Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Carmine,

This will probably fall under your area of expertise and experience, but all are welcome to contribute. As I transition from being unemployed to being self-employed, I am looking for more specialized services to offer my clients.

There are specialized 'rug dusters' for sale which tap the accumulated dirt, dust, sand, and grit out of Oriental rugs by laying them face down over a grid which gives the debris room to fall. These cost upwards of 4,000.00! These have been developed as an alternative to the huge stationary 240 volt dusting machines. All of this to replace regular vacuuming with a Hoover 300, 700, or 150, the ones with the dual divergent agitator bars, with shorter agitator bars and bristle strips in between on each side.

The magic of the Hoover was that the 5,000 taps per minute during slow motion vacuuming set up a wave pattern that  vibrated the rug, dislodging the dirt, sand, and grit. It was not accomplished with tremendous suction, though the airflow was good, it was the balance of enough suction to keep snapping the rug up after each tap. The sand was not actually beaten out of the rug as much as the rug was pushed down leaving the sand in mid-air to be caught by the airflow generated by the fan, as explained by the laws of Newtonian physics.

My question is this: Short of finding and restoring a few 150 Hoovers, is there any alternative? Would any later model Hoovers accept the dual divergent agitator? How late? A current Guardsman, maybe, with some alteration perhaps?

A Kirby with a cloth bag has been suggested to me. A G series will not accept a full-fledged sani-emptor, and probably is too powerful to sustain the tap/snap action. A cloth bag would yield too much airflow, and a hepa bag too little as it fills. A Heritage I with a cloth bag seems the only other possibility. The Sanitaire Vibra-Groomer I is not sufficient, about the same as the standard Hoover agitator with just one strip of beater bar per side.

The idea of being able to restore neglected Oriental rugs with simple thorough vacuuming for good pay is very appealing. As I understand it, Hoover abandoned this configuration of agitator because as area rugs gave way to wal to wall carpet, it did not grab and hold the wall-to-wall carpet as well as the newer, less expensive to produce version, which had just the one spiral strip per side. Hoover could have ruled if they had stuck to being a status symbol. Imagine being able to switch out the roller and bottom plate to adapt the vacuum to whatever carpet/rug/floor needed to be cleaned. The mind boggles, while the Hoover just beats, as it sweeps, as it cleans...

Trebor

Model2 wrote:

What is "worthy of being called an expert?"  There are alot of people with their own unique skills, knowledge and abilities in and around the vacuum industry past and present.   They're called "experts."  Are they "craftsmen."  "Experts" may/may not be.  A craftsman takes an old, beat up, junked up vacuum out of the rubble and turns it back into the pretty and perfect specimen it was back it's it day.  Regardless of its current age and past use.  That's what some of the independent vacuum store owners/operators do who post here.  That's one of the things, I did.

Carmine D.

Model2 wrote:

Excellent series, "I Spy."  Bill Cosby was wonderful.  But right now I'm thinking more "Get Smart."  Did you get that one on BBC?  Do you recall the introductory clause:  "Would you believe............."  It comes to mind now.  But not in the same farcical way, in fact just the opposite.  I'm proud to say that thanks to me and a handful of other US citizens, Aldrich Ames, the most notorious traitor and spy in the annals of CIA history, was put permanently behind bars.

Surely, when I get to Heaven my friends and family, BOSS HOOVER included, who could not thank me in their lifetime, will do so in the next.

Carmine D.

Model2 wrote:
CarmineD wrote:
God whispers inventions into mans ears so to better life.  If TTI were good stewards (growth via honest means and building better mousetraps) God would be pleased.  The Book describes in no- uncertain terms how He loathes thieving, lying, unfair gain, etc.  God calls men like this evil.  TTI’s greatest attributes are... taking ideas from others (stealing) and selling them cheaper than those who birthed them.  As well, they are by definition... a monopoly.

DIB

*Some called it intuition or a feeling or a [flash of genius] eureka moment.

Below is an example of Knock-off manufacturing's work...

MIELE must surely be flattered by the resemblance.   Thanks for posting the comparative pics.  MOLE was the first, if I recall correctly, to point out the similarities of these two brand models and others.  It was on a thread here that deals, among other issues, with the evolution of today's vacuums into standard looks and features without unique variances.

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:
Applauding thieves?  Chapter and verse please (support in scripture).       DIB

CarmineD wrote:
Hi Carmine,

I feel the same way about cars. I often find little difference when looking at the aerodynamically inclined wedges most autos have become. Guess the separating line is now more determined by what's on the inside of the car as opposed to the outside and that may not be a bad thing.

DIB,

The proof is in the pudding as it were. The Hoover S3670 pictured sells for $300.00. The Miele Capricorn sells for $1,100.00. As I own one, I of course have high anticipations as to its continued worth over time but I am in no way bothered by Hoover's attempt to produce similar product at a more affordable price. Miele never will.

The S3670 similarity is basically by looks though it, as many other manufacturers cans of late, employs cloth-like high-filtration bags. The WindTunnel style power nozzle is pure Hoover and had been used for years now.

Nonetheless, this new canister rated high with CR. It got high marks for rug and bare floor cleaning, tool suction, pet hair pick-up and emissions. Can't ask for more than that. The question is will it last as long as the Miele is expected to.

For me the question is -- is price the dividing line between good and bad vacuum cleaners? I say not always. I also welcome attempts by anyone to produce product that provides effective and efficient performance at price that allow not just some of us life's small pleasures and conveniences. That may be looked on as infringement by some folks but I see it as fair.

Venson

Venson,

It is a suction machine at its core (brushroll, collection sack/filter and suction generator).  On the outside it's a counterfeit Miele.  I say let the $3b TTI get off their wealthy, creatively-lazy (lack of original ideas), thieving asses and design and invent their own stuff.

DIB

Has TTI violated any copyright laws? An appearance of similarity does not constitiute theft. All canister vacuums have a certain similarity to them, as do all bagless uprights. Patent laws eventually expire to keep inventors inventing and improving. Making something look different just to make it look different is not being original, it's just altering someone else's originality to make yourself look original.

Trebor

Model2 wrote:

Actually, its called "old age" and the unaided eye.  I left my reading glasses in the bedroom and didn't want to go back in and risk waking my dear Wife.  I was using my memory recall, which doesn't always work, and the fact that the lettering is not complelely visible from the first picture view and the obstruction of the handle and fork.  When you posted the pics the first time [I had my glasses] but glossed right right over never giving them more than a cursory glance.  When you posted the pics a second time a day or two later I didn't have my glasses and had to post [despite my unaided eyes, bad memory, and lack of concentration on the first viewing].  Like I said, a pet peeve of mine.

Carmine D.   

Trebor wrote:
The TTI canister is a near counterfeit, designed to deceive and siphon Miele’s sales.  Although not an exact copy, it comes close to [design] patent infringement.

Society is much better off when companies choose to dig deep and bring exciting, fresh and problem solving ideas to market.  Thus far this $3b monopoly is a miserable patent failure, their copying and taking others ideas (totals) far exceeds their patent and patent pending totals.


DIB