When you’re shopping for a Central Vacuum, trying to make sense of the specifications can be a little bit daunting.  You might run across two machines with nearly identical specs, but one costs a few hundred dollars more. Here’s how to make sense of Central Vacuum specs.

The Important Specs

Air Watts: This is essentially a measure of how much air the central vacuum can move under no-load conditions. It gives a general idea of how powerful the motor is, but of course, the motor never runs under no-load conditions.

Water Lift: This is a measure of how much actual suction the unit can provide under load.

HEPA Filter: This is an acronym for “High Efficiency Particulate Air” filter. This type of filter removes at least 99.97% of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria, and other particles with a size of 3 microns or larger.

A/C Power: Most Central Vacuums run on 120v AC, and draw less than 15 amps of power. This means that you can plug them into a regular, dedicated household electrical outlet. Some very powerful units require a dedicate 240 volt A/C outlet.

Bagged, Bagless or Hybrid: Some manufacturers began promoting Bagless central vacuums as a savings to a customer. Other manufacturers followed suit, but Bagless is not a good thing. Firstly, because emptying your CV bucket is a dirty job, and more importantly, because the vacuum loses suction as the primary filter clogs up. If the primary filter develops a tear, or is dislodged, the dust can damage the motor, especially with a flow-through motor. With a bagged system, every time you change the bag, the vacuum is back to its original suction level. Hybrid, of course is a vacuum where you can choose bagged or bagless. We recommend always using a bag.

Muffler: This is an accessory that installs on the exhaust port of a central vacuum, and reduces the vacuum noise quite effectively.

Carbon Filter:  Central Vacuum motors all use Carbon Brushes in the motor. The brushes transfer electricity to the spinning motor armature, and are made of a material similar to very hard pencil lead, but bigger, of course. As the motor rotates, these will wear down, and eventually need to be replaced. The wear produces a find black dust which can sometimes get deposited on nearby walls.  Some Central Vacuums have a Carbon Filter, which captures the carbon dust.

Central Vacuum Accessory Kits

Air Kit: This Kit is suitable for houses with a minimum of carpet. The floor brush is plain, and does not have a beater brush. The handle usually has a switch to turn the vacuum on or off

Turbo Floor Brush: If you have a modest amount of carpeting, such as on stairs or some area rugs, then you may want to purchase a separate “Turbo” floor brush to go with your Air Kit. This brush has a beater brush that is powered by the airflow.

Electric Kit:  This kit is suitable for houses with a lot of carpeting. It contains all the items in the Air Kit, but also includes an electric beater brush, and electric wand, and an electrified hose. At the wall end of the hose, the hose will have a short power cord that you can plug into an outlet, or in some cases, the hose end contains an electrical plug which plugs into the vacuum outlet along with the hose end.

Hose Cover: This is a knitted cloth cover that goes over your hose, making it much easier to drag along the floor and around furniture

Garage Kit: This is an inexpensive kit dedicated for the garage. It contains a lightweight 30 foot hose and accessories, but no wand. Keep this in your garage, so you don’t have to carry the heavier household hose, and get the hose cover dirty.

Motor Types

Flow-Through Motor

How it works: With this motor, filtered air is sucked in through the turbines, and pushed out through the inside of the motor. This generally makes for a smaller motor, and efficient cooling because of the huge amount of air flowing directly past the armature (spinning coils). This motor is vulnerable to dust damage if the permanent filter is damaged, and heat damage if there is a blockage and the motor continues to run.

• Provides good performance at a reasonable price
• Not suitable for very large homes
• Must ensure that filters are clean and undamaged

Tangential Bypass Motor

How it works: This motor sucks filtered air in through the turbines, and pushes it out a separate vent. The filtered air that the vacuum sucks in never enters the motor chamber, the motor is cooled by its own fan. This motor is typically a little larger, but less vulnerable to dust or heat damage.

• Very good performance
• Suitable for all size homes
• May be somewhat more expensive
• Longer lasting, on average

In home construction or renovation, most electrical wiring consists of standard 110 volt feeds for typical electrical needs, as well as 220 volt feeds for major appliances such as range, dryer, air conditioner, etc.

In addition to this standard wiring, almost all homes contain at least a few low voltage systems. An example of these would be the good old fashioned doorbell and telephone land line wiring.

Homes often have a number of other low voltage systems such as Security Systems and burglar alarms, surveillance cameras, Intercoms, home audio and video, home automation, lighting, and networking data lines, which include Data, TV and wireless access points and Wifi Boosters.

