More Central Vacuum Information

You Can Repair Central Vacuum Tubing

One of our long time customers in St. Petersburg is involved in Poodle Rescue.  Recently, she lost one of her favorite dogs.  Our local newspaper, the St. Petersburg Times featured an article hoping to help Mrs. Bonati find her lost dog. View the article here.  Several years ago we had to repair vacuum pipe in Mrs. Bonati's home.  Over the years we have done this in hundreds of homes.  If your central vacuum tubing is damaged, you can repair it yourself.  Take a look at our eHow article to learn how to repair central vacuum tubing.

Central Vacuum Installation for Allergy Sufferers

We recently received this email from Neil from Michigan.  Notice his last paragraph.  He obviously had breathing difficulties and still wanted to install the system himself.  The fumes from the glue presented some problems for him so he got creative and solved the problem himself

"My reasons for shopping at central vacuum stores are:
1.  After reading much of the information on your web site and after receiving an e-mail from Mary Anderson answering my questions, I feel that Central Vacuum Stores is genuinely interested in providing the best customer support possible.
2.  There was no indication of price gouging. Only a few web sites posted  prices that were competitive.  Free shipping on orders over $50 were an incentive to plan and consolidate orders.
3.  The adapter from 2" Sch 40 PVC to 2" vacuum fittings brought me back to your web site because I wanted to purchase pipe locally.
4.  Orders were shipped promptly.
Thanks to all at Central Vacuum Stores.  You have gained my respect.

One tip learned from this project that enabled me to install the pipe myself:
My reason for installing a central vacuum is to improve the quality of indoor air.  I could not cope with glue fumes from joining the pipe and fittings, especially during the winter without good ventilation.  I chose to seal all of the joints using teflon tape.  This worked very well with care to support the pipe with straps and hangers that prevent joints from pulling apart.  The joints between Sch 40 pipe and the 2" adapters needed a couple more wraps of tape."

While we did not advise or recommend this method, it was a unique solution to his problem.  Winston Lindsay, President of Lindsay Manufacturing, recently emailed us to  recommend  the following:

It is always important to glue the joints because in a building  there are temperature changes and shifts that will cause movement in the tubing which will pull the tubing apart.  If you are allergic or do not  like normal PVC solvent glues you can use a product called Gorilla PVC Glue which does not have the normal  solvents you find in PVC glue.  Gorilla PVC Glue is more expense but easier to ship because the glue is not  flammable. If you had to use tape, a small piece of regular PVC electrical tape on the tube would work better than Teflon tape.  Teflon is too slippery.

The good news is that this customer purchased his products from Central Vacuum Stores and if his installation causes difficulties in the future we will be there to support him and help him solve any problems.

Central Vacuum Attachments 101

There is a common misconception about central vacuum attachment sets.  Many people believe their attachments must be the same brand as their power units.  Manufacturers definitely feed into this, because they do want you to buy their attachments.  Beam is actually manufacturing attachment sets that have functions which will only work with their units.  There is nothing wrong with that...it's business...however, even with the Beam units you can use other brand attachment sets, you just won't get all the extra functions, but maybe those extra functions are not important to you.  Maybe you'd like a powerhead that is manufactured in Europe instead of China.  You need to decide what you want and what will work best for you. At Central Vacuum Stores we are all about what our customers want and we are going to do everything we can to help them understand they do not need to have a central vacuum manufacturer dictate the attachments or accessories they purchase. We believe in the consumer pulling our products through the supply chain based on their needs instead of pushing our products through based on what we need to sell.  We do sell genuine  attachment sets from most of the leading manufacturers, so you have choices. 

The only constraints on your choice of attachments is the type of inlet you have. Central vacuum inlets are, for the vast majority of homes, universal, like the ones pictured here.  So check it out.  If your inlets look like these, then peruse the wide variety of sets available on our website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For a customer to fully enjoy the convenience of a central vacuum system we believe attachment sets are as important as the power unit.  So choose wisely, grasshopper and don't hesitate to call us if you need any help.1-800-221-8227

Central Vacuum Attachments

Central Vacuum System for Pre-Plumbed Houses

From time to time we get callers who want help finishing their pre-plumbed central vacuum system.  This is one project that will improve the indoor air quality in your home while adding value to your house.  Your builder spent several hundred dollars to install that pipe in your home and you might as well take advantage of it.  If your house is pre-plumbed you could easily tackle this project in a few hours and the cost would be less than the cost of many portable vacuum brands.

If you are interested in completing your central vacuum system give us a call at 1-800-221-8227 or visit our comparison page to compare the units available.  If your house is pre-plumbed you may want to give us a call first so we can run you through a few steps before you purchase your unit.  That way you will make sure that all your electrical connections are good before you commit to purchase a central vacuum power unit.  We treat everyone as if they are our only customer, even if they are not our customer, hoping they will become our customer.

