A New Year's Resolution?

I don't know how much of a conscious decision this was on my part, but for a month or so now, my vacuum usage habits have slightly changed.
 
Having more than one vacuum means you can, if you choose, use a different vacuum when you feel like it. When you have 40+ vacuums, you're positively spoiled for choice. My normal pattern was to use a different vacuum each day, or sometimes multiple vacuums in one cleaning session for different tasks.

Of late, however, I find myself using only two vacuums in a single week...an upright for the carpets, and a cylinder for the bare floors and dusting. Here is my current weekly 'set': the Renaissance and the Epic 3500. It may or may not be a coincidence that they have more or less matching colors.

One reason for this is that my vacuum storage/display room is in a bit of a state at the moment. I really need to properly organize and display my machines, but that's another story. This room is also in the basement* of the house, so I've found its easier to carry up the two machines at the beginning of the week and leave them upstairs for the duration, or until I want to change them.

Another thing I've found is that the Style R models and the uprights are really the only machines that get used anymore. They're just too damned convenient. Once in a blue moon, I'll bust out an older model, but this is becoming rather rare. I also have decided to not get any more machines, unless they're on my wish list, and all of those are newer and useful models. My vintage collecting days are done.

At any rate, I daresay the next weekly set will be the Aerus Lux Guardian C154E and the Epic 3000, but who knows? One of my resolutions this year is to organize both my collection and its storage space. The other is to (hopefully) complete my wish list, as seen here.

*For whatever reason, the vacuum I use most in the basement is:

Two Guardians Plus an Epic Prepare for Christmas

For both everyday, 'lightweight' cleaning and full-on, hardcore, use-every-single-attachment cleaning, I can't think of anything better than these two vacuums:

I had to do the sofas, living room furniture, bare floors, baseboards, counter tops, table tops, and bathroom, and figured that the (Aerus) Guardians could take care of it all very easily. Naturally, they did.

These are by far my most used, most effective, go-to cylinder vacuums, and when you have a (relatively) large selection to choose from, that's saying something.

The logo on the Lux Guardian almost looks like its lit up, but its just very shiny.

I did the carpet with one of the battleship gray Epic 3500s. This one is in rather better cosmetic condition than the other, especially with the replacement handle:

Funnily enough, I've never gotten a vacuum or anything vacuum related for Christmas.

The Rug Doctor is On Call

I recently rented a Rug Doctor carpet cleaner to clean the living/dining room, as well as my sister's sofas. I must say, I'm impressed by the performance of these machines, and their ease of use. They really do make carpet and upholstery look almost new again, and the amount of brown water poured out from the recovery tank is astonishing, not to mention disgusting. Imagine spending all that time with that amount of dirt in your carpet and upholstery!

After giving the carpets a good working over, I connected an old Electrolux floor brush to the end of two wands, and ran it over the carpet, as if I was vacuuming it, to fluff it up a bit, and finally, after several hours of drying, I used the floor brush on the Shop Vac to pick up any leftover residue and/or surface moisture. As a final step, the morning after the cleaning, I gave the carpet a full-on Epic 3500-ing.

The Shop Vac. Not an Electrolux, but still a vital member of the household cleaning team. I've used this fellow for every dirty job imaginable, from unclogging sinks and vacuuming wet front porches in the winter, to clearing the front steps (in summer) from rocks and gardening debris. Oddly enough, I never use it in the car, unless the floors and/or mats happen to be wet. I always use one or another of the Aerus/Electroluxes.

Epic 3500. Possibly my favorite among the uprights I have, due to its near flawless, all-original cosmetic condition and excellent running condition.

Mind you, the results after all of this labor are not perfect. The carpet is a relatively old one, and has had and will continue to have a lot of traffic and spills, but it does look fresher and "fluffier".

Really, the Rug Doctor does such an impressive job that I'm half tempted to buy one.

More Epic-ness

There are many joys in collecting Electrolux and Aerus vacuum cleaners. One of them is undoubtedly having models from different eras of the company's history, and another is owing a complete "set" of a particular model line. Electrolux and Aerus, throughout the years, always made a top of the line and bottom of the line model, and, sometimes, a middle of the line model as well, not to mention a corresponding upright in later years.

