What features are important when choosing a healthy vacuum cleaner? How it loosens the dirt, how it lifts the dirt and how little of that dirt it sends back into the air.
The agitation is the first stage and means how well the machine dislodges the dry soil (dust etc). Powered brushes underneath are crucial to initially loosen the dirt Some use a brush driven by the same motor as the vacuum motor but the best ones have a separate motor.That's all extra power to rip the dust and dirt out of the carpet. I personally feel that there is a noticeable improvement in finish between the all in one and separate brush drive approach The pile of the carpet is raised up much more.
Next you have to see how it whisks the dust and dirt away. After all it's no good removing the dust if you just leave it where it is. That's far more unhealthy. You need to get it away in the most efficient manner. What do you need?In other words, how effective the vacuum system is.The two most commonly seen filtration systems are bags or cyclones.
Bags work great for a while and then they clog up. This is obvious really as the bag has to physically stop the dirt from passing through as the air does.Their efficiency falls off right away after the pores within the bag become clogged. Normally, this is well before these are actually about 25 percent full.
Cyclonic separators are a step of progress in air purifiers. If there are enough filters built in these can be pretty good.{The cyclone, in contrast, removes the dust by spinning it really quickly to ensure that it gets thrown out from the side.|You require a filter
process that gets rid of dust and dirt without clogging up the bag or the filters. The answer is a spinner or cyclone system.|Cyclone systems bypass this "clogging" problem by employing centrifugal force. Remember when you were a child and you played on a merry go round? As you went faster and faster you had to hang on for all you were worth to stop being thrown of the outer edge. It's the same for the dirt. It gets thrown out of the airflow and falls into a container.}Because there is no real restriction on the airflow, the machine can operate close to it's full potential for long periods of time. This is in contrast to the physical barrier approach (bags) that severely cut down the airflow. That restriction can lead to at best, a thermal overload switch cutting in, or worse a fire starting.
In twenty years being employed as a carpet cleaner Birmingham, I've found that healthwise, is the one that is most significant to health.
The third thing to look for is how well the machine contains the extracted dirt.If you have an inefficient machine, then all the removed dust can be circulated back into the room. Have you ever been in a room where someone was vacuuming and you could smell and taste the dust? That is a good example of really bad dust filtration.This fine dust can cause all sorts of breathing problems.
Slashing this "re-distribution" of dust is of paramount importance.A simple yet incredibly effective approach is to use water in the filtration process.This method works by directing the dirt filled airflow down on to the surface of the water where it is captured and cannot be sent back up into the air.The best type of vacuum cleaner to take advantage of this system is the tub. The machine has to be kept level to make the most of this really effective filtration method.
You half fill the tub with tap water and the dust is blown on to the water as it comes up the pipe into the machine. The dust gets caught by the water and cannot go any further. In no time at all the once clean water becomes full of dust and resembles mud. Meanwhile, the clean air is passed back into the room (minus the dust).
How do we choose the best system? Can we merge all the best characteristics?
After reading the above you would, no doubt, go for the best features of each variation. For instance, you would want the increased agitation from a separate brush motor. You would want the high airflow of a cyclone (or possibly a water system). You would also want the "air washing" performance of a water filtration vac. Can you have all these together? No (well let's say maybe).The problem here is that you cannot have water on an upright because it will slop around and get sucked into the vacuum motors (followed by a loud bang!).
If you really want the water filtration but also want the high agitation, you can actually achieve this. One well known manufacturer provides an electrically driven power head that fits onto floor wands supplied with it's tubs. That way you could twin a water filtered tub vacuum cleaner with a mains driven power brush and you would have pretty much the ideal combination.
Your choice will be an important one. It's best to take your time and weigh up the options. If you get it wrong then at best you may have a machine that is totally wrong for your needs. At worse, you could be risking the long term health of yourself and your family.
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