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External Structure Materials & Durability
The types of materials used to construct the external structure and internal parts of a vacuum cleaner play a major role in the length of its life span as well as the extent of its maintenance expenses. Typically, vacuum cleaners are made of a combination of metals and various synthetic plastics. ... While reducing the production costs considerably, this change over has also made vacuum cleaners much lighter and easier to use. ...
A Bit of History
Prior to the early 1960s, canister vacuum cleaners were primarily constructed of stamped steel cases with cast aluminium attachments and trim pieces. ... This made for very durable but heavy vacuum cleaners. ... This new Lexan polycarbonate resin discovered by Dan Fox at General Electric in 1953 and later used to make this new base started a new trend in the vacuum cleaner industry. ...
A few vacuum cleaners, like the Royal, Kirby and TriStar still have metal main cases. ... The metal Royal uprights are sold exclusively by vacuum cleaner specialty stores. Some central vacuum systems use a combination of steel and ABS plastics while others are all steel or aluminium.
Various Plastics used in External Structures
There are a number of synthetic resins used in constructing vacuum cleaners. ... The following is a list of the more common plastics used for vacuum cleaner external structures:
Lexan
In 1953, while working for General Electric, Dan Fox discovered Lexan polycarbonate resin. ...
ABS Plastics
Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene plastics are used extensively in the melding of vacuum cleaner cases and trim parts. ... Polystyrene is enhanced with additives during the polymerisation process to make ABS Plastic, which overcomes many of its weaknesses, making it very suitable for vacuum cleaner cases. ... It can be made rigid for making piping like used for water systems, drainage systems and central vacuum systems or very flexible for making electrical cord jackets, water or vacuum hoses and protective furniture guards. ... Yet another use is in manufacturing synthetic bristles for vacuum cleaner attachments. ... Early upright vacuum cleaner motor housings and some motor hoods were made from Bakelite. Today, most upright vacuum cleaner motor housings are made of various thermoplastics which are more economical to produce.
Concluding Remarks
There was a time when we, being very quality oriented, had very little confidence in the plastic cases and trim used on some vacuum cleaners. As time passed and better plastics were developed and used, we found that metal construction wasnt always necessary for long, low maintenance vacuum cleaner life spans. ... Generally the more expensive a vacuum cleaner is, the better the design, plastics and other materials which go into making it are. ... A knowledgeable salesperson or technician, like those at Ristenbatt Vacuum Cleaner Service, is probably your best source for learning which materials are used in the construction of various vacuum cleaners.
Identifying Durable Designs & Construction
A vacuum cleaner is an unusual appliance in that it falls somewhere between a small appliance and a major appliance. ...
There are many different types and brands of vacuum cleaners but most have similar system components. This article is designed to help you to identify durable designs and construction when searching for your next vacuum cleaner. ...
Identifying Durable Clean-Air Upright Designs
Since the majority of vacuum cleaners being sold are the upright type, the two different fan designs and their inherent durability factors will receive our first attention. As discussed in the article on Fan or Impeller Types & Performance, the first type is used in the traditional upright and some hand held vacuum cleaner designs while the other type is used in all other designs including the "clean-air" upright, two-motor upright, two-motor power team, standard canister and central vacuum system. ... As mentioned in our article on Efficiency and Performance Ratings, the suction motors on most vacuum cleaners typically draw seven to twelve amperes (amps) of current from the electrical power source. ... If you see a rating larger than twelve on a vacuum cleaner, it is probably an efficiency or performance rating, not amps! ...
Identifying Durable Construction Materials
Along with being effective, a vacuum cleaner needs to be designed and constructed appropriately so that it can withstand the hard use it receives on a regular basis. Our article on the External Structure Materials & Durability elaborates on different materials used in vacuum cleaners and how the life span is affected by them. Although metal is used extensively by some companies, tough ABS Plastics and polycarbonates like Lexan are used to manufacture most vacuum cleaners. Since it is very difficult to determine which types of compounds are used in the construction, a knowledgeable sales person like those at Ristenbatt Vacuum Cleaner Service is probably your best source for obtaining this information.
Approximate Word count = 3895
Approximate Pages = 15.6
(250 words per page double spaced)
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