Vacuum Cleaners

Category Archives: Vacuum Cleaners

Bagged Versus Bagless

As with most things in life, there is really nothing free. The two most claimed advantages to bagless vacuum cleaners were lower operating costs and better performance. As far as the cost issues go, all vacuums must filter the exhausting air they use to carry the dirt into the collection area, as they would otherwise simply pick the dirt up from the floor and spit it right back out.

Whether you have a bagless HEPA filter, a pre-filter, or disposable bags, they all need to be changed at some point. With the average life of a vacuum cleaner, you can expect to spend the same on either collection system for filters, but if you value your time, you can expect to spend quite a bit more on a bagless system.

Belts And Performance

The belts for vacuum cleaners can come in many styles and hundreds of different sizes. Normally, vacuums use a belt to drive an agitation device, which is also known as a brush roller. With very few exceptions, most vacuums will use either a flat belt, round belt, or a geared style belt.

The type of belt that your vacuum uses is very important, not only for durability, but performance as well. The condition and type of belt your vacuum uses will have a lot of impact on the systems ability to clean carpet. The proper use of agitation is almost 70% of the cleaning ability of a vacuum cleaner.

Buyers Guide

Deep cleaning vacuums The typical features with these types of vacuums include rotating brushes that agitate the carpet pile and loosen the dirt for better clean. There are some models that offer a handy automatic tool conversion button or switch that you can push or flip as you move from carpet to hardwood floor.

Hand held vacuums Hand held vacuums are light weight, can be corded or cordless, and you can even mount most of them on the wall if you prefer. The performance of the cordless models will depend on the charge of the battery, as the battery power drops, so will the suction power.

Carpet Cleaning Machines

With the creation of the carpet, the invention of the carpet cleaning machine wasn’t far away. The very first hand held carpet cleaner was designed and tested in Chicago in 1860, while the first power operated vacuum cleaner was invented in the 1900s by Cecil Booth.

Around the same time Cecil Booth finished his invention, a man by the name of James Spangler came up with his own invention – a vacuum cleaner that he later sold to his cousin Hoover. As everyone knows, Hoover has since became one of the most dominant names in the world of vacuum cleaners and is certainly one of the most popular household names in the world.

Choosing Canister Vacuum Cleaner

The major criteria involved with choosing a canister vacuum cleaner is what floor surfaces you plan to clean versus the power of the vacuum. Almost all canister vacuum cleaners offer 3 choices of tools for the surfaces of floors: 1. A bare floor hard plastic brush that’s about 10″ – 12″ wide with soft bristles.

2. Turbo brush that features a spinning drum roller with harder bristles.

3. A power head brush that is similar to the turbo brush although it is powered by a seperate motor.

Both the turbo brush and power head brush vacuums have a spinning drum roller with bristles that resemble that of an upright vacuum cleaner. While the brushes look and perform pretty much the same, the power head brush vacuum has a smaller seperate motor that turns the brush on the bottom of it, therefore making it more powerful and much more aggressive than the turbo type brush that is turned by the flow of air being pulled past it.

Choosing The Right Vacuum Cleaner

As history indicates, the first model vacuum cleaner wasn’t even a vacuum cleaner at all, more of a carpet sweeper. This was invented by a man named Daniel Hess, who in 1860 patented a machine that featured rotating brushes on the bottom and bellows that helped to create suction.

However, there is no evidence that this very machine was ever produced. Some 40 years or so later, in 1908, James Spangler of Canton, Ohio received a patent for the very first portable electric vacuum cleaner. It was in fact his cousin in law, William Hoover, who lent his name to the legendary company that produces quality vacuum cleaners even today.

Dyson D15

Unlike the use of wheels that most vacuums have, the Dyson DC15 upright vacuum has a large yellow ball that will allow the vacuum to pivot and roll with the greatest of ease. With the DC15, you simply turn your wrist and the entire vacuum cleaner will change direction. The ability to maneuver this easily is something that is commonly associated with canister style vacuum cleaners.

In addition to the unique yet innovative ball design, the Dyson DC15 also offers quite an interesting filtration system. No matter what you may think or hear, Dyson vacuums don’t use filters in the way that most vacuum cleaners do.

Essential Parts

There are many places that you can use to find parts for a vacuum cleaner that is broken, providing you have someone around that is handy enough with tools to take a swing at fixing it. The part that breaks the most on most less expensive vacuum cleaners is the drive belt. It’s the rubberized belt that is around 6 inches long, that when stretched out turns the brushes on the bottom of the vacuum.

When you take the vacuum over objects that don’t belong in the vacuum cleaner, such as pieces of rope or a cat’s tail and the unit comes to a screeching halt, the burning smell that will soon fill up the air is your drive belt slowly melting away.

Flashy Vacuum Cleaners

With most people, a vacuum cleaner isn’t really an inspiring machine. If you don’t care about how it works, then you probably don’t want to vacuum to start with. At the same time, no one wants to live in a pig sty or dirty home even.

These days however, things have began to change for the better, and people’s attitudes are changing as well. Vacuum cleaners are becoming interesting and it’s all thanks to James Dyson, the inventor of the Dyson vacuum cleaner.

All thanks to Dyson, vacuum cleaners have taken on a personality and life of their own. These very same tactics are even employed by the likes of Apple to successfully ploy their iMacs and iPods to the masses have now been used with tremendous results with vacuum cleaners.

Get Out More Dirt

The most important part of carpet maintenance is removing and disposing of accumulated dry soil. The removal of dry soil will improve the air quality indoors, extend carpet life, and help to maintain the carpet. Keeping regular maintenance on your carpet is one thing, although being sure you have the right equipment on the job is another.

The Green Label For vacuum cleaners, the CRI (Carpet and Rug Institute) has developed a Green Label testing program. The CRI developed the performance protocol with the goal of protecting indoor quality, keeping all surfaces as clean as possible, and all without putting dust back into the air.