Lux Talk Around the Water Cooler

[funeraldirector]

Hi All,

I was at the fair this morning chewing the fat with some of the lux guys I used to work with. The going rate on the Lux Platinum is $2499.99 and the Fresh Era lightweight upright is running between $800-$900 (just outrageous) though discounted at the fair a bit. It is interesting to note that sales of the Classic and Legacy have been replaced about 90% by the Lux Platinum here. The Laundry Pure looks like a neat set up as well and a nice way to get really clean clothes and safeguard the environment. Rest of the line (Classic, Commercial, Legacy, Guardian Upright and CentraLux) save for the Guardian Air Platinum and Guardian heater looks both tired and very overpriced, continuing to worship before the altar of mediocrity in terms of technology when compared to the competition.

The guys said there is a new HEPA rated bag in the works for the Platinum vacuum due to ongoing leaks and subsequent soiling of the pre-motor HEPA filter. There have apparently been issues with the bags' quality overall since it was outsourced to China, not just the Platinum style but all styles. The guys were telling me Lux has purchased the equipment to again manufacture their own bags in-house at Bristol, Va.

On a final note, I sold my first-gen Guardian Platinum and last week picked up my new 90th anniversary model. Love the software upgrades and quieter power nozzle that does not show finger prints. The nozzle is a real monster with the HPO 48011 green brush roller. Do yourselves a favor and get two additional black wands so you have a dedicated set on the combo rug and floor tool like the Silverado did. I always missed that with my first Platinum.

This is simply what I heard in reference to bag manufacturing returning to Bristol.
Does anyone else know anything about this?


Brian

 

[pr-21]

That is good to hear.........

I am one of the people complaining about the Lux Guardian Platinum bags. I had called Aerus on numerous times. I have also had issues and sent bags to them for the lux style c bags to see what I was talking about. I actually stocked up on Surething and Germgrabber Bags Style C and U, until they get their act together. It is about time!!!!!

MY Aerus Lux Guardian Platinum is in its box for trade in purpose for the Lux Legacy 90th Anniversary Edition, in the near future......


PR-21

 

[kirbyloverdan]

And I have

The very first one and mine still does NOT leak any dust my filters are still pure white

Dan

 

[electromatik]

I think Lux Legacy and Classic make great low-tier and mid-tier machines. Nobody wants to make their mid-level machines as nice as the top of the line model. Last I heard Aerus was installing pre-motor filters in all canisters... I think all the canisters should have HEPA filters at the exhaust with rubber gasketing.

As a side note I watched a demo video on youtube of the Aerus store in Richmond Va. He showed the Centralux. It had a muffler to reduce the sound of the main unit and the unit had lights that showed when full, overheating, etc... I also did not know that the switch on the handle turned the main unit on and off in addition to the power nozzle... Pretty fantastic system.

 

[godfreys_guy]

This bag issue is absurd~

Why don't they just change to the Swedish made bags the Sauber Intelligence uses? They are HEPA rated, don't leak and have a really good latex sealing collar.



http://www.godfreys.com.au/sauber-s...VrW-XBMS68i_opkA2So-2SOE80RVkhDCYyRoCRKbw_wcB

 

[kirbylux77]

Much agreed, Patrick! I was totally surprised when the Guardian Platinum came out a couple of years ago, to see a Aerus made in Slovenia, by Lux International no less. But to think Aerus would be so DUMB to go ahead & design a paper bag when they already had a bag supplier & didn't need to make alternate arrangements for a paper bag. Whoever it was in the boardroom who thought of that idea needs to be sacked! Absolutely STUPID idea, especially when most consumers probably wouldn't consider a bagged cleaner unless it did use HEPA bags, this would have been the perfect opportunity to point out to customers that the Guardian Platinum was using new ideas & a departure from their usual cleaners. But then again, we are talking about a very traditional company that frankly is behind the times & needs to get with it & revamp their product selection.

Speaking of the paper bag leakage, though, I think I have figured out exactly what the problem with them is. It's not the bag itself, the type of filter paper or filtration lining they were using, it's that darned blue sealing strip at the back of the bag that holds it together! I recently ordered some Home Solutions bags to try out in my Grand Marquise, & the first two bags I have used, this has happened with BOTH of them. I cut a microfilter pad to put behind the bag, & after this pack of bags is used up, no more Aerus bags for me! I'll stick to the JohnnyVac HEPA bags, & use the Arm&Hammer paper bags from WalMart for messy jobs with dirt I don't want to leave in my vacuum. The filtration lining may be thinner & less effective than the Home Solutions bags, but the back of the bag is folded over & glued, manufactured the way most other brand's bags are, so there's no sealing strip to fail & cause an issue with dust leakage.

