Needs for a Domestic Vacuum Cleaner - Essay Example

Needs for a Domestic Vacuum Cleaner Introduction Vacuum Cleaners come in all varieties, and with large claims about their power and effectiveness at cleaning. Though most of these products are available in different sizes, shapes, and are based on differing technology, the question remains whether they are able to meet the expectations of the customers. The following report attempts to explore the above question, and makes use of the real time cleaning activity of the writer using the vacuum cleaner, Dyson DC08T. The exercise was undertaken at the two bedroom apartment of the author, and the details of the operation were meticulously recorded. These details were later compiled to give an account of the entire activity, and to assess the effectiveness of the vacuum cleaner. These findings will be presented in the current report in elaborate detail. Finally, the report will also include any suggestions about desirable improvements in the used vacuum cleaner. This will be based on the author’s experience while undertaking the cleaning activity, and his perspective of how the activity could have been performed better, had the current cleaner come with those improvements. Product Overview: Dyson DC08T The Dyson DC08T is a hypoallergenic cylinder vacuum cleaner, and comes with a "lose no suction power" claims from the manufacturer. It Employs a Bagless Dust Collector, and is free-standing. In appearance, it’s cute, compact and small. The bright colorful exteriors are attractive, and the cleaner has easily maneuverable buttons. The hose pipe can be wrapped around the cleaner and hence facilitates easy storage. With a maximum volume of the dust collector of 2 Litres, it is capable of working for an extended period of time without the need to clean and restart. The cleaner however is not capable of working on a remote control mode, and also does not have the capacity to multi-function. It comes with a Telescopic wand and a turbo head for deep cleaning or using on pet hair. The main technical specifications of Dyson DC08T can be observed from the table below: Main Specs Manufacturer Dyson Freestanding Or Built In Freestanding Integrated Tools with Integrated Tools Maximum Volume of Dust Collector in Litre 2 Maximum Wattage 1200 Multifunctional without Multifunction Power Supply Mains Remote Control without Remote Control Tube Material Plastic Fixed Type / Shape Sledge Type of Dust Collector Bagless Dust Collector Vacuum Cleaner Type Cylinder Report on The Cleaning Exercise The Cleaning Schedule The author had selected to record the vacuuming activity on his weekly cleaning day. Though the high traffic areas like the living room are regularly cleaned on a daily basis, time constraints prevent a thorough cleaning of carpets, rugs, stairs, furniture, hard floors, as well as difficult to access recesses between the furniture. It is the above regions and objects that will form the focus of the cleaning activity. Layout of The Cleaning Area Before proceeding to report the actual exercise, it is appropriate to elaborate upon the layout of the cleaning area. The cleaning will be undertaken in my two-bedrooms, that have hard floors and furniture like, bed, dresser and an armchair. It will also include the living room, that too has hard floor, a Belgium carpet, and an assortment of rugs. The furniture in this room includes a fabric-furnished sofa set, a glass-topped center table, two wooden side tables, and an array of artifacts that include small sized statutes, terracotta vases, and several other similar displays. The foyer connecting the living room to the hall is bare of any rugs though it is cluttered with potted plants that are placed in plastic containers arranged in such a manner that cleaning between then is normally difficult. The hall leads to the bedrooms and the kitchen, and also connects to the terrace via a flight of wooden stairs. The hall houses dining table and chairs, and a couple of lounge chairs. The kitchen has a marble floor and working slab made of the same material. Due to the fact that the kitchen space is used maximum for storage, both of food stuff and of utensils, the area is witness to heavy accumulation of dust and grime over the course of the week. There are discrete corners and nooks that are hard to reach ordinarily, and will test the usability of Dyson DCO8T in this regard. There are two bedrooms; one of them is used as the master bedroom while the other largely serves as the study. The first one has a large quantity of furniture – large double bed, dresser, side tables, coffee table and an armchair. The second bedroom that is also smaller, has a single bed, a study cum computer table, and a large section of the wall into which shelves have been built to accommodate my collection of books and stationary. The height of the shelve acts as a deterrent to clean it supper portions and its roof, a fact that can further test the effectiveness of Dyson DCO8T. The stairs that lead from the foyer to the terrace have carved railing in addition to the wooden floors. The terrace is however bare of any structure, and is simply an open hard-floored space. The above elucidation of the cleaning area will help in making my narration of the cleaning activity (that is follow in the following pages) more amenable to visualization. This in turn, will help me in making the reader relate to what I was exactly trying to attempt, and how successful did I find the Dyson DC08T while I was using it. Using The Dyson DC08T The following pages will elaborate on the actual use of the Dyson DC08T, as the cleaning proceeded down the various sections of the apartment. The layout the report is arranged to facilitate the narration of the vacuum cleaning exercise, and at the same time summaries my thoughts on its