Today, with the arrival of my latest purchase, I now have a complete, all-original set of the Epic series in white with gray and red trim (manufactured between 1997-9*), namely the top of the line Epic 8000 cylinder, the middle of the line Epic 6500 cylinder, and the Epic 3500 upright**. All of these machines are in near-flawless cosmetic and running condition, and everything on them is original and intact. To say I'm happy would be a huge understatement...I'm ecstatic.

Epic 8000 

I've wanted an Epic 8000 for a long time. Its arguably one of the nicest looking Style R models, and when I look at it and the other models, I find myself wishing Aerus had continued with this style for its high-end model***.

The full ensemble. Absolutely gorgeous, if you ask me. I'm not sure if the 8000 came with the combination flip-over rug and floor nozzle, or the dedicated floor brush, but in any case I don't care, because this one matches and works perfectly.

The Epic 8000 is an attractive model, and a great performer. Even though its hard to compare two vacuums with different usage histories, I would put the cleaning performance of the Epic 8000 on par with its "younger brother", the Guardian 75th anniversary. The 8000, however, is slightly quieter, and, even though I'm now used to the looks of the box HEPA filter on the Guardian, the absence of it on the 8000 creates a more streamlined effect.

A shot of "the two companions at their reunion". They make a rather nice matching set:

Attachment compartment. I think this is the best set of standard attachments Electrolux/Aerus ever made, and this set is in great condition. One thing I've noticed: because the machine exhausts out of the attachment compartment, the attachments get quite warm after the machine has been running for a while!

Ratings plate. I'm not sure what "BL4" stands for.

One strange thing about the Epic 8000 (and presumably the Renaissance) is that it exhausts out of the tool compartment, rather than through the blow port. The blow port has a plug that redirects the exhaust air down through the tool compartment, and when the hose is inserted for blowing, the plug gets pushed down and redirects the air through the hose. Clearly they changed this configuration when they added the HEPA filter to the Guardian. I do know that the blow from the Guardian, even on low speed, is almost enough to blow your head off your shoulders, so perhaps there is a good reason for the exhaust redirection on the Epic 8000, and this also gives the machine a quieter running sound versus those that exhaust upward. In fact, I'd be willing to bet the Epic 8000 is one of the quietest Electroluxes since the 80 series (the quietest vacuum cleaners of all time, perhaps?)

Name badge (with a little scarring) + side bumper logo:

The Epic 8000 is so good, even my little nephew has given it his seal of approval:

Presenting the white, gray, and red Epic Series of vacuum cleaners. Call me strange, but I really feel a thrill at seeing this beautiful set. Not only are they aesthetically pleasing, but they all work perfectly and give excellent service.

*The official Aerus model history chart gives the date of the 8000 as 1997-8, and that sounds right, as the 75th Anniversary Guardian came next, in 1999. I'm betting the production dates of the 6500 and 3500 would be 1998-9.

**If I REALLY wanted to have a complete set, I'd add the matching Ambassador III cylinder plus the Floor Pro shampooer/polisher, but unless I can find them at a near free price, that won't be happening.

***I've heard it said that the Guardian Ultra has more power and airflow than the R Guardians, but of course the long cord, variable speed motor, hose handle controls, and adjustable, on-board attachments have disappeared on the Ultra.

The Beginning of a Clean Home is...

...using one of these?

Firstly, a confession: Although I've been a vacuum cleaner fanatic throughout my life, I've always leaned towards cylinders. Uprights never did very much for me, perhaps because they didn't have as many "accoutrements" as cylinders. Everything in an upright is contained in one compact package.

Fast forward to about a year ago, when a local seller advertised what turned out to be a Discovery III upright for $30. I was going to decline, but figured for $30, I couldn't go very wrong. I'm quite glad I got it, because it made a huge convert out of me. I've completely fallen in love with the whole series of Electrolux and Aerus uprights*, and want to have all of the models in my collection.

The upright lineup:

What's so great about these machines? After all, they aren't as powerful as the cylinders, and so, one can assume, they don't do as good a cleaning job. Perhaps so, but I do like their advantages:

Long cord - the only other Electrolux/Aerus models with similarly long cords are the Style R cylinders. I can do the entire floor of my house from one outlet.

Slim, trim, compact design - the vacuum body (i.e. the bag chamber and motor housing) takes up very little space both in use and in storage, with no lumps, bumps, or protrusions. The machine goes completely flat when vacuuming under furniture. Although some might call this a disadvantage, the lack of an on-board hose and attachments make use and storage even easier. The machine is easy to maneuver and easy to carry (especially those models with the carrying handle**).

