It Will Get Dirt that Your Existing Cleaner Missed
The power of a vacuum cleaner motor is one of the most
misrepresented and misunderstood aspects of vacuum cleaner
technology. This confusion has been accentuated by many
manufacturers and salespersons in their attempt to make their
products appear superior to others. At times this takes the form
of performing amazing demonstrations of the vacuum cleaner's
abilities. Often, when we take a closer look, these amazing feats
prove very little and are relatively meaningless!
The salespersons who sell their vacuum cleaners by performing
demonstrations in the homes of their prospective customers are
known for doing some amazing feats with their products. One such
activity is to put some dirt or salt on a small area of carpet and,
after working it in a bit with their foot, clean the area with the
prospective customer's vacuum cleaner. Then to show how much more
effective the new vacuum cleaner is, the salesperson will clean the
same area again with the new one. Often special devices are used
to trap the dirt which is being picked up so it can be easily seen.
This demonstration is very effective in convincing the
prospective customer that they need a new vacuum cleaner since the
one watching usually doesn't realize two important facts: 1) The
older vacuum cleaner probably is not performing to the best of its
ability. 2) When cleaning a carpeted area containing a
concentrated amount of dirt, there will still be considerable dirt
left after the first few cleanings. If the area were cleaned again
after the demonstration, even more dirt would be picked up. A
carpet can hold its own weight in dirt and still look clean.
Our article on the
Loss of Performance with Use discusses
various performance reducing factors which can be improved with
relatively inexpensive maintenance. Most vacuum cleaners would
benefit greatly from a simple yearly checkup by its owner or a
vacuum cleaner repair shop.
Recently I saw David Oreck on a television commercial picking
up dirt with his eight pound Oreck
upright after cleaning the carpeted area with a very inexpensive
Hoover Encore upright. Although we at Ristenbatt Vacuum Cleaner
Service promote and sell some Oreck products, we choose to not
stock nor promote their upright vacuum cleaner. It simply does
not pass our minimum standards, primarily due to its very, very
small four amp motor and extremely small fan. I cringe when I
see it being promoted using this demonstration on Oreck's
television commercial, especially since we are extremely careful
to represent our vacuum cleaners in an honest and straight
forward manner.
As you can see, it really isn't such a marvel that a vacuum
cleaner can pick up dirt that another one missed. To learn about
various methods for rating vacuum cleaner motors, see our article
about the Power of the Suction Motor.
There are many important performance aspects of a vacuum
cleaner system which you can read about in our article on
Identifying Good Performance Factors. These
include the Power of the Suction Motor,
Effects of Brushing Action,
effect of internal resistance
on the Air Flow through the System,
as well as the Efficiency of Paper Bags and
Filtration Efficiency - HEPA, ULPA, etc.
To choose a durable vacuum cleaner which will meet your cleaning tasks and
preferences, see our articles on
Identifying Durable Designs & Construction
and Match Your Tasks and Cleaning Style. A
good, knowledgeable sales person like those at Ristenbatt Vacuum
Cleaner Service can help you determine which vacuum cleaner system
will be the best for you in your particular cleaning situation.
