Central Vacuum. Yay or Nay?

[Kevin Blunt]

Hello,

Well low and behold our trusty old Kenmore Canister vacuum went kaput last night. Since our home is set up for central it seems like a no brainer or does it. My wife and I are not quite sure.

I am looking for people who have experience with CV whether good or bad. Also I would like to hear your thougts on brands and must have/ not necessary features. I really have no experience with these vac systems so any advice or info will truly help.

One brand that was recommended to me from a guy at work is CANA-VAC which is made right here in Canada in Owen Sound, Ontario. He says that it will be any other unit pound for pound and $ for $ including Beam. Does anyone know anything about this company. Here is their website. http://www.canavac.com/index.htm

Thanks for your help and input.

Kevin

[jerry nazard]

Kevin,

Yay to central vac. Lots of power with no noise.

-Jerry

[Randal Stevenson]

At work we have a Beam, that has needed one replacement motor, in around 11 years. It works well on the low profile, commercial carpet, although the long hose does take a little getting use to.

A former employee, said the powerhead is needed for any shag style carpet.

Things to watch for. Little kids breaking the cover plates, or the "humor" of prying one open, causing you to lose suction while vacuuming. Anything large or flexible, that you wouldn't/shouldn't vacuum up now. It gets stuck right inside the tube where you enter the hose. (this area should be checked periodically, due to buildup)
Get one of the metal gas pump style wands, it holds up much better then the plastic. And don't let a 300# person use it, even though they need the exercise. They lean on the wand and bend it.

[David G Baker]

Years ago I managed an apartment building that had a central vacuum system. I really liked it and so did my wife. If it is used correctly they are great. If they are abused there can be problems.
I have thought about installing one over the years but never got around to it. If you can afford it I would go for it.

[John Keeton]

Kevin, we installed Beam in our home built 4 years ago and it is great! It selfcleans the integrated filter each time it is used, and we empty the canister every few months. We have a two story house, and we bought two hoses and attachment sets so the wife does not have to lug the hose up and downstairs. Installed a floor sweep in the kitchen that is money well spent. The intake is in the kickplate of the cabinet, doesn't show, and is activated by a slide switch that can be done by foot without bending over. Very nice for kitchen cleanup after a family gathering or bunch of grandkids.

Not familiar with CANA-VAC. I would presume it is not marketed much in the states.

[Mitchell Andrus]

Do it. Just remember to empty the canister every 2 or 3 years. DAMHIKT

[Rich Konopka]

We have one in our home and it works great. Your wife will love it because it will no spew the dust back into the room because the canister is usually located in a garage or basement.

The wall plates for the hose connectors are typically made of plastic and will crack over a period of time.

If you have more than 1 floor in your home get an additional hose and accessories.

If you have a dog it will love to attack the Powerhead when vacuuming.

You will need a convenient place for storing the Hoses.

Make sure you have an outlet in the garage to use for cleaning out your cars.


Cheers

[Yves Pinet]

We have one in our home and it works great. Your wife will love it because it will no spew the dust back into the room because the canister is usually located in a garage or basement.

The wall plates for the hose connectors are typically made of plastic and will crack over a period of time.

If you have more than 1 floor in your home get an additional hose and accessories.

If you have a dog it will love to attack the Powerhead when vacuuming.

You will need a convenient place for storing the Hoses.

Make sure you have an outlet in the garage to use for cleaning out your cars.


Cheers

And on in the shop as well, with a separate hose so the wife will let you use it.

[Lee Schierer]

We have had a central vac system for over 10 years with no problems. I think we had one clog, but it was minor and easily fixed. I did the installation myself and we have two outlets servicing the entire ranch style house, plus one in the basement. I did not put on in the shop although the hose will reach that far if I really wanted it. I determine the locations with a 20 foot piece of rope and went to the far reaches of every room to insure we could reach all the areas. Ours is a Hoover I believe. Remembering to empty it is the only real problem, since LOML uses it and I get to empty it.

[Peter Stahl]

Sorry to jump in on your post but how do these vacs do with dog hair. Our 2 Jack Russels produce their weight in hair a week. I wanted to put the pipe in when our house was built but the boss nixed that idea, now she's sorry. Still thinking of putting one in though.

[Eddie Watkins]

We have one and it works good. Ours has an air-driven powerhead and I would not recomeend that. Anything larger than a bean tends to get into the propeller and jam it. We had an electric powerhead before and it worked much better. LOML did buy a Hoover to use on small jobs just to avoid getting the hose out. All in all I'm not sure I would put one in if I had it to do all over again. I consider it another way not necessarily a better way.

Eddie

[Jim Mattheiss]

I went the "poor mans" route. We put a vac pan in the kitchen when remodeled and have it hooked to a shop vac in the basement. Since we only use it to vacuum up cat hair and cheerios it works great.

When we took out the carpet and refinished the hardwood in the LR/DR/Hallway of our ranch we put in a second pan in the hallway. You use a "swiffer" type pad with a micro-fiber and end up at the vac-pan. Flip it on, shake out the dust - voila!

The vac-pan low voltage to vacuum line voltage is handled by an x-10 powerflash module and an X-10 relay outlet. Work's like a charm!

If I ever replace the shopvac I'd go with a shopvac with an external exhaust and plumb it outside like the central vac's do.

I don't think the shopvac would power a air powered beater head but it suck plenty enough for a vac pan.

I saw a post about the clearvue cyclone that is adaptable to a Rigid vac with the removable motor. That would give you a 16 gallon recepticle with the cyclonic seperation at probably a lower cost. Still don't think it's in the same league but it might be enough.

Good luck

Jim

[glenn bradley]

Two Friends have them. One sized it per the manufacturer's recommendation and hates it. The other overbuilt by about 25% and loves it. Hater's in a two story, the other is in a single, but long, ranch style home.

[John Keeton]

We had our Beam installed during construction - let them do the layout, etc. Works perfectly, no snags, and the only change may be to add a couple of more convenient outlets - the ones they designed are adequate, but because of furniture layout, a couple more would be nice.

Can't speak to the dog hair, but it will suck up anything else. If I had a cat, would want to make sure to use large enough pipe to clear the whole cat!! Sorry, couldn't keep that in!

[Craig Kershaw]

We installed a central vac in our house(new construction) about 11 years ago. The suction is better than a stand alone unit. We have a German Shepherd(Shedder) and lots of dog hair, the unit does a fine job of picking it up. We like the fact there is no noise in the house when you run nor is there any dust from the discharge since the motor is in the garage.