Top Side Canister Cord Rewinds

[eurekaprince]

I have always wondered why more manufacturers do not offer more top-side cord rewind ports on more canisters. It’s so much easier to pull out the cord from the top, and much better for your back to be standing up even when holding the plug as you press the rewind button.

Eureka offered this once on Rally cleaners, and Hoover did the same on their Spirit canisters too. Vorwerk Tiger canister have this, and now I see a vintage Rowenta cleaner had it as well…see clip below. The Rowenta design is very smart as it looks like the aperture is protected from anything falling into it and damaging the cord reel.

Thoughts?

 

[eurekaprince]

Another benefit: you can rewind the cord even when the canister is standing on end.

 

[bnsd60m9200]

there's an easy answer for this. cord damage. with a top mounted winder, the cord would constantly be bent going around the edge of the machine to an outlet. over time this would cause premature failure of the cord.

this problem is exemplified by cord wound uprights. many vintage eureka f/g (and rarer hoover convertible) have damaged molded plug where the vinyl is torn out with the exposed insulation. hoover fixed this by having the cord winder sticking out of the side on the concept one. eureka just dumped the winder altogether.

it may be slightly more inconvenient for the user, but your machine won't have a damaged cord simply from using it as intended. that's why almost all canisters have side/rear mounted winders.

 

[eurekaprince]

Thanks for your reply…but I am not sure if having the cord exit the top of a canister would cause any more damage than having it exit from the back or side. The turn-down really isn’t stressful enough to cause any damage to the cord, and if the cord exits horizontally from the top like the Rowenta or the Vorwerk, there is no bend at all at the top.

There may be just as much potential damage to the cord and plug possible with a rear port because if the user has not fully retracted the cord, and then they store the canister on end, that’s when potential crushing of the cord or plug or prongs could happen.

 

[kloveland]

Guess, I'm not following the logic here. I don't see how a cord would receive any less damage coming out the side vs the top.

 

[paul]

Hi Brian,

You make a valid point. One reason designers may have opted for a lower cord winder mount may have been to avoid a tripping hazard in case a user would leave the vacuum plugged in if her/his cleaning were interrupted. A higher outlet could pose a greater risk in theory.

Electrolux Corp. (USA) used a design element from 1954 to 1979 that users could find helpful in reaching for a cord end on a lower-mounted cord winder to protract it—a cord clip—excluding commercial canisters, household and commercial uprights, and tank models: T, early G/GH/Golden G, 1205, 1205 50th Jubilee, 1401 Super J. The cord clip was a separate metal piece on the non-automatics and integrated in the plastic handle on the automatics. It allowed users to secure the end of the cord about 6-inches from the cord wrap or cord winder. The Floor Beautifiers/Floor Pros equipped with cord winders (1983 to circa 2009) also used a clip to hold the cord due to the lack a locking mechanism.

Incidentally, as far as I know this feature was unique to Electrolux USA—no other AB Electrolux current or former subsidiaries or affiliates incorporated it.

Here are photos of the (1) Model L and (2) Model G:

 

[eurekaprince]

Hi Paul,

Thanks for your reply…it makes a lot of sense: the top side cord reel could create more of a trip hazard. And yet the whole assembly of a canister vac is one big trip hazard, including the hose that is often attached at the top of the cleaner.

I really think the Rowenta shown in the video has a great design: the cord exits from a covered port on the top of the canister, but is aligned parallel to the top of the canister. So much more convenient than anything else I have seen over the years….especially the ability to rewind the cord even when the vac is sitting on end.

 

[paul]

You bet, Brian!

I hadn't watched the Rowenta video till now; that does look a sleek and user-friendly design.

 

[eurekaprince]

Updated information: with Miele’s C3 canister, there is enough of an indentation on the side of the rear of the canister to rewind the cord while the cleaner is sitting on end! If the vacuum is facing you so you can see which button to press with your hand, the cord can easily retract through the gap on the side of the body. Just discovered this - which is nice to know!

 

[kirbylux77]

Paul, just so you know the cord clip on the Electrolux canisters was NOT unique to just the Electrolux USA models.

Here in Canada, the lower line models in the Electrolux 80 series canisters, from 1957 to 1973 - the models 83, 86 & 87 - were equipped with a cord halo as standard equipment, and the cord winder was optional equipment for those models. On the metal buckle which was used to secure the winder or halo to the top of the vacuum body, on the models that had the cord halo there was a metal bracket built into that clip that you would press the cord into when wound up. It had the purpose of keeping the end of the cord with the plug in place when wound up on the halo. It could also be used to unwind a small section of cord and hold the rest in place on the halo, if the user only needed a small amount of cord for a small cleaning job.

By the way, if you ever see a model 87, grab it immediately, as those are EXTREMELY RARE! It looks just like a Model 89, but it's stripped down - no cord rewinder and no Automatic Control. Since the 89 was the model that was "pushed" and sold most often by the dealers, that's the one you see much more often.

 

[paul]

Good to know, Kirbylux77. I was hoping someone would verify or correct me on that.

Thanks for the tip. I do have a ZB88 (with bumpers) that I purchased from Doug Smith and really like; so I would definitely go for a ZB86.

 

[paul]

I mean ZB87.