Thread Number: 4322
Whats all the hipe over HEPA? |
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Post# 48614   8/13/2008 at 23:57 (5,705 days old) by briankirbyclass (Eudora Kansas)   |   | |
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You know, i just dont understand all the brew-haha over "HEPA" bags (or vacuums) vs a standard bag (or vacuum),,,ive seen some supposed "HEPA" vacuums that spew MORE dirt than they pick up. My 90 yr old Grandma has never had anything but a Kirby Model 560,,bought in 1960 when they had wall to wall carpet installed in their home and the only vacuum cleaner she has ever owned. To this very day she still has the same wool carpet, and the same Kirby Model 560 with the old shake out bag system (that has just been factory rebuilt withion the last year, and had a new bag,brush roll and belt installed periodically over the years),,, and there has never ever been a speck of dust in her house,,or at least very very little. She always did take the Kirby outside and shake out the bag over the garbage can, after a thorough vacuuming too, so maybe that makes a difference,,,alot of people let the Kirby bag get brimming over and plumped full of dirt until the Kirby is choking before it ever gets emptied. Yes, she did dust her furniture and hard wood regularly,(as housewives of the 1950s and 60s all did),but for a vacuum cleaner that just has a shake out bag for a filter,,sure looks like it did fine by her. She's 90 ,and going strong! Makes a person wonder if maybe all this "HEPA" business is just that,,,a business to make MONEY, HONEY! |
Post# 48617 , Reply# 1   8/14/2008 at 00:40 (5,705 days old) by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)   |   | |
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Post# 48660 , Reply# 8   8/14/2008 at 13:19 (5,705 days old) by thunderhexed (Edmond, OK)   |   | |
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If you clean out the shake out bags after EVERY USE as Kirby reccommends in their manuals and hoover did on the actual bags, there shouldn't be a dust problem with cloth bags. On Kirby's , it's so simple.. as the bag deflates when powering off, hold it by the chain and give it a good hardy shake, then unzip and scrape, scrape, scrape, open the em-tor trap door and voila! The best part.. no dust clouds unlike some bagless vacs I'm familiar with. I have noticed though that shake out bags that are allowed to sit with dirt accumulated inside, belch dust when they are powered on, as do after-market NON- KIRBY bags. And those F&G mods? THE WORST at leaking, especially at the base of the bag where the conection is. Kirby knew what they were doing when they designed their cloth bag systems. You can't beat the suction on those models either! About every 6 months, I take the bag off after emptying, turn it inside out and whisk it with a broom. Works like a charm everytime, and none of my bags have any foul odors. This is also the best time to just give the vac (no matter what brand) a good overall wipe down with a damp cloth. Hit all of the seals and gaskets, especially where the bag connects - clean the brushroll, check belts., wipe down the cord to keep it supple, just simple things like this will keep your vac running for years to come.. ESPECIALLY it's a Kirby or Royal.
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Post# 48721 , Reply# 12   8/15/2008 at 15:12 (5,704 days old) by thunderhexed (Edmond, OK)   |   | |
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Post# 48751 , Reply# 14   8/15/2008 at 18:09 (5,704 days old) by electrikbroomgu (Rome, NY)   |   | |
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Hepa is as good as the manufacturer makes it. Sealing is key. I also like to think of it as the latest fad like hybrid. People often have no clue what they are buying but it is a familiar "in" thing that is marketed to key demographics. A well designed Hepa bag is for sure beneficial to some allergy sufferers but as several people have pointed out here, how did we all get along without it for the past 100 years? How did we get along without video games and home computers and the internet? How did we get along without Hybrids or remote vehicle start? Some things are brilliant inventions and yet others are passing fads. Hepa comes somewhere in the middle for me. My grandmothers old Electrolux brown model G never saw a hepa bag and still purs like a kitten and is very clean inside the bag chamber and what you can see of the motor. The motor has never been apart since she has owned it and air flow is still top notch. My grandma lived until she was 92 and never had any allergys or problems with dust in her house and she always used genuine Electrolux bags. Meanwhile, I get bagless Hepa machine after machine in with shot bearings from dust leaking through the seals and various parts of the vacuum so it just goes to show that you have to be very informed on what you are buying today.
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