performance. In addition to this, I have also includes the possible recommendations and improvements that I felt will enhance the utility of the vacuum cleaner. The vacuum cleaner looks sleek and handy, and within minute of starting it, I was able to admire the ease with which it can be turned and moved. It is easy to roll and maneuver, and does not weigh down my hand. As it is lightweight, cleaning with it does not place any strain on my back or shoulder. All its buttons are easy to use, and the cord is pleasantly long to further facilitate mobility. Starting in the living room, I found that its claims about power suction were greatly justified. The vigor with which the hose sucks up the carpet dust is rather amazing. Within minutes the carpet appeared to have taken a new spotless look. I was almost afraid of letting The Dyson DC08T vacuum the sofa-set, for fear of tearing the delicate fabric sofa – though the result was not at all as feared! The Dyson DC08T was successfully able to dust away the sofa fabric and cushions, without even ripping a stitch, and the result were once again a glowing fabric. The same results were obtained with the rugs, the smaller ones of which, however had to be held firmly in place by my foot. A possible recommendation that can be noted here is that the vacuum cleaner should come with an adjustable speed of the suction – as it is required to handle both heavy weight items like the carpets, as well as delicate rugs and artifacts. I was able to place the cleaning nozzle of the Dyson DC08T in the nooks between the sofas and the chairs, as well as in the hidden corners and under the furniture, thanks to the handy hose-pipe, that has both length and flexibility. The flexible motion of the nozzle was also handy in vacuuming the length of the living room curtains, that are made of heavy fabric. The rods holding the curtains and the brackets framing the rods, all of these were adequately cleaned of dust. The cleaning of the various artifacts however, once again placed a challenge, as their integrity was threatened by the high power suction. I had to be very careful during this process, as the terracotta vases, and the various other figurines were very delicate. There was another problem that I encountered while I was cleaning the vases that embossed or carved surfaces. As the vacuum cleaner performed, I noticed that the suction, though powerful, was not very targeted. It was as if a blast was sweeping away the surface, but the uneven exterior largely remained full of dust. It is however, beyond my understanding why such a result was obtained. Though a possible improvement could be the use of different sized nozzles as attachments. This will mean that there is adequate provision for handling different types of surfaces. An attachment that has a narrower opening could be employed for sucking in dust particles from the minute crevasses and unevenness in surfaces like wood, plaster of Paris or terracotta. The side-tables and the glass-topped tables were easily made dust free, though, the same problem was encountered when it came to the table-legs that had embossing and carvings on them. A point that needs mention here is that the speed with which I was able to conduct the cleaning of my living room was rather remarkable. This can be attributed to the flexibility of the pipe, the ease with which I was able to move to and fro with the machine, and of course its powerful suction. Moving from the living room to the foyer, the vacuum cleaner was used to clear the hard-floor and the pots and the plans that are scattered in the area. The result on the marble floor was satisfactory; it was made spotlessly dust free. However, when it came to the pots, or for that matter to the actual plants it was rather a precarious affair. The intricate surfaces were again not very satisfactorily cleared of dust, though a lot of power seems to have been expended. The recommendation of using different nozzles as attachment was once again manifested in my thoughts here. The hall did not pose much of a challenge to the vacuum cleaner, owing to the fact that it was largely a bare expense of floor, punctuated only by a dining table and two lounge chairs. Dyson DC08T was once again able to deliver on its suction power, leaving the floor, the dining table and its chair sets, and the lounge chairs sparkling clean. The lounge chairs’ cushions and seat covers to were rendered dust-free within minutes. Reaching out under the tables, the nozzle exhibited tremendous flexibility in drawing the dust particles from un-reachable corners as well. On an impulse, I turned the hose towards the walls, to see if it was powerful to dust away the dirt that had accumulated right in the middle of the corner farthest from the central area. It was rather scary to see that the Dyson DC08T was slowly pulling away, not only the dirt, but also some portion of the paint that had ruptured at that point. However, the vacuum cleaner proved really successful in pulling down the cobwebs that had lined the shady corners of the roofing. Instead of taking the nozzle too close to the affected portion (a caution that was necessary after the fiasco with cleaning the walls), but aiming it from at least a distance of 15 inches, the cobwebs were smoothly pulled in and guzzled by the vacuum cleaner. The hall curtains, being made up of a flimsy and delicate flowing fabric, were better left unattended by the vacuum cleaner. This was done as the material kept getting sucked into the nozzle, and the vacuum cleaner was therefore repeatedly stopped and restarted. This had the potential effect of causing damage to the curtains, though, I did not ventured to carry on the cleaning of these curtains after the second attempt. Here again, an alternative speed of suction could have been desirable to draw in the dust from