A vacuum cleaner is the most effective of cleaning tools; it can also be the more expensive. There are many different types of vacuum with many different features. So before you buy a top rated vacuum cleaner make sure you know what type of vacuum cleaner is best for your needs.
Choosing the best vacuum cleaner can be confusing. To help make things clear you should know what the different types of vacuum are, what the main features you can find on a vacuum cleaner, and want you type of flooring you will be using a vacuum cleaner on.
There are two main types of vacuum cleaner: upright and cylinder. Both offer advantages and disadvantages. Before deciding if you should by a canister or upright, you should ask yourself a few questions. The following guidelines will help you find the answer.
Upright vacuum cleaners are heavier than cylinder vacuums. An upright vacuum cleaner can be more difficult to manoeuvre and less suited to cleaning small gaps and spaces. If weight is an issue, then you are best off with a canister vacuum. Many uprights come with attachments to help you clean those more hard-to-get-at places. The Oreck XL upright vacuum cleaner is one of the lightest on the market, weighing in at only 8lbs! However, the Oreck does not come with attachments, and you have to wind on the cord by hand. The main advantage of upright vacuum cleaners is suction power. The motor is nearer the vacuum head than a cylinder.
Cylinder vacuum cleaners are easier to use because the motor units tend to be smaller and you can vacuum a large area with the head, without having to move the motor. Most cylinder vacuum cleaners come with attachments that are housed inside them for quick retrieval and put-away. The Electrolux Harmony canister vacuum is an excellent vacuum and has been designed to be ultra quiet.
Both upright and canister vacuum cleaner offer features to make cleaning better, or more convenient, or safer. The following is a list of the main features that come with vacuum cleaners. It should be borne in mind that the more features a vacuum cleaner has, the more expensive it will be.
Power
A vacuum cleaner with powerful suction can depend on many things but the wattage of the motor is a very good indicator of its power. The more Watts a vacuum has, the more powerful it is. A good figure for a cylinder cleaner is around 1400 Watts, and 1300 for an upright.
Bag or Bagless
This seems to be the latest, and most confusing, feature on many vacuum cleaners. Until recently, all vacuum cleaners collected dirt in a bag. However, this changed when Dyson vacuum cleaners came on to the market. The main disadvantage with vacuums that use bags is loss of suction as the bag fills up. A bagless vacuum like the Dyson DC07 upright vacuum cleaner does not use dust bags but induces suction by means of centrifugal force. Vacuums that do not use bags do not loose suction power. Bagless vacuum cleaners tend to be more expensive that ones that use bags. Another disadvantage of bagless vacuum cleaners is empty the dust cup. Bagged models can be more hygienic because the dirt and dust is collected in a sealed bag. If you or anyone in your house is asthmatic then it is better to go for a bagged cleaner.
Filtration
When a vacuum sucks up dirt some particles are expelled out the exhaust of the vacuum. The type of filter determines the size and number of particles that are expelled. There are now three types of filters on offer. Standard filtration is now usually found in only low cost vacuum cleaners. If you buy a vacuum cleaner with standard filtration, make sure you look for one with more than one filtration level. S-class and HEPA filters greatly reduce the number and size of particles that are emitted back into the air. These types of filter retain up to 99.97% of dust, down to 0.3 microns (microscopic in size). Allergy sufferers should only consider using HEPA filters. There are now many top rated HEPA vacuum cleaners, the Eureka 3684D canister vacuum being one of the best.
Other Types of Vacuum Cleaners
There are many other types of vacuum cleaners offering specialized cleaning capabilities. Stick vacuum cleaner are light weight and mean for small cleaning jobs and are great for high area such as the tops of curtains. Handheld vacuum cleaners are also meant for clearing up spills and typically come with a wall mounting and charging unit.
Steam vacuum cleaners use steam to lift out dirt from carpets. These are very effective in getting out ground in dirt. They are not that difficult to use and a good quality steam vacuum like the Hoover SteamVac should leave the carpet dry to the touch after use. Finally, Wet and Dry vacuum cleaners are modular units. They can be used in dry mode exactly like theirs more common counterparts. But they can also be used to clean your carpet with water and carpet shampoo, leaving your carpet clean and sweet smelling. The Eureka InstaRinse Cleaning System is an excellent wet to dry vacuum.
Deciding on what vacuum cleaner is best is first deciding on what your requirement are. There are many excellent vacuum cleaners on the market from companies like Hoover, Dyson, Eureka and Electrolux. All these companies – and others – make 'the best vacuum', but if it is the best vacuum cleaner for cleaning your carpets, depends on your exact requirements.