Easy, quick, bag change and effective after-filtration - If anyone out there knows of any easier bag change than Electrolux/Aerus uprights and cylinders, I'd love to hear about it. In addition, the uprights can be used either with the 'electrostatic' after filter or the HEPA filter, and one can add an after-bag/pre-motor foam filter if one desires.

Quiet, efficient, powerful, and versatile - I find the pitch of these uprights similar to their corresponding cylinders, but noticeably quieter. The power nozzles, as always, are somewhat loud, but not unbearable. As for cleaning efficiency, I think the uprights do a fine job when used regularly, even though they're perhaps not the best deep-cleaning machines in the world, and, judging by the amount of white, powdery debris that clings to the hose plug, they do pick up a decent amount of dirt. As for versatility, more and more often now, after vacuuming the carpet with one of the uprights, I just switch off the power nozzle and run the machine over the bare floors, rather than bothering with a cylinder. That's another point...do other uprights have a quick switch two motor system? I have no idea.

Attachments - the attachments are exactly those that come with the cylinders, including the Sidekick. I don't think there is any other upright on the market with electrified attachments. The uprights even come with the storage caddy, so everything can be stored together. Even the cylinders don't have as good a capacity for storing attachments (the Sidekick and the floor brush can't be stored on-board).

Power nozzle - Even though the upright power nozzle is exactly the same as the cylinder, save for being a little bulkier in the rear end, it does have a distinct advantage. The cylinder power nozzles tend to ride up a bit; the upright power nozzle stays flat to the floor. As always, the L shape is perfect for cleaning around corners and edges.

Those are all of the advantages I can think of at the moment, but I'm sure there are others.

After all this, I should get on to the Genesis LX, Model 1685. I found this sitting in the local Aerus shop, for sale as a reconditioned model. It has a newer handle assembly, and I'm pretty sure this was one of the models with the problematic handles, released in the early '90's (the original handle was blue, with a slider switch, top cord hook on the hand grip, and the cord coming out of the top of the hand grip). It also has a filter installed*** and a new duct hose.

This machine, to the best of my knowledge, is the companion upright to the Diplomat LX and Ambassador II, and therefore would have come out around 1991-2. The graphics and colors on all these machines are identical, including the crown, and again, to the best of my knowledge, the Genesis LX was the first upright to feature the power nozzle headlight, just as the Diplomat LX was the first cylinder power nozzle with a headlight****. The "Electrolux" logo on the Genesis LX power nozzle is slightly off-center, exactly the same as the power nozzle that came with my Ambassador II. Speaking of that, the Genesis LX seems to be the first upright to move the "Electrolux" logo off the body of the machine entirely, placing it instead on the power nozzle.

Perhaps partly because I paid the "vac shop price" for the Genesis LX, I use it fairly often, and it does as good a job as any of the other uprights I have. I do have to find a carrying handle for it, however...its a pain in the ass to grab it around the steering handle. Other than that, I have no complaints.

*starting, I should say, with the Discovery II. I couldn't care less about the earlier American models.

**I'm not sure, but I believe the Epic series of uprights was the first to include the carrying handle, perhaps the Epic 3500.

***Again, I'm not sure, but I believe the Epic upright series was the first to feature the after filter, although of course they can be added to any of the uprights.

****The Electrolux manuals are sometimes of little help in determining the chronology and history of the various models and their features. I downloaded the Genesis LX manual, and it doesn't even refer to the model by its name! In addition to this, it doesn't show the headlight. Clearly, the drawings and descriptions were lifted from the earlier Genesis model.

A Love of Dirt of Epic Proportions

Pity the Electrolux company didn't use a slogan like that...or perhaps they did, I don't know. At any rate, to continue the Epic theme, here are two more, both in white, gray, and red: the Epic 3500 upright and Epic 6500 cylinder.

The 6500 (Model C102G) is somewhat special to me, as I inherited it in 2002 from an aunt who had recently passed away. She bought it brand new in 1999 (traded in a Genesis upright for it), and I still have the original bill of sale and manual tucked away. My folks have been using it since 2002 as their household vacuum, although of late I do perhaps 99% of their cleaning, so it mostly gets used by me.

