central vac opinions (hardwood floors, vacuum cleaner, cleaner, install)
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Hi...anyone have central vac? We are building a house and have the option of putting this in our home. Does anyone have an opinion...do you use it and is it as convenient as it seems? Thanks!
I had a system installed in a house we built about 15 years ago, which we lived in for a couple of years. My reaction to it was - meh. It's one of those "conveniences" that doesn't really make anything that much more convenient. After all, you still have to vacuum. It's really not that any simpler to drag out the hose and attachments than it is to drag out a regular vacuum cleaner. I can't say it did that much better of a job than a decent vacuum cleaner either. It's one advantage was that it was relatively quiet, since the unit was down in our basement. There were two places where I appreciated having a port that I wouldn't normally use a household vacuum cleaner - the garage (for cars - on which it did do a really nice job) and the basement (for the workshop). Also, the "dustbin" feature in our kitchen was sort of handy - you sweep into it and press a switch with your toe and it sucks the dirt and debris away. But these days I'm more likely to use a Swiffer vacuum on my hard surfaces than a broom.
Also, some systems have line current (electricity) at the ports to power attachments. Others just use a low-voltage relay to turn on the unit but don't otherwise power anything. We had the latter - I tend to think having powered attachments (especially the primary vacuum head) would have been nicer.
we have central vac and I love it! Powerful suction, no more lugging the vacuum cleaner up and downstairs, and very convenient to vacuum out the car, too. Also when I used a regular vacuum the dust kicked up would always trigger a mild asthma attack. Not so with the central vac--the connections are so much more airtight.
We have a central vac. I really like it. It has more powerful suction than any regular vacuum I've tried. The suction unit is in the garage so it's quiet in the house, all the mess is sucked outside and there are no bags to buy. We have a special brush especially for hard floors, I use it all the time instead of a broom. The pipes for central vac can easily be roughed in during your build then you can decide on a vacuum unit/attachments later.
I can take it or leave it, and wish I'd known that before spending the money on it when we built our new home 2 yrs ago. I let other people's love affairs with it sway my decision. I just don't love it as much as most seem to love theirs. It's still vacuuming, after all.
We bought the "hide-a-hose" type, which is a neat concept--no hoses to lug around. It does do a great job for the hardwood floors but a poor job on carpet (for carpet, you really need a powered head, and I use my old Dyson for carpeted rooms).
If I were you, I'd find one somewhere you could take for a test drive.
I had one in my last home. The hose is heavier than hauling a vacuum around, and harder to store.! If I were to build again, I would probably have the pipes installed and decide later if I really wanted one. I did like the dust pan feature.
I never saw an advantge to it, and it was usually easier to grab the regular vacuum than to fight that bulky hose and drag it to one of the few outlets. I haven't missed it at all since we moved from that home. I will say, most options builders install are the cheapest of the cheap, so perhaps had I had an aftermarket one installed I would have a better opinion. Let the builder instal the pipes, find a dealer to complete the system after the builder is gone..
Had I known then what I know now, I would have had more outlets installed.The accessories for the built-in are expensive...
going to bump this old thread up to see if I
can get some
more responses.
we were looking at a Centralux system
installed for $1600 (we are already have all the pipes.) Any thoughts on this brand or central vac in general?
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