Vacuum recommendation for Frieze carpet

[Bradley]

I am trying to figure out what kind of vacuum to use on my new frieze carpet (Mohawk "claim to fame" - a short Smartstrand).

I tested my upright vacuum (Eureka) on a scrap and it fuzzes the ends.

One forum here recommends a vacuum with a beater bar but NO bristles...but I can't find a vacuum like that. The vacuum store that I visited didn't even know about a vacuum like that.

Otherwise i will need to use a canister without a power head (no brush, no beater), but i am concerned it will not clean.

Thanks for your advice

[kwfloors]

Check to see if the vacuum has a height adjustment. Most do and for no beater bar just raise it off the floor.

[Bradley]

Well, my Eureka Boss Smartvac does adjust, but i had it at its highest and it still has alot of contact and causes fuzzing.

I don't think the beater bar is the problem, i think the bristles are because they act (i am guessing) like little combs or brushes which unravel and fuzz the tops of the carpet twists.

On the other hand, perhaps a brush would be ok if it only barely touch the carpet? I tried on in store yesterday at its highest setting and it didn't harm the carpet...but i also had a hard time deciding whether the bristles were hitting the carpet.

If I raise the beater bar/brush roll so it doesn't hit the carpet, what are the odds such a vacuum will do anything? At that point, wouldn`t I be better off with a canister with a head specifically designed for suction only?

Anyway, please suggest what kind of vacuum i need (specific models would be great as well).

[Daris Mulkin]

most of the mill literature I've seen recommends vacuum only for friezes and twists. You could always disconnect the belt from the roller. Shop vac or canister also would work.

Daris

[mcbrides]

Central vac with a floor tool or a shop vac. No beater bar.

[FlooringGirl]

My Bissell Revolution - you can turn off the brush and use suction only. Cost me under $200 and does not fuzz my cheap frieze. Long story why a flooring professional has a cheap poly frieze, but I actually have found that using the beater doesn't hurt the carpet, although this sweeper gives you the option to turn it off. AND it works great, no complaints!

Tia

[TFP Admin]

Bissell Revolution - Google Product Search

[FlooringGirl]

Thanks, Jim ... I have the 37604 lift-off for pets. I always tell my customers that each week there are two full containers of dog hair to dump from the machine, but we do not see it on the frieze in between! Did make the mistake to lay two of the grandkids on the dining room carpet to change diapers one day and they had dog hair stuck all over their backs - won't do that again! Seriously didn't realize it was there!

Tia

[Sean Moore]

FlooringGirl said Long story why a flooring professional has a cheap poly frieze

... postman doesn't take a walk on their day off?

Shoot, girl. most of us have marginal flooring in at least one part of our house.

The carpet? Hey, I think I might know someone who can replace that.

Now, once we pick a hard surface, we tend to pick the very best, marmo, marble, maple... right?

[Bradley]

Alright, thanks for the comments so far, here's a bit of an update:

I went to Sears (i'm in Canada) and tested a bunch of vacuums on a spair piece of my carpet...ya they thought i was weird, but I don't want to ruin my brand new carpet with the wrong vacuum!

I have come to the following conclusions: the canisters seem better than uprights, perhaps because the weight of an upright pushes the rollbrush into the carpet deeper. I found the the Miele s500 "YellowStar" didn't fuzz the carpet with my test of 100 back and forth passes. What's amazing about that is that the powerhead on the Yellowstar doesn't have any height adjustment! I think the difference is that the bristles on the Miele Yellowstar are VERY soft compared to most others and they are spaced apart on the roller.

I also found another canister which didn't harm the carpet: the Bissel Clean Along canister. It also had much softer bristles than most others and after 100 passes i couldn't detect any fuzzing. Unfortunately, I hear consumer reports rates the Clean along poorly...but, I imagine other vacuum perform better because they beat the carpet deeper and harder which isn't safe for a frieze anyway.

Any thoughts?

[Peter Kodner]

Bradley, sounds like you have a good hand on what you need! It is a shame so few end users spend the time you have to protect their significant investment!

Let's take a quick stroll down the history lane:
Originally, a few people were in a financial position to be able to afford carpeting and had area rugs (we are talking way back here...). Cleaning was pretty simple then: pick up the rug, hang it over something and smack it repeatedly with a rug beater. Vibration is a wonderful means of dislodging particles of dirt form a piled product. Fast forward to 1869 an the first carpet sweeper was invented. Good idea, no more lugging the rug outside!

Let's go to 1907, a janitor in Ohio decided the carpet sweeper he was using was making him cough. He hooked an old fan, a wood crate, a pillow case and a broom handle, he invented the first portable vacuum cleaner. He refined it and received a patent in 1908. A relative named Hoover bought one and eventually the Hoover company was started.

This is by no means a complete history as there were others who had different needs who came ot the same result and some of the early equipment was truck sized.

The recent innovations are where we now see some of the issues you are having. Early model used much softer materials for the brushed. Good for cleaning but they wear out from abrasion. Solution? Use more abrasion resistant synthetics. Problem? They became far stiffer than the carpet fiber.
Add in synthetic carpet fibers than do not retain memory (the twist induce in fiber to yarn production) plus textures that readily show twist loss and innovation has outstripped usefulness. We have machines readily available that perform a function we used to only see in yarn manufacturing plants, namely carding machines! Carding machines purpose is to make tangled yarns align parallel which is the exact opposite of what we intend our vacuum cleaners to do.

You have found on your own what features are needed for your carpet style: suction (to actually remove the soil) and mechanical action (SOFT brushed and a beater bar) to agitate and collect the soil for the suction.

You may find this article interesting: Vacuum Cleaners Invention and History


Final note: Much of what I wrote is my opinion based on years in the business, maintenance programs I've attended and discussions I've had over the years with fiber, carpet and cleaning industry people. I hope I've applied a modicum of common sense as well, but Bradley has exhibited the best example of this: try the units on your carpet and verify if any textural change occurs! As several vacuum manufacturers I have done inspections for practice: Caveat Emptor (let the buyer be aware)

[Bradley]

A big thanks to everyone for your advice, especially to Peter. I hope this little thread is helpful to others who find themselves in my same situation.

[FlooringGirl]

Sean Moore said ... postman doesn't take a walk on their day off? Shoot, girl. most of us have marginal flooring in at least one part of our house. The carpet? Hey, I think I might know someone who can replace that. Now, once we pick a hard surface, we tend to pick the very best, marmo, marble, maple... right?

Yep, you're right. We do have over 100 square yards of the cheap poly, but knew it would need to be changed in a matter of a few years regardless of what was used. It's holding up better that we thought it would.

Tia

[Sean Moore]

Is it true that poly resists stains better than nylon? I know nylon wears better but a labor-only customer said their salesperson told them the poly was more stain resistant.

[Peter Kodner]

Sean Moore said Is it true that poly resists stains better than nylon? I know nylon wears better but a labor-only customer said their salesperson told them the poly was more stain resistant.

A loaded question! Untreated fiber? Yes. Polyester absorbs far less moisture than nylon and therefore will absorb far less quantity, assuming identical spill amount and composition.

Where the loaded part comes in: What is the spill? If acidic, it will affect nylon far more. If oil based, it will bond to polyester. If is a treated nylon, i.e. Teflon or Scotchgard with a stain blocking agent, I would expect to see the nylon perform extremely well.

IMHO, the salesman told a story omitting much of the pertinent information to make the sale.