Vacuum cleaners

ChrisD06

Because I was hit on the head as a child, this is a topic that I enjoy talking about.

I don't even know how to start the thread... I guess just talk about vacuums and what you do/don't like? Maybe tips and tricks?

Speaking of tips and tricks, if you buy one of those microfiber dusting brushes they actually change your life. It's basically a microfiber clotch that cleans itself. They're very gentle on speakers too and are great for cleaning your AV gear.

So yeah... anyone want to talk vacuums?

VR3

if you realllly like a clean house. remove alllll the carpet.

i have hard flooring thru out.

i run a

shark iq self empty vac
i robot m6

and i have a small portable vac from electrolux...

that combo keeps the house pretty **** and span. the irobot goes twice a day and i do the m6 once a week on average

txcoastal1

Good vacuum cleaners suck!!
Crappy ones blow!!...There I said it

pitdogg2

Can't beat a good Kirby!

tophatjohnny

Schoettler Research & Engineering Corp. is probably the best of the best and their Patriot Clean Air Home Defense System is nothing short of amazing, If it's truly clean air and a clean house you desire, there no cutting corners with Vac's. I have a Kirby as my basement utility vac and even in that upright I only use their best Hepa Filter bags. All these little infomercial vacs are cute, but when I comes to really getting the job done an another level get yourself a brand new Patriot Hybrid Home Defense Clean Air system and stick with their genuine Hepa filter bags and add the Micro Filter to the exhaust end and you won't look back. Not for the folks on a strict budget cuz even at a a screaming deal you're looking at $2500-$2700 but it's all that and the clean chip factory too. I own 3 of their systems and of course it helps with Eliminating dust from your home and your gear. No I don't have any affiliation with the company, they are just that amazing! Pretty sure NASA still uses these vacs throughout their facilities but who knows, maybe they got swallowed up by a Shark???

nooshinjohn

txcoastal1 wrote: »

Good vacuum cleaners suck!!
Crappy ones blow!!...There I said it

Suck and blow… just like this thread.

Willow

We have 2 older Dysons that still kick butt. On the main and second floors we run Roomba i4s one on each floor every morning and we have a eufy for the finished portion of the basement that runs at 4pm every day. We'll bring out the Dysons when we do a deep clean. We recently let go our house cleaner so this is how it now gets vacuumed.

ChrisD06

tophatjohnny wrote: »

Schoettler Research & Engineering Corp. is probably the best of the best and their Patriot Clean Air Home Defense System is nothing short of amazing, If it's truly clean air and a clean house you desire, there no cutting corners with Vac's. I have a Kirby as my basement utility vac and even in that upright I only use their best Hepa Filter bags. All these little infomercial vacs are cute, but when I comes to really getting the job done an another level get yourself a brand new Patriot Hybrid Home Defense Clean Air system and stick with their genuine Hepa filter bags and add the Micro Filter to the exhaust end and you won't look back. Not for the folks on a strict budget cuz even at a a screaming deal you're looking at $2500-$2700 but it's all that and the clean chip factory too. I own 3 of their systems and of course it helps with Eliminating dust from your home and your gear. No I don't have any affiliation with the company, they are just that amazing! Pretty sure NASA still uses these vacs throughout their facilities but who knows, maybe they got swallowed up by a Shark???

That vacuum looks like someone took a central vac kit and jammed it into a small canister with wheels. I love it. That's crazy expensive though, but I suppose anything for a clean home. Dust is a real killer especially if you have carpet, once it gets in any ductwork you have, you're screwed until they're cleaned (which is expensive)

Viking64

tophatjohnny

nooshinjohn wrote: »

txcoastal1 wrote: »

Good vacuum cleaners suck!!
Crappy ones blow!!...There I said it

Suck and blow… just like this thread.

