You're in the market for a new vacuum cleaner, eh? There are a few things you need to consider before rushing out and hearing a saleman's hype. Here are a few things to consider to get the brain cells pumping.
Usage: Vacuum cleaners have the ability to clean several types of areas in your home, such as carpets, hardwood floors, stairways, furniture and window treatments. Some vacuums also contain special filtering systems that can take care of allergens, like dust mites, pet dander, and pollen or common household odors.
However because no one vacuum can do all things, check the specs of any vacuum completely to determine if it's the right vacuum for your house. A good site for in-depth, concise vacuum reviews is located at dysonvacuumreviewdude.com
Weight: Although the modern day vacuum cleaner can perform several cleaning tasks, some models tend to be a great deal heavier when compared to others. Heavy vacuum cleaners tend to be a lot more laborious to maneuver and result in more tiredness from usage. Even self-propelled or cordless vacuum cleaner models can become heavy, particularly if you have to carry heavy vacuum cleaners up and down flights of stairs. Select the lightest vacuum cleaner possible to undertake your house cleaning jobs.
Bag or bagless: Vacuum cleaners with bags are easy to maintain because you can just throw away the dirt and debris with each bag. Replacement bags, however, can be expensive and occasionally discontinued depending on the vacuum model or manufacturer. A bagless vacuum cleaner is generally less costly to maintain, but emptying the canister of its dirt and debris can be messy and even spread some dust and dirt back into the air. Some bagless models require filters that can be more expensive to replace than bags so I suggest you look for a model that has permanent washable filters
Upright or canister: Upright and canister are two of the most popular vacuum cleaners, and each has its advantages and disadvantages. Many upright vacuums have an adjustment to raise or lower the cleaner head depending on the type of flooring being cleaned or based on the thickness of the carpet.
Upright vacuums are also easier to take in and out of a closet or other storage areas for quick clean ups. Canister vacuums are suggested in homes with a majority of hard floor surfaces or low pile carpeting. They normally have automatic adjustments depending on floor surface. Canisters are generally lighter than uprights, and their long attachment hose and extension wands make it easier to clean stairways, tall ceilings and other hard to reach areas. Due to their smaller, more compact size, canister vacuums can be stored in many places an upright vacuum can't.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Robotic Vacuum Cleaners
Robotic vacuums have been around awhile and though the concept sounds wonderful - it'll wake up and vacuum the entire floor and put itself back into the charging cradle while you're at work, I wonder if in reality there's anything to them? If so, they certainly are a game changer as far as the way we clean our homes.
Robotic vacuums are technological marvels because they can vacuum hard floors, carpeted floors and rugs. They generally come with accessories that allow it to clean in corners and along baseboards. They are also fully automatic, needing no user intervention once programmed other than emptying the waste bin.
Robotic vacuums are designed to clean the room randomly and sometimes vacuum the same area several times. However they are designed to cover the entire floor at least once and will return to their charging station if a low battery is detected or they finsish cleaning the intended area.
Most robotic vacuums are very sleek and compact. This allows them to vacuum under furniture or beds, something full size vacuums struggle with unless numerous attachments and extension hoses are used. They are also programmed to detect the legs of furniture or chairs and will successfully maneuver around these objects. Walls are detected and the vacuum will usually begin vacuum along a wall while cleaning the area where the floor meets the baseboards. Rubber bumpers on the vacuum make sure walls and furniture are not damaged.
Most robotic vacuums have sensors to detect if getting ready to go down a step and will automatically reverse it's course and learn where those steps are. Some models come with "room blockers" that allow you set areas of the house you don't want vacuumed.
I have no idea how but the leading manufacturer (iRobot and their Roomba series) claim the vacuum can detect dirt and seek out the dirtiest parts of the floor first and continually clean until all dirt and debris is removed. Pretty impressive if you ask me, provided it works as designed.
The vacuums aren't cheap but new technology rarely is. Expect to spend $300 to $600 for these technological marvels, depending on features you want and whether you desire the latest and greatest model.
All in all we are nearing when life will be a breeze and cleaning, grocery shopping and walking the dog will all be handled by robots. Now if they could just figure out a way to go to work for me so I can golf, THAT would be ideal.
Repair Tips for Vacuum Cleaners
It's a fact of Murphy (whoever he or she is) that whatever can fail will - and at the worst possible moment I believe. Take your vacuum cleaner for instance, the in-laws are do in and the vacuum decides to quit working right when you need it most. You have to scramble to either borrow a vacuum or, if that's not an option, run to the store and shell out your hard earned dollars on a new vacuum. A little preventative maintenance can alleviate these nuisances.
The first thing you need to do is get familiar with your vacuum's owner manual or, check out the manufacturers website for maintenance tips. You need to know where to look for potential trouble spots and when the problem occured you need to have an idea based on what you heard, saw or smelled where to begin looking for the problem. Though a vacuum can be a complex machine in terms of HOW it does what it does, there's relatively few parts that can malfunction. Assuming it's not a catastrophic motor issue of course.
The belt that turns your brushbar (bristle brushes) is located underneath the base plate of the vacuum head. To access, turn you vacuum on it's side and then flip over once more so the base plate (the bottom of the vacuum) is facing up. This base plate is either held on with screws or there are some type of locking cams that simply need to be rotated to unlock it. Go ahead and unlock or unscrew so the base plate can be removed.
