Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

On housekeeping, maintenance and carpet care sites are dire warnings NOT to use a rotating brush vacuum because it will 'untwist' and 'fuzzy' the tips.

On the Shaw site, it uses the word "shag" in quotation marks, implying cable,shag, and frieze fall under the same maintenance requirements.

So, what would your top picks be, both vacuums and attachments, for vacuuming frieze,cable, and shag carpet? Some include berber in this suction only maintenance category, along with handmade rugs. So, what do you say should be used, considering some carpets have a 10yr. appearance retention warranty provided the care instructions are followed.  

CarmineD wrote:

I'm fairly confident that Hoover offered the dusting tools for their uprights as an extra-cost option. However, I think it wasn't so much that they were a true extra-cost option, but an option you could specify you didn't want, and thus get the cleaner at a slightly reduced price. Obviously, the salesman would always try and persuade the buyer that the cleaning tools were an essential aspect of the purchase! They used the word 'Ensemble' to describe the complete all-round cleaning package, so the buyer would feel their purchase was incomplete without a full set of dusting tools!

Coincidentally, there was also a Norca version of the Hoover Dustette at one point, to compliment the upright model.

CarmineD wrote:
Hi Carmine,

I have one.  It has two brush strips and three strands of plastic pieces that I am told are strung on something like piano wire.  Its form was modified a few times.  An adjustment dial for the brushes was added and a later modification was made for the Empress canister.

The Vibra-Beat nozzle never got good marks for cleaning ability from CR and it was awful loud.

Best,

Venson

PS -- Model2 thanks for the wonderful image of the Norca.

Model2 wrote:
Hi again Model2,

Did this machine still produce that famous Hoover buzz?

Venson

Carmine, you're correct: the cleaner to the left of the Norca is Model 26 (or 262 for us in the UK!).

Venson - it still makes the familiar Hoover 'rumble', but slightly softer, and less harsh-sounding.

I would think a straight suction vacuum such as a power pro, or an Electrolux with just the rug tool, not the powernozzle would do a fine job for you. 

I was told when I was shopping for a light weight last year by both Oreck and Riccar.  "These will do fine on your carepts if you don't have a shag or frieze, if you do the strands of the carpet will wrap around the brush and not only be extremely hard to push, but will burn your belts out very rapidly."  I have a plush and the Riccar and Kirby work very well on it.

Back in the 70's we had a sculpted plush which the Kirby (with brush roll on) did a very good job grooming and cleaning.  Kirby does have the option to turn off the brush, however, as well as they had a "Shag King" a really terrible, $#%*bersom, hard to use thing that attached to the front of the machine.  It did an ok job if you could get it to stay on the front of the vacuum.

Any straight suction with good air flow should do a good job for you.  You will more than likely have to rake the darn thing if you are like me and don't want foot prints to show.

http://www.articlealley.com/article_550591_47.html

FWIW: About ORECK and an excerpt about usage on shag carpets.  I believe the author is a former ORECK HOME CENTER manager of many years.  But no longer an ORECK employee. 

"None of the Oreck vacuums adjust for different carpet types, but unless you have the really long shag style of carpet you don’t need adjustments to your vacuum. They are merely extra parts that will break in time."

Just to reiterate, I'm not pushing the ORECK on anyone.  Just want to show that there are varying opinions and answers on the matter of proper cleaning/vacuuming of shag/frieze carpets depending on the sources.

Carmine D.

I have the answer! Should my friends/clients opt to go with frieze, I will finagle a 3' x5' sample from the salesperson, and place it as the walkoff mat at my friendly local vac shop for a month, then vacuum with a Kirby 'G' series with the gentle brush roll installed AND one of the old suction-relief vents that used to be on the older style Kirbys (I installed one on a Heritage, and it was great for shags and scatter rugs.) I think the ability to sweep the pile gently and thoroughly without sucking it deeply into the nozzle, since it will be unable to seal to the floor should provide maximum cleaning with minimal damage.

Carmine,

My original purpose in posing this question (and you are right, rose` DOES compliment canned worms nicely :) was regarding the use of rotating brush vacuums on fireze carpet which sometimes have manufacturers warranties which prohibit their use to keep the warranty valid. While the Oreck may indeed be safe to use on some frieze carpets, the reassurances of the Oreck employee, and even the person who sold the carpet are utterly worthless if the manufacturer decides the warranty has been voided due to the use of a vacuum cleaner which, in their view, caused the damage.

A true frieze is a carpet made up of yarns which are highly twisted, so twisted, in fact, that they twist back upon themselves like a piece of string. It is not just "trackless" carpet, although frieze does not readily show foorprints. The yarns of a frieze, if untwisted, become longer as the twist unwinds (increasing the likelihood they will wrap around a rotat, and the ends "bloom" and get fuzzy. A shag already has its ends exposed, and "blooming" is much less noticeble. It would take repeated uses over a period of time to determine if ANY vacuum will have a detrimental effect on frieze carpet. This type of carpet has been growing in popularity for a decade now, but with so much carpet installed just to facilitate a sale, (remember frieze is very popular) and families moving so frequently, I'm sure many potential warranty claims have gone unsubmitted. Who is going to ask what vacuum they should use on their new carpet, and is the warranty transferrable anyway?

I think that until a vac manufacturer(s) has a vacuum(s) tested by CRI as safe for use on the dubious frieze, and the manufacturers submit their samples for testing (which they surely would, wanting to be able to advertise that their carpet is safely cleanable with very specific vacuums/brush configurations) it will remain a murky issue with no real clarity in sight. I wonder how many warranty claims on frieze carpet have already been submitted, and what the disposition of those claims has been, and the criteria for vaildating or dismissing them. Of no real importance to anyone except the consumer trying to submit a claim on their carpet warranty. Class action lawsuit anyone?

I'm familiar with both the rug and vacuum industries in the USA since their infancies.  I've drawn conclusions about both.  One conclusion that has always stood the test of time is that vacuum professionals know more about the best vacuums to clean and groom different styles of rugs/carpets than rug/carpet companies know about the vacuums that are available. 

As you know, the ORECK also offers a two speed version which reduces the suction power of the ORECK for delicate and sensitive rugs like shag and frieze.  Again, I reiterate, I'm not pushing the ORECK.  My point is this.  Despite what a few rug makers say, there are many vacuum brands, upright and canister with P/N, with models sold in big box stores and independent vacuum stores, that work well on shag, berber and frieze carpets.  Many of these brands offer manual rug height adjustments, variable speed controls, and softer brush tufts that separately and in concert offer effective options for cleaning, grooming and ensuring the longevity of all the different rug styles and heights on today's market. 

Carmine D.

Carmine,

I have the utmost respect for your knowledge and experience. I also agree that a vacuum professional has more knowledge of what is available than the carpet manufacturer. But ultimately, it is the manufacturer who holds the trump card in deciding whether or not the terms of the warranty have been voided. That is my point. If the carpet has any restrictions whatsoever about the type of vacuum used, it is incumbent upon the consumer to ensure the manufacturer of the carpet has indeed approved the machine(s) that will be used to clean the carpet. Appearance retention warranties/wear deated warranties refer solely to amount of fiber lost. It can be matted and crushed, but as long as it still has 90% of its original face weight of the fiber, it is considered to be performing as promised under the warranty. It will take more than one bottle of rose` before this can of worms is finished.

Trebor