Central Vacuum comparison page

Installing a Central Vacuum System

If you are interested in installing a central vacuum system yourself then Central Vacuum Stores is the place to go for help.  We have been installing central vacuum systems in our local market for 28 years and have helped thousands of internet customers install their own system.  Today someone called the store asking for installation advice and he didn't even buy the stuff from us!  But you know what, we helped him.  We believe in treating every customer like they are our only customer, even if they aren't our customer, because then they will want to be our customer.  Call us for help at 1-800-221-8227, use the live chat on our website, or download our own installation manual.
Central Vacuum Installation Manual

We recently got this email from a customer we helped...
I was thinking this weekend that it would be good to share the whole process since I did a conversion that I was told could not be done. Also I like how the two part Imperium power unit ended up. It has so much power that if you leave a hose connected in another part of the house you may not notice the drop in suction if it is not on the same main line.  I have three and half feeds/lines into the filter unit.
Let me do a more complete write up and get it to you.
Bruce

We are anxious to hear the whole story of Bruce's central vacuum installation and we will publish it in this blog as soon as he sends it.

Schedule 40 or Vacuum Pipe, That is the Question

For sometime we have been saying that engineers recommend schedule 40 plumbing pipe for commercial central vacuum systems.  That is why my husband, Roger, designed our patent pending adaptor to allow our customers to use schedule 40 plumbing pipe for their vacuum installations. 

We have drawn a lot of flack for this.  Even our reputation has been called into question.  Vacuum pipe has been used in the vacuum industry for years and years, it is the standard.  It is recommended by manufacturers because it is easy to use and it is what vacuum companies sell.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with it.  We sell it, and we like to sell it.  However, there is also nothing wrong with plumbing pipe.  Up until now we have had information from various engineers we deal with, but more facts are coming to light. 

Here is a link to a document discussing building codes for the state of Oregon.  www.cbs.state.or.us/bcd/programs/plumbing/interps/2005PlumbingCodeInterpSec1317_10.pdf
As you can see, they have no problem with people using schedule 40 pipe for a medical central vacuum system.  If you really are wondering about this don't take our word for it, or anyone else's word, call up the building code department in your area and ask them!  We've done it and they have laughed at us.  One inspector even said, "We don't care what kind of pipe you use for your vacuum system." 

Central Vacuum Search and Live Chat

We have recently added some great new features to https://www.centralvacuumstores.com.  First, we now have a search tool at the top of our web page.  This allows our customers to search the entire site for the items they need. Of course, if you use our search tool and for whatever reason can't find what you need, just give us a call and we will be glad to assist you in your search.  We now also have live chat enabled from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, eastern time.  Use this great feature to talk to one of our trained technical specialists.  They will be happy to answer any questions you have. 

Installation Video

Why reinvent the wheel?  At centralvacuumstores.com we have considered putting together a central vacuum installation video for our website.  We have looked at several different possibilities.  However, Beam has a first rate video available on their site and so...why reinvent the wheel.  One note about the video...they mention the necessity to use vacuum pipe, but they also mention this is because of the size.  With the 2x2 adaptor we sell at centralvacuumstores.com, it is no longer necessary to use only vacuum pipe.  You can also use schedule 40  2" plumbing pvc. You can read more about our adaptor at https://www.centralvacuumstores.com/pipe.htm.  Beam's video does require QuickTime plug-in and their link to a free download doesn't work, so I have included a link for a free download.

Here is the link to the Beam installation manual and installation videos.

http://www.beamvac.com/usa/installation/install_video.aspx

Here is the link to a free QuickTime plugin download:

http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/win.html

Advice on Gluing Pipe to Fittings

Here is a tip from Brad Prince (25 years installing central vacs) about connecting the pipe during your central vac install.  "When you connect pipe to a fitting you must only glue the pipe and not the fitting receiver cup if you want the best adhesion.  When you glue both, there is a risk of puddling which could lead to a restriction at that joint. However, when using our 2X2 adapter (see picture below) you need to follow a little different procedure.  At all of the sch.40 joints you should glue both the pipe and fitting.  Glue the pipe liberally and the fitting lightly.  If you want to use purple cleaner you can, but it is not critical.  That is because this is a suction fitting rather than pressure fitting."

Roger Ambrose, owner of Central Vacuum Stores says, "Also, after you have applied the glue, if you can twist the pipe into the fitting you will get better adhesion."

This is the patent pending 2x2 adaptor available only at Central Vacuum Stores.  It allows you to use schedule 40 plumbing pipe with your central vac install.  You can read more about it on our website.  Here is  the link.  https://www.centralvacuumstores.com/cvs/pipe.php

Avoiding the Accumulation of Debris at the Inlet Valve

Some customers are concerned about debris accumulating at the inlet valve of their central vacuum system.  Brad Prince has been installing central vacs for almost 25 years (his Central Vacuum Stores anniversary is June 2007).  I asked him how to prevent debris from accumulating at the inlet valve.  Here's his advice:    " When you introduce a riser tube (the pipe coming up from the inlet valve)  into the TY (also known as a sweep T) of  the trunk line of a vac system, it should be done at a 90 degree angle or from above. In other words from the riser tube use a 90 degree fitting to connect to the horn of the TY (sweep T).  To connect from above,  run your riser tube above the TY then use a 90 degree fitting over and another 90 degree fitting down into the horn of the TY (sweep T).  This will lesson if not eliminate debris accumulating in the valve from that riser. "

Because of Brad's years of experience installing, we brought him in the store to work as a technical advisor for our Internet customers.  If you have a perplexing question about installation, just call us toll free at 1-800-221-8227.  You can also check our troubleshooting page for solutions to many of your central vacuum problems.  Troubleshooting guide At Central Vacuum Stores our entire sales team has been trained and can answer most installation questions.