A hand or stick vacuum like those in our latest report (available to subscribers) is great for quick cleanup tasks and can be especially useful for allergy and asthma sufferers. But there are some good reasons to keep your trusty broom-and-dustpan duo on hand:
• Sweeping will get you off the couch. Sweeping burns only a few calories a minute, but you could probably use the activity that comes from bending and stretching when using a broom and dustpan.
• The environment will benefit. While the amount of electricity you'll save by not using a vacuum is negligible, think of the collective savings if everyone skipped the vacuum. What's more, improper disposal of NiCd batteries, found in many cordless models we tested, is hazardous, and it can be a hassle to dispose of them safely.
• The battery might not last. If a cleanup job will take more than 10 minutes or so, you might need to get out the broom and dustpan since the battery in most hand and stick vacs runs down after that little time.
• Cordless models lack smart-charge capability. None of the three cordless sweepers we tested has a smart-charge capability, which switches a charged unit to trickle charge to avoid overheating, a potential fire hazard. What's more, the battery on some cordless vacs isn't replaceable, so once the power pack no longer takes a charge, the vacuum is useless.—Ed Perratore
Essential information: Visit our vacuum product page for more information on all types of vacuums. If you suffer from allergies or asthma, Use our Ratings of small vacuums (available to subscribers) to find models that scored best at trapping small particles. And if you have any breathing problems, always wear a dust mask before emptying the dustbins of any of the tested models.
Written by larrylarr on February 13th, 2009 with no comments.
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My teenage son and I tuned into The Daily Show With Jon Stewart last night for our regular fix of political satire, only to find a Future Shock segment called "Roombas of Doom." The piece covered warrior robots made by the same company that makes vacuums. (Watch the segment below.)
I thought the story was a spoof until I saw the CEO of iRobot Corporation being interviewed. I'm familiar with the company because we've reported on its robotic home appliances.
At the next commercial break, we decided to check out the iRobot site. Right there next to a link to Roomba vacuums and Scooba floor cleaners was a link to "Government & Industrial Robots," including the iRobot's Packbot, Warrior, and a squadron of other military-grade robots. (The SUGV model is shown.)
My son asked whether he could buy one. Why? Perhaps he figured the iRobot Negotiator might persuade my husband and me to give him his own credit card or extend his curfew. It was a moot point, since these devices are sold only to governments. You can buy the company's home robots, though based on our past tests of these appliances, you might not want to.
As part of our October 2008 review of vacuums, we found that the Roomba 560, $350, was among the worst performers at cleaning edges and corners and sometimes ventured beyond its electronic borders. And in a May 2006 story, we reported that a mop was faster and more thorough than the Scooba, $399. Both easily wiped up coffee, grape juice, and tea stains, but the mop was better on stubborn stains like crayon and shoe polish.—Celia Kuperszmid Lehrman
Essential information: If you're in the market for a new vacuum, read our latest report (available to subscribers) and visit our vacuum product page.
Written by larrylarr on February 13th, 2009 with no comments.
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