If the belt is frayed or seems loose on the brushbar, it needs replaced. Sometimes the only issue is debris or hair has gotten wrapped around the brushbar and tangled with the belt. If you smelled something akin to burning rubber before turning the vacuum off, the belt has become stretched too much and needs replaced. You can normally find replacements at the "big box" stores or a vacuum repair center if there's one in your area.
A look through your manual or manufacturers website or perhaps a little search on Google should lead you to directions (video) on how to replace this belt. A good Google search is something like "make and model of your vacuum belt replacement" (no quotes and replace with your actual make & model).
While you have the base plate off, check the brushbar. These frequently get tangled with hair, carpet fibers and sometimes stuff that resembles the spaghetti you make and ate several weeks ago. If the brushbar is removable, take it out and thoroughly clean all the gunk off the brushbar by either unwrapping what's wound around or use a pair of scissors and gently cut everything off. If the bar is removable, also check the two spots where the bar rides in the vacuum for bits of debris that sometimes gets trapped in that area.
If the vacuum seems down on suction and you know the bag or canister isn't full and needing emptied, chances are there's a clog somewhere in the hose or air channels. Again, the manual, website or Google is your friend finding where and how to check all the nooks and crannies of the vacuum's air channels and hoses used to carry air from the cleaner head and through the bag or canister before exiting out the vacuum. If the extension hose is clogged, you may need a yardstick or broom handle to dislodge what got stuck.
If your vacuum has filters and you can't remember the last time you cleaned or replaced them, it's time to check them. Some vacuums have one, some have two filters. If you do have the washable kind of filters, you'll need to let them COMPLETELY air dry before putting them back in your vacuum and using it. Otherwise, you'll quickly have a bigger mess using wet filters.
As preventative maintenance, unplug your vacuum from the wall and check the entire length of cord for frays or spots that look damaged or perhaps cut. Sometimes a quick repair with electrical tape is all that's needed but if the cord is cut very deeply at all, DO NOT plug it back in. The cord needs to be replaced.
Belt, brushbar or clogs are the three main culprits of vacuum cleaner failures. Simple, periodic checks of these components can give you trouble free use of your vacuum for years to come and eliminate some of the panic moments you have when guests are about to arrive.
Lastly, if your current vacuum is just plain worn out and in need of replacement, I highly recommend this dyson vacuum review site. They are written by an actual owner and are some of the most in-depth, reviews I've see. he not only tells the good, but also shares what some of the negatives are about each model. Well done.
The first thing you need to do is get familiar with your vacuum's owner manual or, check out the manufacturers website for maintenance tips. You need to know where to look for potential trouble spots and when the problem occured you need to have an idea based on what you heard, saw or smelled where to begin looking for the problem. Though a vacuum can be a complex machine in terms of HOW it does what it does, there's relatively few parts that can malfunction. Assuming it's not a catastrophic motor issue of course.
The belt that turns your brushbar (bristle brushes) is located underneath the base plate of the vacuum head. To access, turn you vacuum on it's side and then flip over once more so the base plate (the bottom of the vacuum) is facing up. This base plate is either held on with screws or there are some type of locking cams that simply need to be rotated to unlock it. Go ahead and unlock or unscrew so the base plate can be removed.
If the belt is frayed or seems loose on the brushbar, it needs replaced. Sometimes the only issue is debris or hair has gotten wrapped around the brushbar and tangled with the belt. If you smelled something akin to burning rubber before turning the vacuum off, the belt has become stretched too much and needs replaced. You can normally find replacements at the "big box" stores or a vacuum repair center if there's one in your area.
A look through your manual or manufacturers website or perhaps a little search on Google should lead you to directions (video) on how to replace this belt. A good Google search is something like "make and model of your vacuum belt replacement" (no quotes and replace with your actual make & model).
While you have the base plate off, check the brushbar. These frequently get tangled with hair, carpet fibers and sometimes stuff that resembles the spaghetti you make and ate several weeks ago. If the brushbar is removable, take it out and thoroughly clean all the gunk off the brushbar by either unwrapping what's wound around or use a pair of scissors and gently cut everything off. If the bar is removable, also check the two spots where the bar rides in the vacuum for bits of debris that sometimes gets trapped in that area.
If the vacuum seems down on suction and you know the bag or canister isn't full and needing emptied, chances are there's a clog somewhere in the hose or air channels. Again, the manual, website or Google is your friend finding where and how to check all the nooks and crannies of the vacuum's air channels and hoses used to carry air from the cleaner head and through the bag or canister before exiting out the vacuum. If the extension hose is clogged, you may need a yardstick or broom handle to dislodge what got stuck.
If your vacuum has filters and you can't remember the last time you cleaned or replaced them, it's time to check them. Some vacuums have one, some have two filters. If you do have the washable kind of filters, you'll need to let them COMPLETELY air dry before putting them back in your vacuum and using it. Otherwise, you'll quickly have a bigger mess using wet filters.
As preventative maintenance, unplug your vacuum from the wall and check the entire length of cord for frays or spots that look damaged or perhaps cut. Sometimes a quick repair with electrical tape is all that's needed but if the cord is cut very deeply at all, DO NOT plug it back in. The cord needs to be replaced.
Belt, brushbar or clogs are the three main culprits of vacuum cleaner failures. Simple, periodic checks of these components can give you trouble free use of your vacuum for years to come and eliminate some of the panic moments you have when guests are about to arrive.
Lastly, if your current vacuum is just plain worn out and in need of replacement, I highly recommend this dyson vacuum review site. They are written by an actual owner and are some of the most in-depth, reviews I've see. he not only tells the good, but also shares what some of the negatives are about each model. Well done.
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