We should note that Central Vacuum cleaners and garage door openers are not usually thought of as low voltage systems, but they do have low voltage components, and need to be roughed in around the same time as other low voltage systems.

Low voltage systems, like any other built in system, will be done in two stages, which are Rough-in and Installation. Rough-in is the necessary pre-wiring, piping, conduits, boxes, fixtures and vapor barriers – basically all things that need to be completed before insulation and drywall are installed. Installation is the final stage of placing and connecting the components and devices, set up, networking and programming. This is best done after the completion of painting, usually before completion of the flooring

When is the best time to rough-in a low voltage system?

The order and timing of rough-in is critically important as it impacts project deadlines and costs. The first low voltage system that should be installed is the Central Vacuum system which should be roughed in after mechanical-HVAC and plumbing, but BEFORE electrical. The reason for this timing is that it is relatively simple to work electrical lines around Central Vac components, but it can be difficult or next to impossible to route Central Vac piping and outlets around existing electrical.

Systems such as Security Systems, Audio/Video, Automation, Lighting and Networking should be done after the electrical wiring. Pulling electrical wires over the more fragile low-voltage wiring could damage the wiring. For Audio/Video, proximity to AC wring can cause interference problems and signal degradation (resulting in audible hiss, for example), and special care needs to be taken to ensure that these wires are properly installed.

When is the best time to install a low voltage system?

The best time to install a low voltage system is typically right after completion of the painting and preferably prior to completion of the floors. Many of the external components of low voltage systems are mounted on walls, so it is important that the walls be painted and finished before components are installed in order to provide a professional look, and ensure that components such as intercoms, for example, do not end up with paint on them. Preferably, low voltage installation components should be done before the floors are in, firstly to ensure that the final floor is in pristine condition, and secondly, to avoid the extra time and cost involved in working on finished floors.

How can we help?

Alarvac has been installing low voltage systems in the GTA for over 28 years. We work extensively with custom home builders for new homes as well as renovations in existing homes. If you are building a new home or planning a renovation, you would probably want to involve us in the planning stages, so we can best advise on placement and installation of your low voltage systems.

There are so many different options for Central Vacuums out there that shopping for a new one can be overwhelming. Most vacuums are on the pricier side so you want to make sure you make the best choice for your budget. So, when faced with seemingly countless brands, models and styles, how do you know which vacuum will be the best fit for your home? Here are five steps to help you narrow down your search on your journey to finding the perfect Central Vacuum for your home.

Step 1: Your Flooring Type You want to consider what type of flooring you will be vacuuming. Do you have a home with wall-to-wall carpeting or a home with hardwood floors? Here are some things to consider depending on your flooring type: Mostly Carpeting: homes with a lot of carpeting requires a lot of suction with a carpet-specific powerhead and good maneuverability. It’s recommended to get a central vacuum power head with electric beater brushes that are equipped to separate and refresh carpet fibers. Mostly Hard Flooring: those with hard flooring such as tile, laminate and hardwood need a bare floor brush, soft bristle tools and skid-proof wheels because they will glide easily and tend to be more lightweight as well.

Step 2: Consider Any Special Scenarios Some special scenarios to consider are:

• Do you own a pet?
• Do you have any allergies or health concerns?

If you own a pet, it’s best to get a Central Vacuum Kit that is designed to clean pet fur, and help eliminate odors. If you have any allergies, or a family member has them, you are best off getting a vacuum that features HEPA, a filtration system the helps eliminate harmful contaminants and a unit that features an easy to empty dust bag to reduce the chances of inhaling dust with each change of the bag.

Step 3: Budget What Is Important While reviewing the types of vacuum options available to you, maybe one or two or more will jump out to you because of the features they might have. You might need a vacuum that can deep clean dense carpeting, or a vacuum that is more accommodating to your child’s allergies. In this case, you want to figure out what need is more important and how to budget for that specific need. Search with vacuums that meet your priorities and then budget according to the selection that you narrowed it down to.

Step 4: Educate Yourself on Quality Some vacuums have established a reputation for being high quality, durable and innovative, so you want to pay attention to the more commonly heard vacuum brands out there because there is likely a good reason why they are so popular in the market. So, if you are geared towards a specific type of vacuum, take the time to research the brand of vacuum and see if it’s really what you’re looking for.

Step 5: Phone a friend  In this case, we mean pick up the phone and call us. We’ve been doing Central Vacuums for over 25 years, and we’d be happy to answer all your questions. Then we’ll provide a quote for exactly the system you need, plus options that you’ll want to consider. And when you want the product installed, we’ll take care of it from start to finish. 