Rob

 

[kirbylux77]

Chris

"I think Lux Legacy and Classic make great low-tier and mid-tier machines." No offense, but you are serious, right?! The Classic & Legacy are NOT good lower tier & mid tier machines! No normal consumer in their right mind is going to pay $1,000 CDN for a Aerus Classic canister if they see a Miele, Riccar/Simplicity or Sebo canister with the better features, HEPA bags & sealed HEPA filters. Aerus needs to do something QUICK to these models & update them so they stop losing new customers to other brands.

Rob

 

[electromatik]

No kirbylux77 I'm not kidding

If you'll note my post, I did state that I felt all the models should have HEPA filters. What Aerus probably thought was that the paper bags would make cost of ownership cheaper and the machine's are quite expensive already. I don't understand the fascination with "HEPA" bags... There is NO bag that removes all HEPA in the US rests with the Department of Energy and REQUIRES 40 feet of filter particles. There is also NO true "HEPA" bag as the only official definition of media folded accordion style (an impossibility for a vacuum bag). Companies can define HEPA pretty much however they want as there is no laws stating otherwise. I find the claim of HEPA bags implausible. I also hear from many people that they hate their bagless machine and can't wait to get a bagged model. I see no direct evidence that the US public cares whether the bags are cloth or paper. Moving on, I still don't feel the Legacy and Classic are that bad in my opinion... These are lower tier models. Miele and the rest have lower tier models also. Can you name features that those other companies' lower tier models have? How many provide a full sized electric power nozzle (with shutoff protection), electric hose, and an electric turbo tool? I think they all provide on board attachments but do the lock together like Aerus tools? I do know one thing, Sebo's motors are the weakest of the three. Seventy inches of waterlift isn't much. Waterlift's connection to vacuum power, airflow, and suction are unmistakable and undebatable. The higher the waterlift number, the better the vacuum motor performs in terms of air flow generally speaking. Aerus puts the same high powered motors in all their machines. Aerus machines have electrostatically charged after filters and I bet they filter pretty close to HEPA. Sebo hasn't always ranked highly in filtration tests. They did one in Germany in 2009 which found the Sebo upright tested was one of the highest emitters. Granted, Miele hired the lab to do the testing so it could show biased, but they invited others to do the same test so it doesn't appear biased in any way. There's no real evidence available to judge whether Aerus is "losing" customers to others either. Neither Sebo nor Miele sell in high numbers either. The market share of high-end vacuums is very, very low. Aerus still sells quite a few of these old models. But to be honest, Lux has a LONG HISTORY of focusing on the top end model. They usually try to sell the highest end model while letting the old models wither, keeping them for those who won't spend on the top machine. Remember the "thrift" bare bones model? Remember the 50's and 60's models still sold in the 1970's? Remember the "special" Olympia and Silverado bare bones models? I've owned (well partly it was my Mom's) a Kirby for 15 years. If you want to see an outdated machine, that's it. They are virtually devoid of any modern features even today. On board attachments on Kirby? No. Low profile design to get under furniture on Kirby? Nope. On board hose on Kirby? No. Ease of use with Kirby? LOL! Quiet Kirby's? Hardly. People here sometimes consider it sacrilege to criticize Kirby but Aerus seemingly gets no respect at all. In my opinion, give me ANY Aerus over ANY Kirby and you can keep the Kirby... I didn't say any of this to make you angry or to be smug so if I did, my apologies. My opinions are my own and yours are your own. Opinions don't constitute undisputable facts, however.

 

[electromatik]

Darn I hate mistakes... The 4th, 5th, and 6th sentences above should read:

There is no bag that removes ALL particles. There is also NO true "HEPA" bag. The only definition of HEPA in the US rests with the Department of Energy and requires 40 feet of filter media folded accordion style (an impossibility for a vacuum bag).

 

[ctvacman]

Pr-21

Is your platinum you have in the box the first generation? If so would you be willing to sell it.

Colby

 

[eluxca]

Pics of new bags

I thought I would share photos of the new fleece bags for the Platinum. I ordered them from Aerus online. They cost a bit more than the paper bags but will be worth it if they contain the fine dust that the previous version did not. I had quite the issue with the paper bags, although I understand others did not. Is Tennessee dirt made of smaller particles?

The first thing to notice is there is no vertical seam now. A number of users believe that was the weak link. Secondly, the collar is again thicker than the second-run paper bags by about 0.75 mm. If you liked the handle to lift out a full bag, you're out of luck - that is gone.

The package now calls them H12 Hepa bags, a designation that is designed to use the term "Hepa" but not promise true Hepa (not possible with flat media, read above). I truly hope these are the answer to an embarrassing issue for Aerus. If they are indeed making these bags in-house, kudos to them for making a capital investment that will build goodwill with their customers. I see signs that Aerus is making needed changes to their customer service to return to the glory days.

And by the way, the customer rep I spoke with was the sweetest young woman!

 

[williamr1248]

Lux talk around the water cooler

John,
Thanks for posting the pictures and information about the new Aerus bags. Hope that will solve the leaking problems on the new machine.
Good news if they are going to start making the bags themselves again.