The 3500 (Model U110P) was bought from a local seller, who told me his mother had owned it, and since she had gone into a seniors' home some years ago, it had sat unused in his basement. I can believe it, as it looks showroom new. There is hardly a scuff, even on the power nozzle bumper, and everything is intact and in good condition, even the handle assembly, perhaps the weakest point of the Electrolux uprights. I bought the entire ensemble, including all the original attachments, caddy, Germ Grabber bags (that's going back a bit), and older Clean Sweep chips, for $80. It even came with the original bill of sale (bought in 1999).

Some impressions of the 6500:

I have to admit to not being much of a fan of the 6500 until relatively recently. I always thought they were loud, and burdened by clunky wands, not to mention the (perhaps) unnecessarily large top "deck". Luckily, one can always change one's mind, and I've really come to appreciate the entire Epic series of cylinders as excellent, basic, hard-working vacuums. Even though the wands and hose handle are certainly clunkier than the older style, they have the benefit of all internal wiring, a 180 degree swivel on the power nozzle neck, accessory on/off switch, and latch fit attachments. Also, the Sidekick and power nozzle can be used with one or two wands, or right on the hose handle, and the hose handle makes carpet cleaning a breeze.

The 6500 is noticeably more powerful than its Style C predecessors. The only motor difference I can see is in the fans: the 6500 front fan is smaller in diameter, but the blades are thicker. In fact, its very power is a hindrance sometimes, especially for delicate tasks. The suction reducer on the hose handle is too small, and the entire ensemble could have benefited from a variable speed motor. However, this is not a serious quibble. As for the sound of the motor and the top deck, I've grown to appreciate both.

Some impressions of the 3500:

In my two-tone gray 3500 post, I talked a little about my love of this series of uprights. The only difference, so far as I know, between the gray and white machines is the color and model number, unless something was changed internally. Being a little newer, and seeing considerably less use, the white 3500 still locks tightly into the upright position, whereas the older ones are a little looser (occasionally, when I pick up the gray 3500s by their handles, the power nozzle drops down, instead of staying locked). The white 3500 is somewhat more elegant looking than its battleship gray predecessor...in fact, Aerus seems to have gone back to this color scheme with their latest model lineup.

So, there you have it...the white, gray, and red Epic 3500 and Epic 6500. If I could only find the matching Epic 8000, I'd be in seventh heaven.

A Cylinder on a Stick With a Power Nozzle?

No, it's merely an upright. A pair of two-tone gray Epic 3500, Model U110B uprights, to be exact. I bought the pair, including the attachment kit, for a grand total of $60, and it was money well spent.

This particular model is a companion to the Renaissance Model C104H, Epic 6500, and Ambassador III, all in the same colors, and was made somewhere in the mid-to-late '90's. These two specimens came to me in somewhat dilapidated condition, with worn out cords and handles, and other signs of use, but the motors in both worked fine. I've since put some work (and money) into them, and it was well worth it.

The model on the left got a brand new switch, cord, filter assembly, filter, and headlight, and the one on the right got a new filter assembly, filter, headlight, and a whole new handle assembly, which includes the metal steering handle, hand grip, switch, cord, and top cord hook. The upright handle assembly is sold as a unit, and individual pieces are not available.

At any rate, I don't regret putting these machines back in tip-top form. I use them regularly and find them fantastic vacuums. I own an earlier upright, the Discovery III, and find the Epic 3500 considerably better at cleaning. It really is, as I said in my title, like using a canister and power nozzle; in fact, the power nozzle on the upright is exactly the same as the cylinder, but a little bigger in the rear end to accommodate the vacuum body. Both uprights and cylinders share the same attachments, and the motors even sound almost the same (the upright sounds slightly more "hushed"). Of course, the cylinder has more suction, but I find the Epic 3500 has enough suction for dusting and bare floor cleaning, and it cleans carpets well.

A word about the attachment kit: there are two things "wrong" with it. The Sidekick is an earlier model (it should be in matching gray), and one wand is missing. Other than that, its complete.

Here is a closer look at the replacements I made. I like the thick black cord; its much more durable than the original one. Even though the handle assembly on the right is not an exact match, it fits in just fine with the overall gray scheme of things. Note that the carrying handle is not part of the replacement handle assembly; both of these are original.