I have Rainbow Rep coming to my house

[pr-21]

I have a Rainbow SE PE and a Black E2. I empty both of mine in the toilet, BUT first I always


reach in the basin and put out the carpet fuzz. It is usually floating in a clump and then I throw


it in the trash can next to the toilet. I flush the rest and rinse the basin several times into the toilet


as well and then dry the basin and set it on a shelf in the closet. I also take the separator off and clean


it with the brush provided. I dry the flange underneath the separator and put it back on. 5 minute


job. I also use the genuine scents in my water. I have never had a clog in my toilet system using the


Rainbow.


 


PR-21


Bud

 

[Ladykatherine328]

Just curious to hear if any of you guys like rainbow vacuums.. I currently have a miele and love it. is there anything I should look for?

I just got one because I liked the idea of the water picking up the dirt instead of a vacuum bag, which can blow out dust on the other end since I have terrible dust allergies. I just finished vacuuming some small nooks and crannies in my apartment, and the dirt filled the water tank. It picks up an amazing amount of dirt! I also like that it's a hepa air purifier on the off times and you can put scents that you buy from the company in it and it makes your whole house smell really good.

 

[cheesewonton]

I just got one because I liked the idea of the water picking up the dirt instead of a vacuum bag, which can blow out dust on the other end since I have terrible dust allergies. I just finished vacuuming some small nooks and crannies in my apartment, and the dirt filled the water tank. It picks up an amazing amount of dirt! I also like that it's a hepa air purifier on the off times and you can put scents that you buy from the company in it and it makes your whole house smell really good.

Ask yourself why, if Rainbows or similar water vacuums from Hyla, Big Power and others are so good at filtration, why they need a pleated HEPA filter? The reason is that water doesn't catch all the fine dust and germs. The HEPA filter, which often as not becomes damp and moldy if you are not on top of your filter maintenance, is what catches what the water misses.

Any canister vacuum using high quality HEPA rated synthetic dust bags like Hoover Style S and Style Y, or Kenmore Style O and Style Q just to name a couple, combined with a HEPA rated exhaust filter will capture every bit as much dust and germs as any water vacuum and not put you through the drill of washing water bowls and cleaning and drying a separator after every use. Every couple of weeks you change the bag, and many modern dust bags have ways to seal the bag when you remove it. Then you change the pre-motor filter generally every sixth full bag. Much simpler and neater than a water vacuum and every bit as well filtered.

 

[centralsweeper63]

Yeah, I agree with you cheesewonton. Years ago a rainbow did have a filtration advantage, however with advancing filtration technologies ( and no I don't mean bagless) it has slowly become redundant.

 

[mark40511]

It's because there's NO room for ERROR with rainbows. Unfortunately, most people I think end up ERRORING. Those vacuums get sent to vac shops, vac shop owners sees a fitlhy rainbow (time and time again) - vac shop owner assumes" these things are trash and don't work" without thinking that possibly it's the people, not the machine. You really have to be on top of not screwing up when using a rainbow (especially if you're in a really dirty environment). Fill the basin slightly above the dome.... when that water gets too gross, STOP, change it, rinse/repeat... When done, wipe the seals, underneath, clean the separator/ basin, put rainbow away.... 99% of people are NOT going to do this. I'm one of the 1%. My first HEPA was changed after 5 years and it didn't even need changing. I was curious and cut into it. I wanted to see what it looked like. A wee bit of dirt but the actual filter had lots of life and even the smell of the filter itself had that "rainbow" smell. Not a funky smell.

 

[vacerator]

My aunt had a Rainbow D 2 chrome dome with the Eureka power head. Her house was always dust free. She loved it. Clean the separator periodically and always use clean water.

 

[human]

My only experiences with Rainbows have been peripheral at best. I had a girlfriend once who lived in a condo that came with Rainbow in the closet, and in the closet it stayed. She said it was simply too much hassle to use more than once or twice a year. I also had a housemate at about the same time, who sold Rainbows to put himself through school. He would endlessly sing their praises, but I never could get him to vacuum the house. The only cleaning he ever did was to shine up his demo unit for the next home visit. My takeaway from those experiences was that any vacuum that was that much of a hassle to use maintain wasn't a worthwhile investment for me. But hey, everyone's needs and priorities are different.

 

[real1shep]

Ask yourself why, if Rainbows or similar water vacuums from Hyla, Big Power and others are so good at filtration, why they need a pleated HEPA filter? The reason is that water doesn't catch all the fine dust and germs. The HEPA filter, which often as not becomes damp and moldy if you are not on top of your filter maintenance, is what catches what the water misses.

Any canister vacuum using high quality HEPA rated synthetic dust bags like Hoover Style S and Style Y, or Kenmore Style O and Style Q just to name a couple, combined with a HEPA rated exhaust filter will capture every bit as much dust and germs as any water vacuum and not put you through the drill of washing water bowls and cleaning and drying a separator after every use. Every couple of weeks you change the bag, and many modern dust bags have ways to seal the bag when you remove it. Then you change the pre-motor filter generally every sixth full bag. Much simpler and neater than a water vacuum and every bit as well filtered.

This is absolutely bang on. In lab tests, certain detritus particulates known to be common in houses bounce right off the water and head for the exhaust. Before they had the HEPA exhaust filters(generations of Rainbows), those particulates made it back out into the living space. I believe talc was one of those particulates.

Growing up, we had the old Rexairs, and the selling feature was the dirty water they generated. In our house, the water always dumped out black into the toilet from the basin with all the dawgs. Fascinated by them from my youth, but really no advantage today in using them unless you feel all the maintenance work in owning one buys you vacuum kudos points.

Kevin

 

[centralsweeper63]

Raainbows are like using a kirby with the demo unit on I suppose. Very awkward, lower filtration and worse performance.

 

[cheesewonton]

Raainbows are like using a kirby with the demo unit on I suppose. Very awkward, lower filtration and worse performance.

Years ago there was a perfectly good Rainbow E series sitting in the electronic waste at a local thrift shop. Since the store was going to toss it I took it home. It had the power nozzle and both hoses but no other attachments. What surprised me was just how little suction and airflow they have. I asked the local vac shop owner, a friend by now ( lol ) who services lots of Rainbows and he just shrugged his shoulders and said that's how they are.