Buying Guide: Vacuum Cleaner

Types of Vacuum Cleaners

Upright Vacuum Cleaners- An upright vacuum cleaner is ideal for a fully carpeted house. A vacuum pump placed on top of the suction intake increases the suction capability of the machine. Upright vacuum cleaners are easy to operate and maneuver. Also, being upright it does not require you to bend. Plus, the upright vacuum cleaner comes with various attachments that are to be fitted to the on-board hose or to an extension wand. A crevice nozzle sucks in dirt from the crevice and an upholstery tool cleans the upholstery like sofa covers and curtains. A swivel neck feature allows you to reach out easily under low-height furniture.

Stick vacuums: A smaller variant of the upright vacuum cleaner, these have long bodies, foot nozzles and handles just like the big brother. Most of these have smaller capacities dirt bins, are battery powered and weigh less. These are mainly used to pick up surface mess and do small jobs.

Canister and cylinder Vacuum Cleaners- Lightweight and versatile, these machines offer wide radius coverage thanks to their long flexible hoses which makes them perfect for cleaning large houses that have a mix of hard flooring and carpets. These are great for cleaning stairs and difficult-to-reach nooks and corners as it precludes the need for lugging the whole machine with you. As the motor and bags are placed inside a cylinder or canister like unit, these are referred to as canister vacuum cleaners.

Generally, cylinder vacuum cleaners come with a basic cleaning head that provides suction with an adjustment for hard as well as carpeted floors. The newer models come with additional attachments for reaching areas at a height like fans, top of the curtains and rods. Look for cleaners that have a power-cleaning head and a hard-floor brush if you have a tile, hard or parquet floorings.

Cordless Vacuum Cleaner – These are good for cleaning counter tops, smaller carpets, and areas like those behind the computers and inside cars that does not demand powerful suction. These handheld cleaners are lightweight and run on battery power.

Steam Cleaners – In these cleaners water is heated up to 120°C under high pressure to produce steam that is relatively dry. The high temperature serves to eliminate all bacteria, molds and germs thus keeping the environment clean. These are ideal if you have pets in the house since it can effectively clears pet hair from confined areas. These machines can also be used to clean carpets, upholstery and mattresses.

Robotic vacuums: More expensive than practical, these robotic vacuum cleaners are good for cleaning uncluttered rooms. However these are not great for cleaning edges and corners although some robotic cleaners are available featuring support for cleaning corners and edges.

Features to look for in a vacuum cleaner:

• Roller or rotating brushes and mechanical agitators help in thorough extraction of dust. These rollers found under the machine have bristles attached to them all across the base. When the machine is on, this roller brush spins to dislodge dirt, dust and grit from the carpets and thick rugs for the airflow to pick it up easily. Some of these brush agitators come with a switch-off option that allows it to be used on bare floors as well. This option also prevents throw rugs and other cloths from entangling in the bristles.

• A latest addition to the vacuum cleaner is a special tool to pick up hair shed by your pet.

• The upright vacuum cleaner easily supports the accompanying 9 feet long hose without toppling over.

• The carpet pile height adjustment feature enables the upright vacuum cleaner to clean a thin rug area as well as carpets with a deep pile.

• Special attachments are provided to clean different types of flooring as well. A nozzle fitted with natural bristles is provided for parquet flooring. For the bare floor, the upright vacuum cleaner comes with either a special cleaning attachment or a bristle retracting setting is provided into the main vacuum head to prevent any scratching to the bare, vinyl, hardwood or other uncarpeted floorings.

• A soft bumper guard on the main vacuum head helps to protect furniture, baseboards and walls. The main vacuum head in some models is equipped with additional bristles on each side, called edge cleaners for cleaning edges next to baseboards or in corners where the carpet meets the wall.

• To illuminate dark areas under the furniture and dark nooks, many upright vacuum cleaner models are equipped with a headlamp that stays on during the cleaning process.

• Self-propelled models use a transmission and drive system that takes the drudgery out of pushing and pulling the vacuum cleaners around. However, it makes them a bit heavier and thus inconvenient to carry over stairs.

• A suction control mechanism lets you control the vacuum cleaners’ suction power and speed, a feature that is especially beneficial for cleaning furnishings and upholstery.

