Water Lift Tests

So I built a water lift gauge capable of measuring up to 94" of lift and I had a blast using it to test the following 6 vacuums, ranging from a Lux 1401-B (1980) to a Hoover Tempo Widepath (2012). I want to stress that all bags were removed in order to obtain the best results. Obviously, the Rainbow doesn’t use bags of any type, so for the fun of it, I tested with and without water. There was no difference.

Electrolux Olympia One from base (no bag) = 74" lift
Electrolux Olympia One from hose (no bag) = 70" lift

Kirby Heritage 2 Legend from hose (no bag) = 34" lift
Kirby Heritage 2 Legend from base-low (no bag) = 27" lift
Kirby Heritage 2 Legend from base-hi (no bag) = 34" lift

Kirby G4 from hose (no bag) = 37" lift
Kirby G4 from base-low (no bag) = 30" lift
Kirby G4 from base-hi (no bag) = 37" lift

Kirby G6 from hose (no bag) = 35" lift
Kirby G6 from base-low (no bag) = 30" lift
Kirby G6 from base-hi (no bag) = 36" lift

Rainbow D4C SE from empty water bowl = 57" lift
Rainbow D4C SE from hose end (empty) = 51" lift
Rainbow D4C SE from full water bowl = 57" lift
Rainbow D4C SE from hose end (full) = 51" lift

Hoover Tempo Widepath from body (no bag) = 76" lift
Hoover Tempo Widepath from hose (no bag) = 76" lift

The winner as tested from the hose end: Hoover Tempo Widepath, with an astounding 76” of lift. I still don’t believe it, but I suppose with over 1400 watts of power, you can achieve fabulous results.

The worst water lift from the hose end: Kirby Heritage 2 Legend, with only 34” of lift. Uprights aren’t normally known for water lift and except for the ridiculous Hoover results, this Kirby is right where most newer Kirby’s perform.

The winner from the base: Hoover Tempo Widepath, with the same astounding 76” of lift. An honorable mention must go to the 1980 Lux 1401-B with only 2” fewer, coming in at 74”. By the way, the Lux uses a little over 900 watts to get this lift, so that would make it more efficient than the much newer Hoover per inch of lift.

The worst water lift from the base: Kirby Heritage 2 Legend, with only 27”. This measurement was taken at the low speed, which would be like having the power nozzle on.

General Testing Note: While 5 out of 6 vacuums tested here use bags, the Rainbow doesn’t and that means something special happens when the bag fills in the other vacuums: The water lift does indeed go down. I read a post somewhere that said something like, “when a bag fills up and gets clogged, the water lift remains the same.” Well, I was not able to produce those results. For example, when testing the Lux from the base, a Perfect bag I was using produced a 15 CFM drop. The water lift also dropped 4”. There was a 4” drop from the hose end using the same bag. The Rainbow kept the same water lift (and CFM for that matter) no matter what I did.

By this point you can probably guess I did extensive CFM measurements. I will be posting those in another thread soon. Some were as expected and some were mind blowing (like the Hoover).

I hope you all enjoy what I has a blast testing!

Bill

Photos... < > Photo 1 of 4 View Full Size


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Post# 341514 1/17/2016 at 21:06 (3,011 days old) by wyaple (Pickerington, OH)
Checkrate/Likes 2 So I built a water lift gauge capable of measuring up to 94" of lift and I had a blast using it to test the following 6 vacuums, ranging from a Lux 1401-B (1980) to a Hoover Tempo Widepath (2012). I want to stress that all bags were removed in order to obtain the best results. Obviously, the Rainbow doesn’t use bags of any type, so for the fun of it, I tested with and without water. There was no difference. Electrolux Olympia One from base (no bag) = 74" lift Electrolux Olympia One from hose (no bag) = 70" lift Kirby Heritage 2 Legend from hose (no bag) = 34" lift Kirby Heritage 2 Legend from base-low (no bag) = 27" lift Kirby Heritage 2 Legend from base-hi (no bag) = 34" lift Kirby G4 from hose (no bag) = 37" lift Kirby G4 from base-low (no bag) = 30" lift Kirby G4 from base-hi (no bag) = 37" lift Kirby G6 from hose (no bag) = 35" lift Kirby G6 from base-low (no bag) = 30" lift Kirby G6 from base-hi (no bag) = 36" lift Rainbow D4C SE from empty water bowl = 57" lift Rainbow D4C SE from hose end (empty) = 51" lift Rainbow D4C SE from full water bowl = 57" lift Rainbow D4C SE from hose end (full) = 51" lift Hoover Tempo Widepath from body (no bag) = 76" lift Hoover Tempo Widepath from hose (no bag) = 76" lift The winner as tested from the hose end: Hoover Tempo Widepath, with an astounding 76” of lift. I still don’t believe it, but I suppose with over 1400 watts of power, you can achieve fabulous results. The worst water lift from the hose end: Kirby Heritage 2 Legend, with only 34” of lift. Uprights aren’t normally known for water lift and except for the ridiculous Hoover results, this Kirby is right where most newer Kirby’s perform. The winner from the base: Hoover Tempo Widepath, with the same astounding 76” of lift. An honorable mention must go to the 1980 Lux 1401-B with only 2” fewer, coming in at 74”. By the way, the Lux uses a little over 900 watts to get this lift, so that would make it more efficient than the much newer Hoover per inch of lift. The worst water lift from the base: Kirby Heritage 2 Legend, with only 27”. This measurement was taken at the low speed, which would be like having the power nozzle on. General Testing Note: While 5 out of 6 vacuums tested here use bags, the Rainbow doesn’t and that means something special happens when the bag fills in the other vacuums: The water lift does indeed go down. I read a post somewhere that said something like, “when a bag fills up and gets clogged, the water lift remains the same.” Well, I was not able to produce those results. For example, when testing the Lux from the base, a Perfect bag I was using produced a 15 CFM drop. The water lift also dropped 4”. There was a 4” drop from the hose end using the same bag. The Rainbow kept the same water lift (and CFM for that matter) no matter what I did. By this point you can probably guess I did extensive CFM measurements. I will be posting those in another thread soon. Some were as expected and some were mind blowing (like the Hoover). I hope you all enjoy what I has a blast testing! Bill Photos... < > Photo 1 of 4 View Full Size

Post# 341677 , Reply# 1 1/20/2016 at 19:30 (3,008 days old) by Durango159 (State College, PA)
Checkrate/Likes The Hoover Tempo is modeled from the Windtunnel upright line. Very similar motors but I think the Tempo has a different pitch. Still very very powerful. Lots of suction and airflow. They do have a 15" wide cleaning path. I'm not surprised at all by the number! When I worked for Filter Queen we tested a few machine. I believe a Dyson DC07 was 65 or 70" and a Bissell Power Force bagged upright was 60". I don't remember what the Filter Queen LOL Sadly I don't remember the Water Lift for the Filter Queen. All I can find in paper work is that on high speed it runs at 100 CFM and is 9.8 Amp 1.22 HP single stage motor. The low speed setting on the Filter Queen is 60 CFM. That spec is for the current model black and silver paisley that has been out since 2011 and still on their website as the current.