Types of Vacuum Cleaners
There are several types of vacuum cleaners on the market today, and you’ll have no problems finding one that will complete your tasks with ease and durability.
Vacuums are available in several different colors, sizes, and prices. Basically, there are two types of vacuum cleaners - wet and dry vacs, and there are even companies out there that have found ways to combine both features. You can choose from cordless, handheld, and even bagless models. If you are feeling really lazy, you can even purchase a robotic vacuum cleaner that will vacuum your entire house for you while you watch.
Normally, vacuum cleaners are made of either durable plastic or aluminum. They range in colors, from red to silver and white to blue. For the models, you can choose from upright, canister, stick, hand held, and shop vac models.
There are some vacuum cleaners that are specifically designed to help get debris and dirt out from under your car seat and others that are made to help you clean your hardwood floors. Other features can include extra detachable extension tools, retractable power cords, a HEPA filter, and an easy to reach power switch. There are even models out there that will pick up nails and even glasses of water.
Several companies out there produce vacuum cleaners, including Oreck, Simplicity, Dyson, Hoover, Bosch, Sanyo, Bissell, Eureka, and Kirby. If you are looking for a vacuum cleaner, you have a large selection of discounted and refurbished vacuums out there waiting for you.
One of the greatest things about vacuum cleaners is the fact that the sky is limit. The most popular types of vacuums on the market today are bagless, as there are no bags to change, all you need to do is empty the cylinder after you vacuum.
Whenever you are shopping for a vacuum, you should always compare prices. This way, you’ll get the best deal for your money. Before you know it, you’ll have a vacuum cleaner that will making cleaning your home or business both fun and exciting.
Wet and Dry Vacuum Cleaner Options and Features
When you looking for the best wet/dry vacuum cleaner for you, you should look for the following options and features:
- The pleated cartridge filter. It is reusable and rinse able, and provides more filtration area than the flat filter and it doesn’t need to be removed when you switch from the dry to wet vacuum function.
- An automatic shut off device is available with most newer vacuum cleaners. This mechanism will shut off the motor automatically once the tank has become full of water, which will prevent it from overflowing.
- A wide set of wheels will help to prevent the vacuum from tipping over.
- There are some of the larger models that have the ability to convert to a leaf blower, which is great if you have a lot of trees in your yard.
- Some wet/dry models have a built in pump attachment as well. This type of attachment will allow the water to be pumped through a garden hose that attaches to the vacuum.
- A handy drain valve or sprout will make emptying the vacuum cleaner a snap. If it doesn’t have this feature, you’ll have to remove the lid and tip the vacuum to the side to empty all of the water. Depending on how much water you have in the tank, you could easily and accidentally spill it on the floor. The smaller types of wet/dry vacuums normally don’t have a spout or drain option.
- Wider hoses and floor nozzles are great to have as well. The wider the hose and nozzle are, the less likely the vacuum will be to clog up on you.
If they aren’t provided with the vacuum you decided on, you can also purchase the following attachments:
1. Crevice tool - this handy tool will easily get in tight corners and around floor edges.
2. Extension wand - this will make the hose longer for hard to reach areas.
3. Hose couplings - this will join the extension wand to the hose.
4. Combination nozzle - this helps to alleviate the need of switching nozzles before you switch functions.
5. Gulper nozzle - this tool is ideal for the wet vacuum function.
6. Round brush - this nifty little tool is ideal for scrubbing.
7. Cleaning kit - this kit will include everything you need to clean delicate upholstery and other areas as well.
Back in 1920, the Air Way Sanitizer Company of Ohio introduced the first vacuum cleaner with a disposable vacuum bag. Until that time, the bags for vacuum cleaners resembled the type of bags that golfers used to carry their clubs. They were somewhat heavy and awkard devices made out of thick, stiff canvas, designed to be very flexible and still keep dust and debris from the carpets from escaping out into the air.
The improvements made by the Air Way Sanitizer disposable vacuum bag went a long way toward improving the effectiveness of the vacuum cleaner. Made out of paper, the bag was designed to fit inside of the cloth bag. Not only did it make cleaning the vacuum easier, but it also kept the insides of the stationary bag clean at all times so that less of the dust and debris could be blown out of the vacuum and make its way through the home again.
In the beginning, each manufacturer designed their own disposable vacuum cleaner bag made out of different types of paper.
Before, a housewife had her vacuum cleaner and the only thing it needed was to be cleaned and serviced every now and then. After a while, repair shops that specialized in vacuum cleaners began to pop up all over the place.
These days, there are very few vacuum cleaners that use bags. Bagless is the way to go these days, and for good reason. What was once a revolution in household cleaning, is now rapidly fading away and fast.
When you have finished vacuuming, you simply empty the cylinder into the trash. Vacuum bags can be very frustrating, which is why millions of people are using bagless vacuums.
If you own a vacuum cleaner that uses bags, you should look into upgrading it. Bagless vacuums will save you time, money, and replacement. If you’ve grown tired of the bags, now is the time to get a better vacuum.
Roomba Vacuum Cleaner
The first and second generation Roomba vacuum cleaner models needed to be told the size of the room through the use of three small buttons, although this is now no longer required with newer Roomba generations. The roomba vacuum cleaner was released in 2002 with updates and new models released in 2003, 2004, and so on.
Acessories
1. Remote control - This allows you to control the Roomba remotely.
2. Schedular - This allows you to program your Roomba to clean house on your schedule, even if you are out. The schedular can also update a pre-2.1 Roomba robot to the 2.1 software.
3. Homebase - This is where the Roomba will automatically return for recharging.
4. Virtual wall - This is used for keeping the Roomba out of certain areas.
5. OSMO - This is a dongle that attaches to the serial port of the Roomba.
The Roomba is a disc, 13 inches in diameter and less than 4 inches high. A large contact sensing bumper is mounted on the front half of the unit, with an infrared sensor located at the top front center. A carrying handle is fitted at the top of it as well. Depending on the model Roomba you select, it can come with one or two infrared transmitter units.
The Roomba operates with internal nickel metal hyrdide batteries and requires being recharged on a regular basis from a wall plug, although the newer generations have a home base where they will automatically find and go to when they need to charge themselves.
Using the newer generations of Roomba consists of carrying it wherever you would like to start, pressing the power button, then pressing either clean, spot, or max.
Whenever the clean, spot, or max button is pressed, the Roomba will pause for second or two and then begin work. The contact bumper on the machine will detect bumping into walls and furniture, and the virtual walls will limit the Roomba to the areas that you desire. There are also 4 infrared sensors on the bottom that will prevent the Roomba from falling offer of ledges or down the steps.
Unlike the Electrolux models, the Roomba doesn’t map out the rooms they are cleaning, as they instead rely on bumping into objects or walls to map things out. The design is based on MIT technology that robots should be like insects and equipped with simple controls mechanisms tuned to their environments.
After a little bit of time, the Roomba will begin to sing. If it detects a homebase, it will try to return to it. At that point, you simply remove the dust bin from the rear of the robot and empty it into a trash can.
Keep in mind that the Roomba isn’t designed for deep pile carpet. It is however, low enough to go under your bed and most other furniture. If at any time it senses that it has become stuck, it will no longer sense the floor underneath it, it will stop and begin to sing until you come and find it.
If you are tired of vacuuming and simply don’t want to do it anymore, a Roomba vacuum cleaner will be a great investment.