Says the guy with a straw broom and dustpan 🧹

OleBoot

My vacuum cleaners show up every two weeks brandished by four charming Spanish speaking ladies also bearing dusters, buckets, mops and myriad cleaning products all beyond my ken.

billbillw

I was also hit in the head as a child (a baseball in the forehead around 4th grade). All kidding aside, I'm addicted to researching useless crap and I'll admit, over the years I've spent way too much time looking/comparing vacuum cleaners.
It started with my first need to purchase a vacuum in my late 20s. Prior to that I had a Kirby from the 70s. It didn't filter very good and I was starting to have allergies. I ended up getting a Samsung Canister vac that was supposedly co-designed by Porsche (marketing crap I'm sure).
I used that for years and it was great, until it started to get cracks in the handle and replacement parts were hard to find. I also found that a canister vac was not the best for large areas of berber carpet that I had in my first house (after years of apartments), so I decided I needed an upright again...
Lots of research again. Focused on some Panasonic models that were raved about. Got one used and it was great. Indestructible. It was still going when I divorced and my ex took it.
Somewhere along the time line, I ended up with a house with 3 stories and the main floor was all hard flooring. Top floor needed an upright, basement needed an upright, main floor needed a canister. I had the trusty Panasonic and the Samsung still (held with duct tape at this point), but didn't like hauling either up/down stairs when needed.
I ended up getting a re-badged Sebo/Windsor for the basement. It was/is great. I still use it in my current basement. The Samsung eventually got beyond holding together with duct tape, and I got a Kenmore Canister Vac to replace it for all the hard floors. That lasted 8 years or so before the plastic all started falling apart. More duct tape. Divorce happened. I took the Sebo/Windsor and the Kenmore and gave the Panasonic to the ex.
New house was only two floors. Main floor was a mix of carpet and hard floor with lots of obstacles. The canister was frustrating so I once again researched and decided I wanted a Miele upright. Found one used for cheap (that came with 10+ years of bags) cleaned it up good and replaced all the filters and it is a champ.
Gave away the Kenmore for free and now I have two European designed vacuums in the house that should both last until I die. They are both indestructible if you know how to use them and replace filters as needed.

Ok, now you all know what a dork I am. I'm almost 53 and don't pretend to be cool anymore.

Forgot to mention, I've had a 5HP shop vac kept in the garage for 20 years. They are an essential tool to keep around. I had to empty it and use it to pull 10 gallons of water out of my AC drip tray last summer because the drain to the pump was clogged...Lesson learned there to clean the trap twice a year.

GlennDog

OleBoot wrote: »

My vacuum cleaners show up every two weeks brandished by four charming Spanish speaking ladies also bearing dusters, buckets, mops and myriad cleaning products all beyond my ken.

with complimentary French maid attire?

audioluvr

VR3 wrote: »

if you realllly like a clean house. remove alllll the carpet.

No! No! No! No! Who the hell wants to live in a hospital? Not me!

Carpet is the largest air purifier in your home, trapping contaminants. Without it the crap just blows around every time you or your kids/ pets walk around until it finds a spot with no air circulation like under your bed/sofa/speakers/etc where it creates dust bunnies from hell.

Regular vacuuming and annual steam cleaning with a clean water rinse will keep the air quality at it's best.

I do agree a quality robo vac helps tremendously as they can clean every day. I use the Shark AI Ultra with the dump station. It literally removes a chinchilla size blob of filth from my carpets every day (I have a dog that sheds). They do require regular maintenance to keep them running efficiently and a regular vacuum is needed to get the edges on occasion.

ChrisD06

billbillw wrote: »