• Retractable power cords of close to 25 feet or more are preferable if you have a large room to vacuum clean. This allows you to continue the job without having to switch between plug points. A cord release clip allows the entire length of cord to be unwound at one go instead of one wrap at a time.

• The cleaning paths in most upright vacuum cleaners range between 12 to 15 inches. Choosing a machine with a wider cleaning path for larger areas will help in getting the job faster.

• The traditional models use a dust bag for collecting the debris. These are fitted on the handle and thus the dust does not have to travel a long way up the hose pipe.

• The newer models of upright vacuum cleaners have no bags to collect the dust. Instead these vacuum cleaners come with reusable filtered canisters to collect the debris. However, these canister filters are easily clogged which reduces the suction power of the machine and hence require periodic cleaning and filter replacements.

• Look for models that feature an indicator light that alerts you when the dust bag or container is full. The older models come with a mechanical or electronic indicator.

• An on-off switch located on the handle or where near your foot is easier to operate than the one on the body of the vacuum.
  
  
• A newly introduced feature has a germicidal UV light to kill dust mites and allergens while vacuuming.
• Bag-less vacuum cleaners come with “cyclonic action suction system” that funnels away dust into two different channels to ensure that it does not get re-deposited on the carpet.
• Dirt sensors feature two indicator lights that alert users when the vacuum cleaner is picking up the dust.
• Motor Protection /Bypass System pulls the dirt directly into the dust bag without entering the motor.

Other Important Features

Filtration system: An important feature, a good filtration system can help you get rid of pollens and particles that are lesser than 100 microns which greatly helps in keeping the environment clean and healthy especially for asthmatics. Opt for a vacuum cleaner that is fitted with the highly efficient HEPA (High efficiency particulate air) filters. A HEPA filter comes with a sealed airflow system that eliminates 99.97% of 0.3 micron diameter or larger dust particles and bio-aerosols from the air that passes through it. Nowadays most vacuum cleaners are fitted with HEPA filters. However, do make a check on this factor when you are short-listing different models.

Airflow: A greater airflow will ensure the surfaces being cleaned more effectively.  However, the type of airflow arrangement will also determine the power usage by the vacuum cleaner, as well as noise generation. The through-motor air flow arrangement consumes lesser power and is lower on noise generation in comparison to the by-pass arrangement.

Radius Coverage: This is the area that a vacuum cleaner is able to cover at a time. The larger the radius coverage the easier the vacuuming task as you are not required to lug the bulky machine around. The radius coverage ranges between 25 to 35 feet including stairs.

Power: Depending upon the tasks it is designed for vacuum cleaners come with motor power ranging between 250W to 800W and 1600 to 2000W.

• Variable Power- Hard floorings, upholstery, carpets, wall to wall carpets, deep pile carpets etc need different amounts of power for efficient cleaning. Variable or adjustable power settings allow you to alter power usage according to your cleaning needs. Some models of canister vacuum cleaners offers slide power controls ranging between 250 watts to 1100 watts. This option saves power when it is used on low power for smaller jobs.  Vacuum cleaners with integrated dirt sensors or the auto sense cleaning feature provide enhanced suction power when cleaning heavily soiled carpets for instance.

• Suction power – A more effective measure of the vacuum cleaners’ performance, the suction power combines airflow efficiency and motor power within the cleaner and is measured in air watts. Upright vacuum cleaners provide 100 air Watts of suction power while cylinder or canister vacuum cleaners come with 350-450 air Watts of suction power. Traditional vacuum cleaners with dust bags lose suction power if the dust bag is full. To get back the suction power, the dust bag needs to be emptied between jobs. However, Dyson vacuum cleaners with Dyson’s patented Dual Cyclone Technology retain suction power and similar technology is being introduced by other manufacturers’ as well.

Summing it up:

There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to high-end brands and models. Electrolux vacuum cleaners, Kirby vacuum cleaners, Hoover vacuum cleaners, Oreck vacuum cleaners, and Rainbow vacuum cleaners are among the prominent ones. Do remember to check on the warranty and after-sales service offered on the models you make your decision.