I’m an official member of the Windtunnel Club!

[royalfan103]

To keep the spray from drying, wrap the plastic in some cling wrap after spraying it..

 

[kirbyklekter]

That's what I'm going to do

One guy said he wanted to submerge his whole plastic part in the stuff. He used about

a gallon and a half of 3%h.peroxide and what ever else he mixed in. I'm going to just

spray,spread if needed and either wrap plastic wrap or use a seal able plastic bag,

depending on what I use it on first. My gray Kenmore canister would be a good thing

to try first. They say you can even do white sneakers! Don't have any but maybe a

white or beige bumper on an upright. It doesn't have to be white either, just some-

thing that has darkened, could be blue or red. What color was your part you worked

on?

 

[royalfan103]

The Taupe Inlet on my Hoover Windtunnel Turbo Tool.. Here’s some progress pics which showcase the before and after.

 

[kirbyklekter]

About collecting

I'm curious if you have any idea how large a collection you would like to have of

vacuum cleaners? I didn't have a pre-set number in mind. I decided to take inventory

because it was getting a bit cramped, and I was at 63!Never paid a cent for any of

them except one new Hoover in the beginning. So I decided to clean house and got it

down to 50. That's my cap now and has been for a few years. If I bring another home I

have to part with one here already. Since I have duplicates of some models that's not

as hard to do , but when doubles or triples are gone, I'm really going to have to

want the new vac to replace an old soldier. It would be different if I lived on

some acreage, but I don't. If I did I'd be up to 200 easily so I'm not moving

anywhere bigger! What are your thoughts on how big a collection you'd like to have?

 

[royalfan103]

I have about 20 Vacuums. I may get a Windtunnel Twin Chamber and/or a Fold Away since I found those on Offerup for cheap. I may go for 32 vacuums when I’m older and have my own house..

 

[kirbyklekter]

Here's something

I like to keep a file on every vacuum I've owned from the day I acquire it. All
the pertinent info, any background history if available, like if I knew the person who gave it to me. I've clipped ads or downloaded anything pertaining to a specific model I have. Reviews by other owners, testing results from various sources. Then of course any parts lists and also the names of places I can bring a machine to if I can't do a repair etc.

I actually keep all this in hard file in a drop folder in a file cabinet. I've thought
about transferring to a USB drive or such but I'll always keep the original stuff in a file cabinet. Too much work to put owners manuals on a thumb drive so that's out. Any money spent for parts and repairs goes in the file and I also add my comments about the condition of each and any plans for work to be done in the future.

I also have a list of spare parts that I get and to which vacuum they would be for. As your collection grows it really helps to have this info and to keep track of all the parts and where they go. Sorry this went so long, thought it might help.

 

[eurekaprince]

Regarding the Hoover WindTunnel Design

I find it fascinating that Hoover’s engineers delved into the aerodynamics of the air flow surrounding a spinning brush roll. It makes a lot of sense that the blow-back from the spinning roll could actually work against getting dirt and debris safely into the airflow of the suction. By creating segregated suction channels protected from the blowing created by the brushroll, you have a better chance of grabbing the dirt away from the brushroll chamber. And it indeed seems to work because all the WindTunnel uprights tested by Consumer Reports scored very well in deep carpet cleaning. Even the Hoover Platinum Lightweight upright has a WT brush roll chamber that helps get dirt off the carpet and into the suction airflow.

There also seems to be some benefit to adding a bit of a “shelf space” either in front of or behind the brush roll. Kind of like the physics of a carpet sweeper, these “shelves” provide a protective place for dirt to land after being flicked out of the carpet nap. I think the early Panasonic power nozzles benefitted from these “landing shelves” which helped make them excellent carpet cleaners.

Hope Hoover continues to offer WindTunnel brush roll chambers on their cleaners in the future.

 

[kirbyklekter]

eurekaprince

Is that what the extra plastic curved piece of plastic is used for? It comes out easily for cleaning. I thought it had to be something that funneled the air in to a more concentrated flow out of the roller area. Makes since. Glad you mentioned this. It does seem to rattle a little adding to the general noise of the machine. I really like this machine. Nothing has gone wrong with this vacuum in the time I've had it,acquired in 2003.

 

[eurekaprince]

Yes....in the original WindTunnels, you could remove several of the plastic covers - using a screw driver - to clean out the suction channels. One of the segregated suction channels goes over the brush roll chamber to bring undisturbed suction to the front edge of the chamber. This is actually very very effective because a spinning brush roll often flings dirt forward to the front edge of the cleaner and away from the source of suction. The WT front edge suction channel sucks up the dirt that is flung forward. Imagine running a broom over the surface of a carpet - a lot of dirt gets flung forward - opposite from the direction you are sweeping.

This channel often needs clearing as it can easily clog with dirt. Whenever I used to change the bag on my parents SP WT Ultra, I would also remove the brushroll to clean out all the segregated suction channels.

 

[kirbyklekter]

This cleverness

By the time the Windtunnels came to be, TTI was calling the shots right? Do you know if Hoover or TTI designed WT's originally? Sorry if this is naive, I'm not up on when Hoover no longer had anything to do with Hoover products after TTI took the reins. Thanks for your input, I've learned a lot already.

 

[eurekaprince]

If I remember correctly, TTI bought Hoover from Maytag in 2007. The WindTunnel uprights debuted ten years before - in 1997. So TTI really had nothing to do with designing the original models.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

True

Mr. Dick Pike, (passed yesterday)  helped with Windtunnel.  It was probably the last 'brilliant idea of real Hoover.

 

[kirbyklekter]

RIP Mr. Pike

I like my Windtunnel even more knowing it has a bit of Hoover DNA so to speak.

 

[royalfan103]

RIP

Now I know who helped out with the Windtunnels. Thanks for the info and RIP Mr. Pike.

 

[eurekaprince]

Thank you Mr. Pike for your excellent work at Hoover. The WindTunnel design is quite an accomplishment. Rest in peace......

 

[huskyvacs]

Here's his obit

https://www.cantonrep.com/obituaries/pwoo0259231

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Thanks for posting this.

I have a great pic of me with both Dick and Joellen. I brought them Hoover embroidered towels.

 

[royalfan103]

Did they try to put the windtunnel Technology into the

Turbine tool? I just noticed that there’s designs that resemble the Windtunnel Designs..

 

[panasonicvac]

As much as I really like the self propelled Windtunnels, I honestly don't think they are that great all around. A big major design flaw with these is that the idler arm can break if you're not too careful with it. I had to replace mine when I first got my Windtunnel. And unfortunately I'm passing up on this one that my local thrift store has, it's got the same problem which is a shame cause I love the looks of these newer green Mexican versions. I'm not replacing another idler arm ever again.

 

[royalfan103]

Looks nice! I know it wphas an Emerald Green Tubrine tool…