 

[dysonman1]

My good friend, and Vice President of Aerus - Rich Luisi, sent me some of the new synthetic HEPA bags several weeks ago. He also sent a new pre-motor HEPA filter. Rich provides the Vacuum Cleaner Museum with samples of all brand new Aerus vacuums. I had complained about the very fine dust leakage through the blue bags on a number of occasions. I am very happy to report that the new H12 bags work properly, like a Miele or Simplicity HEPA bag does. No dust leakage at all. When I got the new bags, I wiped out the bag compartment thoroughly and changed the pre-motor filter. We vacuumed the vestibule rugs here at the Factory for two weeks with the Platinum, as those rugs get a LOT of asphalt dust and chat dust from the parking lot. Over 200 employees walk on them everyday, not to mention Museum visitors. The new bags leaked NOTHING. It would have been easy to see inside the black bag compartment. Anyone with a Platinum Edition should call Vickie at Aerus (1-800-243-9078) and order these bags. She's a delightful person to speak with and will be able to get your order placed right away.

 

[marcusprit]

That's another cleaner I wish was available over here. Seems to have very powerful suction/airflow and very solidly built.

 

[kirbysthebest]

Bless me Scott-Fetzer for I have sinned.

Though my home is still, and will remain a Kirby Home, I received my new Platinum Wednesday of this week, and ---I'm in love.
Quiet, my goodness this thing is quiet, all you really hear is just the woosh of the air. I did get the new synthetic P bags with the Lux and after two uses, don't see any leakage at all. (Though most of what I vacuum up is American Eskimo dog hair).

For someone with visual impairments, the extra bright LED headlight is a big bonus, and the power nozzle, though not silent, is much quieter than previous models.

Haven't quite figured out the Auto setting, so have just left it on manual high for most vacuuming, but when I used the auto with the crevice tool I did see it reduce speed.

Still learning things about it, but am very impressed so far. Only issue, and it's my issue not the machines. I prefer an upright because I like to back out of the room as I vacuum, with a tank type machine you are always kicking the machine backwards out of your way, or you turn around and drag it behind you stepping on what you have just vacuumed. Not the Platinum's issue, but more my preference.

 

[funeraldirector]

Lux Bags

Hi Guys,

I will order a pack of the new cloth bags and a pre-filter and give this a shot. It is interesting with both of my Platinum vacuums that dust leakage in my Home Solutions bags was limited to a spot right in front of the intake opening about the size of a tennis ball. The tell-tale stain on all the bags was the same and looked a lot like Nestle Quik chocolate powder. My new unit has less than an hour of use and the HEPA is well coated with what we believe is Kirby Lavender Suds residue from all the pooing of three white carpets. This is what life is like in a home with a three year old German Shorthaired Pointer who can't seem to wipe her feet when she comes in from out back. Mine did not seem to leak at or around the latex seal or cardboard disk on the front of the bag since dust did not accumulate on the back of the bag door or down the sides of the bag cage. It appeared to go right through the blue paper at that particular spot. I agree this outing was designed to reduce the TCO of the unit not address filtration as the new cloth bags have now done.

Electromatic,

Interesting stats on HEPA. This is my first use of standard Lux bags in about 20 years. I always used Lux IOTA bags which were a spun-woven poly bag that filtered to .1 micron (three times finer than HEPA) in all my original Guardians and the Epic 8000 cleaner. To this day, as far as I am concerned, the IOTA was the best vacuum cleaner bag ever made by any company. The down side with a bag that thick (about 3/16") is the suction drops a little sooner, but NEVER did I have to wipe out a bag compartment, have a dusty motor or anything but a snow white filter when you split them with a Sawzall.

Kirbysthebest,

Congrats on your new machine. For cleaning ability I would choose Kirby and for overall durability definitely Kirby. However, the Lux Platinum is a fantastic vacuum and I think your time in the confessional both will be rather brief, and your sins quickly forgiven. Might say you've "seen the light" so to speak.


Brian

 

[eluxca]

No problem, Rob. I have yet to use a bag, but likely will this weekend.
Funeraldirector, I absolutely agree the Iota bags were the best. I wish I could find a stash for my Renaissance.

 

[countryguy]

Yesterday I called the closest Aerus dealer in Barrie, ON. The woman I spoke with didn't even know any about there being the new bags for the Guardian. She called another dealer and they did have the new bags. Since I have an unopened case of 12 bags I asked her if I could exchange them for the new type. She didn't know and said she would have to talk to the store manager and call me back next week.

On another note, I just finished vacuuming with the Guardian and discovered that the bag door will close WITHOUT a bag in place but acccording to my manual it states that the door will NOT close without a bag. To all you Guardian owners, how does it work for you?

Thanks.
Gary

 

[kirbyloverdan]

Gary Mine will

NOT close without a bag in it .

Dan