Speed of Hoovering

[charles~richard]

Jack, one thing I know Stan's gonna say when he sees your videos -- "Oh, he's vacuuming MUCH too fast! He should be moving the Hoover back and forth much more slowly!"

Wasn't one of Hoover's ad campaigns something along the line of, "You don't have to work hard when using a Hoover, because the Hoover works hard for you" (*) -- emphasizing that you should clean with "slow, easy strokes" instead of "vigorously shoving the machine about."

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(* If the above is -not- a trademarked slogan, then I hereby declare all rights to it!! Copyright ©2007 and Trademarked <SUP>tm</SUP>2007 by Charles Richard Lester. Along with the brand name Lesterluxx®!!! Attested to this 9th day of January, 2007!! Just don't want anyone making a million bucks on something I dreamed up, if that IS the case, haha!!)
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Anyway.......

To me, there's just something so elegant and "old world" about these old Hoovers that they just make you want to go easy with them. Kinda like driving a Model A Ford -- you'll get there; it will take you a little longer, but the trip will be a lot more fun!

One of our friends was over tonight, a young (20-something) guy named Jorge. He's been here many times before and has seen some of my vacuum cleaners but never really paid them much mind. He does like the Electrolux XXX very much because it looks like a futuristic machine, he says.

But tonight when he was here, the 475 and 700 Special were still in the living room. When he saw them he said, "Wow! They're such beautiful machines!" I asked if he wanted to try one of them and he went to the 700 Special.

I plugged it in and showed him how to operate the handle release. He turned it on and when he heard the motor said, "It's so quiet! But listen to it throbbing on the rug!" I sprinkled down some carpet scent granules (NOT powder -- NEVER!!!!) and showed him how the agitator makes them dance.

He said, "These are such simple machines -- a motor, a power brush, a bag, a handle and a cord. What more do you really need to clean your rugs with?! Today's vacuums are so ugly and complicated, they make a loud noise and have very strong suction, but even this gentle old machine is obviously doing a great job of cleaning the rug. Do people really need a 20-amp vacuum cleaner?!"

I said that yes, modern vacuums have a lot of fancy things -- on-board computers and microchips, electric hoses, remote controls, blinking lights, sound effects, power drives, incredibly strong (and loud) motors ... all really just stuff to break down and cause a big repair cost!

I told him that most of today's machines run so fast and so hot that they will be lucky to last 7 years, let alone 70 - as these old Hoovers have lasted, and hardly are showing any signs of konking out anytime soon!

Then I played a little joke on him that I like to do, just to have a little fun with people.

I brought out my 541 - the oldest Hoover I have in the house. I said, "This Hoover is from 1924 --- as you can see it's kinda primitive looking, but it does do a great job. Let me turn it on for you so you can hear it. But I have to warn you, some of the later motor improvements aren't on here and it's reeeeeally noisy -- here, let me show you."

Then I make a big thing about carefully plugging it in, stepping my toe over the switch with readiness, poising my body away from the machine as if cringing from a shocking experience to come, squint my eyes and clench my teeth, and then ... PRESS the button!

Inevitably, people are looking a bit fearful and apprehensive and sometimes even stick their fingers in their ears, afraid of the huge racket it's gonna make!

Then when that incredibly soft, gently purring motor whirs into life, they just can't believe that it actually cleans the rug! But when I let them push it about and they hear dirt and dust klinkering in through the fan, they are convinced.

I did this little trick with Jorge and he really fell for it! Just before I turned it on he grabbed two pillows from the sofa and mashed them against his ears! When he saw I was having fun with him he turned very red and began laughing, and then expressed great amazement at how unbelievably quiet the motor is.

I doubt Jorge will begin collecting old Hoovers, but he certainly does now appreciate and understand the appeal of them. He said, "Now when I go home and have to see my Mom's butt-ugly purple plastic vacuum, I know I'm gonna hate it even more! I always have to stick my fingers in my ears or leave the room when she is using it! And you know what, when she is vacuuming, she puts on her Walkman and plays loud music so she doesn't have to listen to the vacuum!!"

And he said again, "It's just a motor, a power brush, a handle, a bag, and a cord!"

 

[74simon]

Cleaning efficiency/motor power

Charles, I've always suspected that the ever-increasing power of vacuum motors is pretty pointless. After all, how heavy is dust?

Part of the problem lies in the increased filtration of modern cleaners, with their multi-stage HEPA jobbies. These seem to restrict airflow to a considerable degree - over here, D*s*ns and the Hoover One both have a habit of overheating and cutting out because of them (the latter cleaner in particular). I can't help but feel that all this filtration is a bit of a gimmick really - when I was a kid, I had a severe dust allergy, which caused me to be hospitalized on at least one occasion (grown out of it now, thankfully), but I don't remember being ill after my mum using her Constellation, or my grandma using her Junior.

Interestingly, in 2004 Which? magazine (the UK equivalent of the Consumer's Association) tested vacuums, and the one with the best average pickup (empty and part full) managed 85%... rewind back to a similar test they did in November 1963, and EIGHT cleaners managed an average of 85% or better, including the Hoover Junior, Parnall (Eureka) Vibra-beat, Electrolux 65 and the Singer Magic Carpet! Not bad, especially considering that the Junior has only a 250 watt (about 1 amp) motor...

Funnily enough, the Junior performed better than the Senior (Convertible) in this test, as the latter cleaner dropped dramatically in efficiency (by about 40%) as the bag filled, despite being more effective when empty, while the Junior performed more consistently.

Even my Hooverette (a 1 amp suction only cleaner) does alright - despite its small motor and weak suction, I'm always suprised with how much dirt makes its way into the cleaner.

Oh, and I love the fact that these old machines are much more environmentally friendly - not only are they recycled, so to speak, but the power consumption is a fraction of modern machines. and as you say, they'll last much longer too!

 

[vintagehoover]

That's true, I was vacuuming much faster than I normally do; the reason for this was each one of those videos takes up about half the storage space on my digital camera's memory card. I rushed the cleaning to get as much demonstration possible in the least time! It just gets annoying having to do two videos, plug the camera into the computer, upload the videos, disconnect the camera, re-install it on the tripod, etc.

 

[frkirby511]

Simon, Charles-Richard, and Jack,

Love these old Hoovers!!

And yes: I remember my mother's Hoover dealer coming over to the house to bring bags or a belt or do some minor service on her Model 62. He was always reminding her and me that the vacuum works best when you move it slowly over the carpeting.

He would also always insist that when winding the cord on the handle prongs, to always make a good sized loop with the cord before starting to wind it on the handle so that it doesn't pull the cord.

 

[charles~richard]

A lot of people get irked when I point this out,

but the fact is that for, what, 70 years or so, people used vacuum cleaners without hepa filters and they weren't falling out right and left from asthma and allergy attacks!

Granted, there are people with dust allergies and sensitivity to airborne particles but I have a feeling the overall percentage of the population with these issues is miniscule -- far smaller that the advertising campaigns would have us believe. I agree that HEPA is mostly HYPEA! Along with a lot of the other junk that many modern vacuum cleaners are loaded down with.

And as I have said many times, the (vastly overstated) problem of older machines being "dirt belchers and dust blowers" only presents a delicious problem to us fanatics: That just means we get to vacuum again, hahahahaha!

And James, I was just teasing you about your videos --- I realize you had to make the most of a short amount of time. Stan will be so thrilled to see those old Hoovers in action that he won't say a word about your technique, I am sure!!