Electrolux Central Vac

[Pat]

I have been reading various opinions of different brands of central vacuums on the net, and I don't know if we got a "lemon" or what. We built a new house about a year and a half ago and had an Electrolux installed during construction. From the very first, I questioned whether the suction was strong enough, as i would find cat hair and "fuzz" on the darker areas of my color block area rug. In addition to the poor suction, I really had issues with dragging a 30 foot hose around. We have a timberframe home, with large rooms, and it was quite a job. Finally in desperation, we purchased a Hoover Wind Tunnel, and for the last two weeks I have been dumping and dumping and dumping cat hair and lint, dust, whatever because this Hoover is picking up SO MUCH MORE than I could ever hope the Electrolux to do.

Everything I have read on the internet tells me that the central should pick up loads more, with better suction, but I have to say, if anyone were to ask me, I would say "STICK WITH AN UPRIGHT"!

Does anyone have any ideas as to why my central unit doesn't suck? All in all, I think even if it did work efficiently, I would still rather drag around a 30 foot electrical cord than a 30 foot heavy hose.

Thanks for your opinions,

Pat

[Twayne]

So much depends on the installation itself, the vacuum itself, etc., it's impossible to say. One thing I do know is that if the central vac doesn't use beater bars (just vacuum) it's not an apples to apples comparison. Beaters will always get a lot more than just vacuum, even on bare floors with the proper attachments.

Check the installation, vacuum canister & whole assembly for proper positioning of everything from the bag to filter screens to the piping having air leaks.

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, No beater bar? Ours has motor driven beater bar. We have 3 cats and a dog. Vacuum does very good job cleaning. Either the unit is under powered or due to poor installation there may be a air leak some where, blockage or what ever. My house is ~3000 sqft.2 story. Using 30 ft hose I can clean every corner from basement to upstairs. New hose is lighter and crush free.

[Joseph Meehan]

Well there are three parts to a central unit.

The power center is where it starts. They come in different powers. Generally they provide more power than an upright. But then I never bought the cheap lower power central units.

Second is the part in the wall. If it is not properly designed you can have problems. I doubt if that is your problem, but I can't rule it out.

The last part is the working end. They come in three general types. The basic floor head. This is only good for hard surface floors. The second is the vacuum powered head. It is certainly better than the basic, but it is not likely to do as well as the standard upright. The real workhorse and the only one I would recommend for carpet is the powered head which runs off the 120V power and likely you will need to plug it in a standard electric wall socket. My experience is they work as well as an upright.

My choice for central is based on A: it is quieter than an upright B: is more powerful than at least most uprights (I could get a more powerful power center and likely do better than any non-commercial upright. C: I really like the fact that it takes all the dust and odors out with it and in my case vents out side.

I find the floor head and hose a little easier than the upright and wire over all. Some parts of my home would be easier with an upright and others are easier with the central.

[Norminn]

I've never used a central vac system. If my vacuum isn't working well, it is either clogged or has a leak. Don't know how one would find a leak inside a wall - was the system tested before the walls were closed up? Does it have a reverse, to try to clear obstructions? I've gotten straight pins caught inside the hose of my beloved ancient Electrolux. Also have had wire in the hose break and cause clogs in the hose.

[RBM]

It sounds like your central vac does suck, just in the wrong manner. There are a variety of vacuum canisters made with varying degrees of suction, there's no practical reason yours shouldn't work well if it was designed properly. When the installation was done, more inlets should have been provided, so you wouldn't have to drag a long hose either. I would have a professional check out the system and find the problem. It could be something as simple as a broken or leaking fitting

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Some leaks can be heard.

[Pat]

Thanks for all your quick responses. Yes, I have power head, with the electric running through the hose. We had the system professionally installed, and I would HOPE that the installer knew wheat he was doing. Tho these days you never know. We have 3 outlets downstairs and one upstairs, which covers the whole house, but i still need to drag the hose from outlet to outlet. I just checked the canister and it appears that i have model E130G? Any opinions on that?

Again, thanks.

Pat

[Joseph Meehan]

I would suggest that you contact the installer and tell them what you are experiencing. They should be willing to come out and check it. If they say it is OK then I would give Electrolux a call.

[Art Todesco]

We've had a central vac for 35 years. It's a Sears unit, however we have Nutone/Broan piping and inlets. We have an electric hose and motor beater bar unit. Hoses have gotten lighter through the years. The last hose (they do eventually wear our) was longer and lighter than all the previous one. However, we've just gotten into RVing and I installed a small central vac in the motorhome. We bought a super lightweight hose and a small turbine powered beater brush. The turbine brush works good in the motorhome, but can't stand up to large home use. But, the hose is great! We are even storing it in the house over the winter. Of course, it doesn't have power through it, but for quick cleanups and floor cleanup, it works great. Here' s a link where we got it:

for AC powered beater unit, we have

1. One came with the unit, one we bought and the 3rd unit we acquired. They all work differently on different carpets. So, picking the right unit for the carpet seems to be important, however, it is mostly a guess. I suspect different uprights behave differently on various carpets. I know the companies would like you to believe that their brand is best for everything, but in reality I'm not so sure of that.

As others have said, you should check the sucti>> >

[Art]

It could be a lousy power head too. Some of the fancy European powerheads have too short bristles. I had one and it was quiet and beautifully built but did not have long enuf bristles to do a good job. Ended up with a windtunnel powerhead and hose connected to my Nutone central vac tank. Seems to be a good combination.

Thanks for all your quick responses. Yes, I have power head, with the electric running through the hose. We had the system professionally installed, and I would HOPE that the installer knew wheat he was doing. Tho these days you never know. We have 3 outlets downstairs and one upstairs, which covers the whole house, but i still need to drag the hose from outlet to outlet. I just checked the canister and it appears that i have model E130G? Any opinions on that?

Again, thanks.

Pat