the fabric without causing any wear and tear of the material itself. Moving onto the bedrooms, the master bedroom was tackled first. This bedroom is furnished with a large double bed, a dresser, two side tables, and a coffee table with a single chair. It’s carpeted, though the carpeting is not as think as that in the living room. There are also two rugs, on either side of the bed, and both are made of furry material. The cleaning operation of the furniture was completed without any noticeable difference from that of the living room. Though, the cleaning of the carpeted area was rather difficult owing to the large number of furniture pieces. However, the small size and the flexible and lengthy hose, again came handy, and made cleaning under furniture, especially the large bed easy. The furry rugs, nevertheless wore a slightly ruffled or disheveled appearance once Dyson DC08T was done with them – though no apparent damage was visible. In the second bedroom, the flooring is all wood, with just a medium sized rug placed next to the single bed. There is a study table, and several shelves housing a large assortment of books and stationary. Using the Dyson DC08T over the shelves was a precarious affair, as the powerful machine appeared more than capable of gulping away any lose sheets of paper that came its way. The plain surface and the glass paneling of the shelves were more than cleaned – they wore a scrubbed look after the Dyson DC08T was used over them. The telescopic wand of the vacuum cleaner came in handy when the tops o f the high shelves were required to be swiped. With the regular ease with which Dyson DC08T cleans furniture, and the precision with which the carpet is wiped, the second bedroom was done in rather a speed-breaking time. The wooden floors were perhaps the best cleaned, as the smooth surface provided an open ground for the Dyson DC08T to exhibit its full potential. Moving away from the bedrooms, I started a general dry-cleaning session of the Kitchen that has hard marble flooring. Like with the wooden floor in the bedroom, the marble of the kitchen. The telescopic wand and the long hose were again employed to clean beside the storage canisters, areas under and around the cooking range, and the most problematic region – the space under the sink. Under normal occasions, I prefer to hand-dust the shelves of the kitchen, though for the present case, I did try and attempt the same using the vacuum cleaner. It was rather a limited success, as though the hose-pipe was able to sneak in most places, the containers themselves were escaping the intake of dirt by the cleaner. Perhaps, it was again due to the lack of focus that I had earlier witnessed and already commented upon, in the nozzle. Coming to the stairs, it was actually a pleasure to see that I can leave the vacuum behind and simply take the hose with me right up to the first step on the top. However, a minor problem arose, when the dirt holding space needed cleaning. This was possibly more due to the fact that the vacuum cleaner was removing large amounts of dust quickly, than due to its limited capacity. Another point that came across was that it was a little difficult to use the tools to enact the above operation. The terrace was the last area to be tackled, and it too was shining in quick-time. Conclusions and Recommendations Dyson DC08T scores high on its appearance and weight. With an ergonomically sound design and easy moving wheels, it makes the job of cleaning a lot easier than can be expected from the traditional cleaners. Its long hose is a boon to people who have stairs or have large quantity of furniture that makes cleaning in nooks and corners a nightmarish affair. It is not only easy to maneuver in different directions, but also is easy to carry across hurdles if desired. Dyson DC08T has an advantage of being capable of getting stored easily and compactly. Its size and shape facilitate this, though the wrap-around hose is certainly the main reason why it can be stored almost anywhere without using much space. However, for all the good points said about the less space that it requires, it must be mentioned that the wire cords can pose a problem while trying to adjust the entire system within a confined space. It’s reach is tremendous, and it’s capable of drawing dust from as far as 10-12 ft ahead. Additionally, it comes with a telescoping wand that makes reaching far off niches easier. Though, this super suction power, at times become a bit hazardous for its own good. It is difficult to vacuum delicate fabric or even get the dust off of surfaces that are corrugated or carved in any manner. A possible recommendation that can be made regarding the above is that the vacuum cleaner should come with an adjustable speed of the suction. Since, it is required to handle both heavy weight items like the carpets, as well as delicate rugs and artifacts, it’s only logical that provision should be included in the vacuum cleaner that teats the two categories appropriately. Another possible improvement could be the use of different sized nozzles as attachments. This will mean that there is adequate provision for handling different types of surfaces. An attachment that has a narrower opening could be employed for sucking in dust particles from the minute crevasses and unevenness in surfaces like wood, plaster of Paris or terracotta. For using on curtains, it’s again desirable that an alternative speed of suction should be employed so that the fabric is not caused any wear and tear. Dyson DCO8T is operationally very sound, though it does make quite a noise. However, it is actually difficult to use the attachments and/or use the tools. This is one aspect that perhaps can do with a lot of improvement – it should be made more user-friendly in terms of adjusting its various functions. Read More