Lady Marmalade Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 A house we're looking at has a central vac system. DH asked me about it and I just could not fathom why I would want a central vac. What's so difficult about pulling out my trusty bissel and vacuuming with it? The house has mixed floors- half carpet, some wood, some tile. Am I poo-pooing something that I could learn to love? Or should we go ahead and pull the system out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbelle Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 I do really like the central vac.. I have 2 stories, so I have a hose upstairs and one downstairs. I have no carpeted floors. I do have 2 area rugs and it all works fine. We also have a kick hole in the kitchen so I can just sweep crumbs into it. This I find less convenient than I thought, because sometimes if a child has dropped something bigger than a crumb it's easier just to pull ou the dustpan. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arctic Bunny Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 I use both. The hard floors are so much easier with the central vac (main floor), but I send the kids with the Miele canister to do carpets and stairs. I am, however, saving up for a most wonderful power head for the c/vac for upstairs. Basement will still be canister. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 I wouldn't pull it out. I mean . . . why would you? If it's there and works well you can use it or not. Pull out your Bissell if you prefer. But I don't see any reason to remove a central vac system that works. If nothing else it's your back-up vacuum in case your trusty Bissell conks out. Our previous house had one. It was far and away the best vacuum I've ever had in terms of suction. But dealing with the hose got on my nerves, so sometimes I did pull out the regular vac! But the central vac was fabulous for stairs and for high things (getting cobwebs from the ceiling corners, vacuuming the vents in the ceiling, the ceiling fan blades). Also, our canister was in the garage and we had an extra hose and attachments for vacuuming the cars. That was pretty awesome. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arctic Bunny Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 ETA: also great for vacuuming out vehicles in the garage. And don’t pull it out! Poor c/vac isn’t hurting anyone ;) Congrata on the move! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Marmalade Posted March 7, 2018 Author Share Posted March 7, 2018 ETA: also great for vacuuming out vehicles in the garage. And don’t pull it out! Poor c/vac isn’t hurting anyone ;) Congrata on the move! :ohmy: Shhhh! It's not certain yet. I'm very, very nervous and anxious about it. We'll hopefully have some certainty next week. DH says the vacuum is in the basement and for sure two sets of hoses- one in the garage currently, so that makes sense now. He's been over there much more than I have to know for sure. We were thinking about pulling it out because I'm terrified of rodents in the house. But now, thinking about it after reading the comments, it makes sense that it's a closed system, so there should be no chance of mice using it as a little tunnel system. Now he's going to look for the kick plate in the kitchen. He's glad I asked here before he did something that damaged the system! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 Oh, I don't think you should remove it. I think you should try it and see how you like it. Seems like walking around with a hose would be better than dragging/pushing around a machine. And it would be quieter, because the actual mechanism is outside some place, right? Does it have attachments? a power brush for carpet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 I grew up using one and really wish I had one now. I am so DONE with hauling my extremely heavy vacuum cleaner up and down our steep, narrow stairway. The one in my childhood home did not have a kick plate but that would be delightful. I wonder how hard it is to install a system in an already existing house..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Marmalade Posted March 7, 2018 Author Share Posted March 7, 2018 Oh, I don't think you should remove it. I think you should try it and see how you like it. Seems like walking around with a hose would be better than dragging/pushing around a machine. And it would be quieter, because the actual mechanism is outside some place, right? Does it have attachments? a power brush for carpet? The main vacuum is in the basement. But that would be strange, wouldn't it? To be vacuuming a space without the noise of the vacuum? No idea about attachments. Now DH is very, very curious and will look closer where the attachments are to see what he sees. And to look around the house for the places to plug the hose in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosch Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 Love my central vac! I have hoses upstairs and downstairs. The vac is in the garage where I can clean vac the cars too. I also have the dustpan option in my kitchen. I sweep up the stuff and then hit the switch and it gets whisked away. It's the most wonderful thing ever. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4Kiddos Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 (edited) We had one in our old house and I loved it. It was amazing for stairs. I have a Miele vacuum for our current house that I really love but I thought the central vacuum in our last house was easier to use. Definitely don't rip it out! Edited March 7, 2018 by 4Kiddos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Marmalade Posted March 7, 2018 Author Share Posted March 7, 2018 Well, it isn't very often that the Hive is in consensus, but since no one has chimed in with even a little dislike for the central vac, I guess it will stay and I will learn how to use it. If we end up in that house, of course. Thanks all! Who would have thought one could get excited about vacuuming! I hope we can get some details done soon so I can start cleaning! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Marmalade Posted March 7, 2018 Author Share Posted March 7, 2018 There is really no downside. They’re lighter, quieter, more powerful, and as long as you have enough hoses and ports there is almost no place you’d need another type of vacuum in the house or car, except for wetness (shop vac) or sawdust (shop vac is a better choice here too). Oooh, thank you for this. I guarantee the resident handyman would have used the vac in the garage for the wood debris. I will make sure and tell him to keep the shop vac! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Marmalade Posted March 7, 2018 Author Share Posted March 7, 2018 You *could* use it for dry debris, but you’ll have to change your filter more often and it might gunk up the hose a bit. We always keep a separate shop vac for that - between chemicals and wet messes and sawdust it seemed like a poor choice to use the main home vacuum cleaner ;) Oh, no. I will just tell him that The Ladies have spoken and declared the central vac off limits to wet mess and sawdust and he will accept it as The Gospel According To The Hive. Anyway, he has two shop vacs in his possession, so this will just encourage him to keep them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted March 8, 2018 Share Posted March 8, 2018 I love my central vac. I assume my next house won't have it. I will miss it. We don't have a baseboard type floor thing though. Previous owners didn't put it in. Oh well. We are surviving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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