I was also hit in the head as a child (a baseball in the forehead around 4th grade). All kidding aside, I'm addicted to researching useless crap and I'll admit, over the years I've spent way too much time looking/comparing vacuum cleaners.
It started with my first need to purchase a vacuum in my late 20s. Prior to that I had a Kirby from the 70s. It didn't filter very good and I was starting to have allergies. I ended up getting a Samsung Canister vac that was supposedly co-designed by Porsche (marketing crap I'm sure).
I used that for years and it was great, until it started to get cracks in the handle and replacement parts were hard to find. I also found that a canister vac was not the best for large areas of berber carpet that I had in my first house (after years of apartments), so I decided I needed an upright again...
Lots of research again. Focused on some Panasonic models that were raved about. Got one used and it was great. Indestructible. It was still going when I divorced and my ex took it.
Somewhere along the time line, I ended up with a house with 3 stories and the main floor was all hard flooring. Top floor needed an upright, basement needed an upright, main floor needed a canister. I had the trusty Panasonic and the Samsung still (held with duct tape at this point), but didn't like hauling either up/down stairs when needed.
I ended up getting a re-badged Sebo/Windsor for the basement. It was/is great. I still use it in my current basement. The Samsung eventually got beyond holding together with duct tape, and I got a Kenmore Canister Vac to replace it for all the hard floors. That lasted 8 years or so before the plastic all started falling apart. More duct tape. Divorce happened. I took the Sebo/Windsor and the Kenmore and gave the Panasonic to the ex.
New house was only two floors. Main floor was a mix of carpet and hard floor with lots of obstacles. The canister was frustrating so I once again researched and decided I wanted a Miele upright. Found one used for cheap (that came with 10+ years of bags) cleaned it up good and replaced all the filters and it is a champ.
Gave away the Kenmore for free and now I have two European designed vacuums in the house that should both last until I die. They are both indestructible if you know how to use them and replace filters as needed.

Ok, now you all know what a dork I am. I'm almost 53 and don't pretend to be cool anymore.

Forgot to mention, I've had a 5HP shop vac kept in the garage for 20 years. They are an essential tool to keep around. I had to empty it and use it to pull 10 gallons of water out of my AC drip tray last summer because the drain to the pump was clogged...Lesson learned there to clean the trap twice a year.

I installed a NuTone central vac in my house and I've bought a Wessel-Werk turbo brush for it.... wow. Those Germans know EXACTLY what they're doing. I've heard awesome things about Miele and Sebo and honestly, I think at this point I'm going to trust the Europeans (especially the Germans) for anything cleaning related.

ChrisD06

audioluvr wrote: »

VR3 wrote: »

if you realllly like a clean house. remove alllll the carpet.

No! No! No! No! Who the hell wants to live in a hospital? Not me!

Carpet is the largest air purifier in your home, trapping contaminants. Without it the crap just blows around every time you or your kids/ pets walk around until it finds a spot with no air circulation like under your bed/sofa/speakers/etc where it creates dust bunnies from hell.

Regular vacuuming and annual steam cleaning with a clean water rinse will keep the air quality at it's best.

I do agree a quality robo vac helps tremendously as they can clean every day. I use the Shark AI Ultra with the dump station. It literally removes a chinchilla size blob of filth from my carpets every day (I have a dog that sheds). They do require regular maintenance to keep them running efficiently and a regular vacuum is needed to get the edges on occasion.

The problem with carpet is the type. We have the awful stuff which traps dust under the loops of fabric or whatever, it's super cheap. I've seen medium pile carpet which is absolutely amazing and with a proper carpet beater (a motor-driven one) it will clean the carpet super well.

You're right that it traps dust, which is a very good thing, because it's super easy to clean and when it's cleaned properly it acts as an air filter. It becomes very problematic when you can't clean it properly and it builds up dust and releases it back into the air. Vacuum cleaners aren't just for cleaning your house, they're literally air purifiers in the sense they actually improve air quality.

Dabutcher

I use a Hoover upright that uses a paper bag to collect the dust. Hoover probably doesn’t offer them any more which is sad. They can still be bought at thrift stores and estate sales. Big and heavy but self propelled and big sucking action. I just purchased a Roomba at GW for $20 and it works great on all surfaces for daily touch ups. We have deep shag in living room and pergo in kitchen and hardwood flooring in bedrooms and Berber in basement/HT. Good luck. This is what works for me. Peace. D

Emlyn

Kenmore bagged. Wool rugs over hardwood. No wall to wall carpet except in two rooms.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DZY7FR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

ChrisD06

Here's my latest project: Add an automatic dustpan (toekick) to the central vacuum system. I had to drill some smaller holes around a 2.5" perimeter in the tile and then I drilled a 2.5" hole underneath through the subfloor. Chiseled the tile and it popped out and the piping fits perfectly. Gotta hook it up to the main trunk line but I'm pretty happy with this outcome.

Removing the cabinet was way better than cutting a massive 5x5 hole in the bottom under the drawer...