Central Vacuum systems provide quite a number of significant advantages over portable or hand-held vacuums. And, if you haven’t considered Central Vacuum systems before, they have a lot of neat innovations that help make household chores easier and faster.

• Increased suction power — Because the Central Vacuum motor, fan ducting and dirt collection system don’t need to be portable, the design, weight and size of the unit are not as severely constrained as they are with portable systems. For larger houses with longer vacuum pipe runs, we can install one of our super powerful 18 amp or 240 volt units that even use two motors for extra power.

• Need a Wet/Dry Central Vacuum?  You can choose a  Central Vacuum model that also vacuums up liquids. These ingenious vacuum systems connect directly to your home’s drainage system so everything you vacuum up is automatically flushed down the drain pipes. An added bonus is that you won’t need to change vacuum bags because any dust collected is also flushed down the waste water pipes. For occasional use, you can use a Wet Vacuum Interceptor accessory, a canister device which connects between your hose and receptacle, and separates liquids from the air stream before the air passes into the in-wall tubing and central unit.

• Removal of allergens and noxious odours — Unlike portable vacuums, a Central Vacuum will not recirculate exhaust air back into the space being cleaned. A portable vacuum will often emit a “vacuum smell” comprised of fine dust and hot exhaust air. HEPA filters and bags are also available for your Central Vacuum. HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filters must be tested and approved, and must trap at least 99.97% of particles 0.3 microns or larger. By way of example, a micron is 1/10,000 of a centimetre, and anything less than 10 microns is too small to to be visible to the human eye. Bacteria sizes range from 0.3 to 60 microns, mould particles are 3 to 12 microns in size, spores are 3-40 microns, and automobile emissions range from 1 to1 50 microns in size. Allergy-causing pollen are between 10 and 40 microns. 

•  Low acoustic noise — Central vacuums are very quiet at the point of use, since the powerful motor is located remotely in a utility space. For further noise reduction of required, we can install flow mufflers on the Central Vacuum power canister, substantially reducing exhaust sound.

• Convenient home cleaning — Setup, use, and stowage of your vacuum hose and cleaning gadgets is quick and efficient. Cleaning stairways is much easier and safer without having to balance a heavy hot appliance on each step, and having to cope with both a vacuum hose and electric cord. You don’t even have to lug a heavy hose out of your closet for the Central Vacuum. We can install a retractable hose you just pull out from the vacuum wall plate, and when you’re done, it simply disappears back into the wall.

• Cleaning your kitchen gets a lot easier — With a Central Vacuum system, we often install a “Vroom” miniature retractable hose unit in a lower cupboard, such as under the sink. When you need to clean up kitchen spills and messes, just open the cupboard and pull out the hose. It’s a super long 24 feet, and should reach just about anywhere in your kitchen. Another convenient kitchen vacuum is the Vac-Pan. This unit looks like a small grate set into the bottom of a kitchen cupboard in the toe kick plate. To clean up spills on the floor, simply sweep the spill to the floor in front of the Vac-Pan and its strong suction will quickly dispose of the spill.

• Infrequent emptying — Central vacuums typically accumulate up to 10 kg (22 pounds) or more of dirt and dust before requiring disposal. Because of our giant sized disposable filter bags this task can be done much less frequently than for standard sized portable vacuums with their much smaller capacity filter bags.

• Disposable filter bag systems are easy to maintain. Emptying the dust canister of a cyclonic vacuum (or bag less system) is best done outdoors on a breezy day.

• Compatible with standard tools and accessories — Our central vacuum hoses are compatible with a wide range of industry standard brushes and tools used with ordinary portable vacuums.

• Reduced damage and wear to furniture and walls — There is no heavy or awkward canister to carry from room to room when vacuuming. Only your lightweight vacuum hose and the cleaning tool being used need to be carried. To further reduce wear to furniture legs and projecting baseboard corners, a soft woven “hose sock” can be installed over the corrugated vacuum hose.

• Durable equipment — Alarvac installs high quality central vacuum systems that will last for years under normal circumstances. We see a lot of units performing perfectly for years, perhaps only requiring replacement of the motor brushes after a decade of use. Built with no compromise heavy-duty components, central vacuums avoid the damage caused by the constant moving, bumping, the accidental dropping and normal wear and tear associated with portables. Many of our Central Vacuum units come with  10-25 Year Warranties.