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The Essential Guide » The Planning Stage » Built in Vacuum Systems in New and Renovated Homes
Built in Vacuum Systems
If you are new to Self Build, these are something you may not have heard of.By their nature, “Built in” or “Central” vacuum systems tend to be something that are often only considered when you “build new” (although they can be “retro fitted” into existing properties).
Commercial Developers in this country don’t tend use them because they add cost to building a house that they are usually trying to build “as cheaply as possible”. Also, like most things, Built in Vacuum systems are “not for everyone”.
So what are they?
To explain, I’ll start by asking: What are the weaknesses of your present Vacuum cleaners?
1) They are bulky, often heavy, and need to be stored in a cupboard somewhere in the house. You will often have to “lug” one upstairs, and back downstairs.
2) The lead is never long enough!
3) They tend to have a fairly limited lifespan. – Bits start to break off, the motor goes, and you end up buying a new one every 2 – 4 years on average.
4) They are noisy
5) They often have a small dust bag (sometimes replaceable, sometimes not), which needs regular cleaning.
6) As they clean, many of them blow a percentage of the dust back into the room through the lining of the bag, which partly wastes your time in cleaning in the first place! – This is especially bad if you or your children have “dust allergies” or anything similar. – The dust also then settles on your furniture, which will then need’s dusting!
7) They often lack the power to pick up adequately, and leave “bits” around the place. – Especially when the bag is getting full (the suction power of many vacuum cleaners reduces as the bag gets starts to get full).
So, although we buy them by their millions, many of them are not really doing the “first rate job” that we hope they are!
If you are considering building your own home, the “Built in”, or “central” vacuum system may be something for you to THINK ABIOUT.
The idea of the system is to give you a product that: “Does a better job than a vacuum cleaner, is less noisy, less messy, easier to use, doesn’t need replacing every couple of years, doesn’t re circulate the dust into the room, has more power to give you a better finished job, and probably adds value to your home”.
The basic system is designed to be pretty much “invisible”. This is done by fitting all the ducting which carries the dust away, inside the walls. So, obviously, if you have existing or solid walls it is going to be more difficult to install without major works ( it is possible to fit
Here is how they work:
Your system will usually be designed before you start to build. That way there is maximum flexibility to be able to position everything where it is going to be able to operate most efficiently.
You will have a “central unit”, which you can position in a store room, a garage, utility room (etc), out of the way.
The motor is part of this central unit, and so is the “dust collection” point. – By positioning the “working parts” of the system out of the way, you don’t have to worry about finding a space in a cupboard in the house to keep your vacuum cleaner, and you can often vastly reduce the noise levels within the rooms when you use it (especially if it’s “tucked away” in the garage, where it may be pretty much “inaudible”).
From the central unit, runs the ducting, to “outlets” around the house. – The positions of these outlets will usually be fairly central to each storey of the property. - That way you may only need one or two outlets in total (depending on how many storeys there are to your property and how large the property is).The outlets look similar (but slightly larger than) a standard electrical socket (see image), which makes the “working part” of the whole system pretty much invisible.
That’s basically it for the “system” itself! – It’s not a complicated thing!
You then have the hose, which connects to the power outlets.
The hose comes in various lengths and is similar to the hose you get with your attachments on a standard vacuum system, - but longer. – The length of hose will be set as part of the design of your system, so that you can reach everywhere you need to, but so that you don’t have TOO much of it draped all over the place! – When it’s not in use, it is coiled up, and can stored or hung up anywhere out of the way.
All you do to operate the system is plug in the hose to an outlet, and flick a switch (normally on the handle). – That’s it!
So why are these systems better than standard vacuum cleaners?
Well, the best way to answer that will be to compare the systems, like for like.
- So, going back to the weaknesses of the standard vacuum system:
1) Standard vacuum cleaners are bulky, often heavy, and need to be stored in a cupboard somewhere in the house. You will often have to “lug” one upstairs, and back downstairs.
Built in systems have the central unit positioned “out of the way”, and you don’t have to move a heavy piece of equipment around the house.
2) With a standard vacuum cleaner the lead is never long enough!
With a built in system, the hoselength is designed as part of the system so that it will reach everywhere you need it to, often from just one central outlet on each floor.
3) Normal vacuum cleaners tend to have a fairly limited lifespan. – Bits start to break off, the motor goes, and you end up buying a new one every 2 – 4 years on average.
Built in systems are designed to be more robust and have long life spans. Also because they are not being constantly carried around, banged, dropped and generally mistreated, they are less likely to develop faults
4) Normal vacuum cleaners are noisy
Central systems are designed to run quietly by positioning the motor “out of the way” (in a garage, utility room or similar).
