Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Technically, the Rainbow vacuum was the first to not lose suction.  It uses a more primitive dual cyclone design with water as a pre-filter.   If the Rainbow didn't have such a ridiculously high price and clumsy power nozzle, it would be a pretty good vacuum.  I don't know why they require you to hold a button down to keep the power nozzle operating.  One would think that they would use a simple 2-way switch.  All that on/off cycling can't possibly be good for the power nozzle motor.   The Rainbow uses an innovative brushless motor.  It would be a pretty good $800 vacuum with a better power nozzle. 

Hi,

You can do wet pick-up with any Rainbow or Rexair made.  Squeegee attachments, first the standard bare floor tool fitted with rubber strips in place of brushes, were around all the way back to the Rexair days.  The D2 offered a better designed tool for floor scrubbing and wet pick-up. Having owned a few of these over time and though it will increase weight, I strongly suggest that you use the four-quart water pan and keep an extra hose on hand for "wet work".  I never liked using the same hose or the metal wands for dry and wet jobs.  You should also be sure to keep a watchful eye on the cleaner as there is no way to prevent it from over-filling otherwise.

Rexair/Rainbow is and has always been an acquired taste as far as vacuums go.  You either love them or  find you can quite easily live without them.  The water needed for filtering adds extra weight -- not necessarily a problem in a single-story home but a pain for some when moving up and down stairs. Not great either when what you're doing -- like cleaning the top of bookcases -- requires you to tote the cleaner along. 

Depending on the individual, maintenance may or may not prove an irksome chore. Rainbow is not a machine you just take out of the closet and get up and go with or then put away immediately after use.  Without proper care, thorough cleaning and drying after use and regular water changes while in use, investment in a Rainbow is a pure waste of time and money. To do otherwise means dirt that does not get caught in the water pan may end up on the fans and also build up on the inner unit housing.  

It's good that you are aware of the dry pick-up limitations.  It is not wise to use a Rainbow to clean soot, ash or plaster dust but it's probably not a good idea to do that with any household vacuum though I've seen some old Luxes used to plow through all manner of stuff and still keep going.  Anyway, my fun Rainbow story is the time I accidentally picked up powdered laundry detergent with a D2 I owned. No, no bubbles everywhere but the sputtering of the motor scared me into believing I'd killed it but good.  However, it just took a couple of days to let the unit sit and dry out before it was as good as new.

The D4 used a by-pass motor.  In other words, the armature, etc., were not cooled by air from the suction stream but a separate cooling fan.  This would mean less damage possibilties if water got pulled into the fan chamber.  A link to a schematic follows:

http://www.elkypro.com/hoops2005/vacuum_parts/rexair/D4.html

Part are available but for what Rainbows cost used these days, I suggest getting another whether or not DHL comes through.  Being an eBay and online shopper it's best to have the package insured.  It costs a couple of dollars more but proves worth it in situations like yours.

Here's hoping DHL refunds you in full.  Best of luck . . .

Venson

Thanks

I like it for spraying the rugs with water & wet vacking

sort of light clean

I have been under filling the basin so as not to pick up too much

I do watch

D4 blew air down by pass is it a better motor?

I like the look of the D2/D3 motor

This is my idea then

since the d2/d3 motor is the same

I can alos try to put my motor in a D2 casing

depends what I find

Wonder if it would work?

Rainbows plastic is fragile

It was shipped free so I had no choice of insurance but I think they give min $100 anyway

Damage may have resulted from inproper packaging ot latent stress cracks broke open

Its a mess you'd cry if you sae it

I spent a day trying to glue the seams together as they weren't in half yet.

I agree its not to carry up stairs

& its not a everyday only if you have one vac

but as a 2nd novelty it;s useful.

I have the idea to spin it not over the basin a few seconds to purge any residual water from the system

I am one who likes to see the junk & its alot easier to throw out the water then to clean out the hoover windtunnel & shake the hepa

Yikes but what powder that thing endlessly picks up got me thinking I did need to do some wet cleaning..

Cord is even missing the ground wire

So the only good thing on it is the motor & dolly

I might just be able to pop it into another case or even fit it to the D2 if I find a good one with dead motor...

I had read the D3 was the first approved for wet pick up though

so I am not sure what the difference in the D2 & D3 is...

Thanks Again  for your help

Tha rainbow history site liste the D3 with its new cooler running motor as the first rainbow approved for "wet pick up"

Does that mean the previous models couldn't do it or weren't approved to do it?

The motors in the D2 & D3 are the same but I guess they could be hooked up differently?

Calling Mr Bubbles for help....

Would the D2 construction not be good for wet pick up?

I really want one on the older R2D2's but I would like to pick up minimal water too without it sputtering

Thanks...

camelotshadow wrote:

Hi Camelot,

I have never heard of any specific "approval" for wet pick-up being given regarding either Rexair or Rainbow.  Yet, as I stated before there have been attachments made by Rexair specifically for wet pick-up at least as far back as the Model C Rexair and for the D2 Rainbow  --- I've owned one -- there was an optional tool for floor scrubbing and wet pick-up.  It was similar to the head on the first Hoover floor washer.

Rexair/Rainbow has been using water as a filtration medium for years and even though these at one point all metal, ungrounded vacuums could be tipped over while in use, knocked over on a flight of stairs, etc. etc., UL apparently found no fault with them.

