First of all, I'm used to my lux which has the rubber in the bag collar, and the rubber gasket on the inlet spout which virtually eliminates any leakage or blow by. Lately I can't resist checking other makes. What I've noticed is that many brands, the pre-motor filter is covered in debris to some extent, some more than others. (by debris, I'm not talking about powder type dust, I'm referring to grit, sandy like substance) Either the bag has burst or the gap around the inlet is large enough that the dirt can get sucked out of the bag from around the inlet. One would think that this could cause a hepa filter to clog prematurely. Which brands/makes seem to be more problematic than others? How do the so called higher end vacs such as miele, riccar, sebo (just to name a few) fair as these models don't appear to have a seal around the inlet either??
Post# 44614 , Reply# 1 6/22/2008 at 14:01 (5,779 days old) by eluxca ()
I can speak about Miele and Riccar.... My 12 year old White Pearl has been through a box of the cloth-style OE bags. Just yesterday I dismantled the whole machine to replace the motor bearings, and here is what I found - a virtually dust free bag compartment and a fairly clean motor compartment. The bags are excellent at filtration and maintaining suction! It was packed solid and heavy, and with the old paper bags suction would have dropped off so much I would have noticed. Not this time.
I also have a Riccar 1700 canister and those bags are very similar, if not the same, material. The bag compartment is also very clean as is the motor prefilter.
As an aside, the bearings definitely needed replacement in the White Pearl. It growled during use and on winddown. I picked up a couple 607 made in China bearings from a vac shop and put them on the motor (a Lamb with orange brush holders), but it still has more of a growl than I think it should, although it is much, much reduced from what it was. What bearing brand works best these days?
I think you're right when your point is that it comes down to the filtration and quality of the bags. I use the the Ecopure(?) in my grandma's Riccar N2000 and there is always some dust that escapes but not to bad(ok maybe not the best compared to my Kirby). Clayton
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