5) Normal vacuum cleaners often have a small dust bag (sometimes replaceable, sometimes not), which needs regular cleaning.
With a built in system, because you don’t have to carry the dust bag round with you, it can be much larger and will need cleaning far less often.
6) As they clean, many standard vacuum cleaners blow a percentage of the dust back into the room through the lining of the bag, which partly wastes your time in cleaning in the first place! – This is especially bad if you or your children have “dust allergies” or anything similar. – The dust also then settles on your furniture, which will then need’s dusting!
Built in systems take ALL of the dust straight from the carpet or floor into the hose, and away to the central unit via the ducting in the wall. This ensures that NONE of the dust gets back into the room, and therefore reduces the general dust levels within the room. – It is therefore far better for people with dust allergies of any type.
7) Standard vacuum cleaners often lack the power to pick up adequately, and leave “bits” around the place. – Especially when the bag is getting full (the suction power of many vacuum cleaners reduces as the bag gets starts to get full).
Built in systems are generally more powerful than standard cleaners. Partly because the motor is in the central unit out of the way, so it doesn’t have to be carried round the house and can be larger and give better suction. Also, the suction strength does not diminish as “the bag gets full” as it does with many standard vacuum cleaners.
Accessories etc:
There are plenty of accessories available to go along with whichever system you buy. – All the things you normally expect with your standard vacuum cleaner. – However, because of the way the system works, they will often be of far more use, and work better than the tools you normally associate with your present cleaner:
1) Cleaning the car:
You simply run the hose to the car as you would run it to any part of the house. – No trying to find an extension lead because the cable doesn’t reach the car, no having to cart the vacuum cleaner around the car, with it falling over and hitting your paintwork! No having to stop work as soon as you feel a drop of rain. AND you get the extra suction power of the central motor to help you get a better finished job.
2) Pets:
Pet grooming accessories are readily available. The extra power of the unit means you will probably do the job quicker. The smell won’t come back into the room via the bag, and there won’t be as many “stray hairs” landing on the furniture and the carpet because the strength of the suction will take more of them directly into the system.
3) Generally:
You will generally find that the quality of the accessories is far higher than the ones that come with your standard vacuum cleaner. They shouldn’t snap and break as easily, and be more effective because of the power of the system itself.
Cost of the systems:
These things ain’t cheap! – That’s just a fact. - If you are on a very tight budget one of these systems may not be for you.
They have to be designed delivered and fitted, and all that costs money. – The main cost of the system is for the central unit itself. Then you will buy as much hose as you need and choose your accessories.
It is not really possible to give you a “price” for a system. There are too many variables. However, just to give you a basic idea, the central units cost anywhere between about £500 and £2000 depending on the model you choose. On top of that you have to add design costs, delivery, installation (ducting / fittings etc), hose, accessories etc.
The best way to get an idea of the likely cost of a system that will suit you particular project is to ring one or two of the suppliers and discuss your ideas. – They may ask to make an appointment to visit you, or they may give you advice over the phone.
(Note: you use the Trade Directory on this site, you will see, under each ad, a list of “tick boxes” that give a “quick reference” as to the nature of the advertisers business. One of these boxes will tell you if they are happy to give “free advice”. If that is ticked, you should be able to contact them without them “landing on you like a ton of bricks” trying to get you to sign up to buy a system!)
Maintenance:
One of the good things about built in vacuum systems is that they are designed to be “low maintenance”. The quality of the build and the materials used will normally give you many years of use with minimal repair and maintenance. However, make sure you ask the right questions before you sign up to buy one:
1) What is the guarantee?
2) How often will it need servicing?
3) How often (if at all) do I need to change the filters?
4) How available are spare parts, and how much do they cost?
5) What is the maintenance network set up? How close are the maintenance team and how long will it take them to get to me if I need a repair?
6) Is the company “sound”, and likely to be around for years to come? (They will all say “Yes” to this, but ask how long they have been around and what their general set up is to help you to get a feel for the size and nature of their business and longevity).
Conclusion:
hese systems have been around for a long time, so they must work and there must be advantages to owning them.
They are not cheap, but they are generally very good, and I have not heard any bad reports about them to date (apart from the fact that the hose needs coiling up and storing, and if it is very long, it can be a bit awkward to wind and store tidily). I would say that that is a minor disadvantage compared to lugging a heavy vacuum cleaner around and storing that, - especially when the system has so many other advantages.
They are not for everyone. – If your budget is very tight, you may be better spending it on the kitchen, or bathrooms. BUT, if you can afford to install one of these systems, they are worth at least taking a look at so that you can weigh up all the pro’s and con’s yourselves.
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