course it is noisy just like any other blower. It is marginally heavy but well… Read more
balanced. It has great blowing power @ more than 200kph. Sucks leaves up better than I expected. Battery life is not great (around 20-30 minutes) which is fine for me although that is the reason why I rated this only 9/10. Empty to fully charge the battery around 1-2 hrs as it is a big battery. I want to buy other gardening tools from Ryobi 36V range as it offers the next level over the 18V power.
too loud, not very powerful, heavy – I purchased the 36v brashless blower vac and only used in for 10 minutes before I decided to return it. Way to noisy for a cordless, not powerful at all compared to other blowers I've used ( petrol powered) and it's also extremely heavy considering its a electric cordless. Also considering its extremely loud, you would think it would blow… Read more
fantastic. But left me disappointed.
I took it back after using it for 10 mins and swapped it for the ryobi petrol powered jet turbine model. And what a difference it's great. With plenty of power. Down side is no vac though.
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Yes, my review