I have a Model C that I haul out for small wet emergencies.  I use it with the four quart metal water pan that came with a Model B I bought for stuff like draining out the dishwasher after a breakdown or defrosting a refrigerator from the olden days.  Any Rainbow can be used for wet pick-up but as I also said prior, you have to be vigilant to assure that you do let the water pan overfill.  In that sense, because of low capacity, Rainbow is not really all that useful for wet pick-up duty. Other non-water type vacuums that also to be good for wet pick-up tasks use a floatation valve to prevent motor damage or the possibility of electrical shock.  Rainbow has made no accommodation for the like and  -- as a common sense call -- I would imagine that is why the company can or should not seriously recommend the cleaner for wet jobs.  Too many users might not be watchful.

Also due to its limitations, I didn't give Rainbow's carpet cleaning paraphenalia a second thought.  It's simpler to rent or buy a domestic machine for the job plus get a better result. 

Yet for all this discussion, I can't imagine many household jobs where using a Rainbow for wet pick-up is feasible.  I wouldn't haul one out and put it together just for the small spills it can handle.  I'd get a mop.  I wouldn't use it for floor scrubbing as my use of cleaning substances would be limited.  No suds allowed -- remember?

Regards,

Venson

Thanks, that helps alot..

I have found the damp cleaning to be a plus

Not a daily vac but really helps.

I guess a rental or pro is best

but thats good when you don't have to move things from one side to another.

I can clean in sections

My D3C is not even grounded as someone cut the ground

I can understand that as I have been working with Humpty Dumpty.

I have been half filing it then what I do is use a qt sprayer & spray a section of rug w a dilute simple green solution to freshen & lift nap & purge dust.

Its been cleaning my whole apt lil by lil.

Its not alot of water as some is left in the carpet

I wouldn';t haul it out to pick up a qt of milk

but I feel the apt needs the wet clean as the neighbor smokes & over time it permeates everywhere

When I walk in my hallway now it smells alot better for being next to SMOKEY.

Thanks alot

I'll watch out for the suds

Venson wrote:
Hi Venson,

I've seen the redesigned AquaMate for the latest incarnation of the E2 and I have to say it has a lot of potential, definitely an improvement over the previous versions (which I didn't think were that bad).  For one it is now completely self-contained, the solution tank is built into the unit itself; no dolly tank or faucet hookup like before.  Second of all it is motorized with a fairly aggressive-looking revolving brush...yes, it is designed to be used with the electric hose, but just the wet pickup-compatible electric hose of the new E2.  I don't believe it is meant to be used with the electric hose on the previous E2 and E-series models.

I agree with you about using the Rainbow for floor scrubbing, though...seems like it would be more work than it's worth.  I prefer the old-fashioned mop and bucket instead, the cleanup is a lot easier than rinsing out and washing off the tank, hose, nozzle etc.

Just weighing in,
-MH

Rainbows in my experience do not have a lot of suction to begin with and very weak airflow. Example, a fairly recent E2 I have in good condition with the HEPA filter removed so there are no restrictions anywhere only pulls 50 inches of water lift at the hose end and fails to pull my BAIRD meter off the bottom of the scale. An old and inexpensive Hoover PowerMax canister pulls 58 inches of water lift at the hose end and registers a 7 on my BAIRD meter. A Kenmore Elite canister pulls over 84 inches of water lift at the end of its eight foot long hose (with a suction leak due to the irregular shape of the hose end) and pulls my BAIRD meter right off the scale, past 10. For what Rainbow charges their measured performance is quite low.

WOW, I realize how dead this site is anymore when I see a resurrected thread from 2007, and that's the newest post. In any case the OP, back in 2007, mentioned the Rainbow was a good machine but overpriced. Agreed, there is a contender on the market now, the Sirena, that is comparable to the Rainbow at a lower price around $899,though with good negotiation skills you can get it for less. Time will tell if the quality and longevity is there as I have a 40 year old Rainbow, I will let you know if my three month old Sirena lives that long, but it does have a 10 year motor warranty. Sirena uses an Italian designed, Chinese built motor that moves 90 CFM on high speed, and 18CFM on low. As a collector I can say that it is a pretty good vacuum. Maybe not as refined as the Rainbow, but everything is very livable. It does not have the digital motor. No direct connect wands. Slightly larger water basin. I am not a fan of the power nozzle (a direct copy of the E2 nozzle complete with the hold me to use me switch on the hahdle. Only drawback, as with any water vac, is that your daily maintenance is a little more than a bagged machine that you just wrap back up and put in the closet, but if you are dedicated to a water vac, this is a lower cost alternative.

Just, Rainbows don't have "digital motors" by which I think you really mean brushless reluctance motors. Rainbow uses and has always used very conventional commutated universal motors. The current motor is a small single stage motor, not the big two stage motors of old. They have very weak airflow and suction compared to modern canister vacuums. My E2 barely pulls my BAIRD meter off the bottom of the scale at 0. An old Electrolux Silverado pulls the BAIRD meter up to 7 and my modern Kenmore Elite pulls the BAIRD meter off the scale past 10. Also, 90 cfm airflow is only so-so. Most modern canister vacuums produce more. A simple Pro-Team back pack vacuum pulls 110 cfm. An old Hoover Dimension 1000 pulls more than that. As for filtration, water vacs still need HEPA filters because all of the dust entering the water chamber is not entrained in the water. Very light particles get past the motor and require HEPA filtration to capture. A modern bagged canister vacuum using a good cloth HEPA dust bag and filters does every bit as well.