topic Re: Cleaning with vacuum in Home

Cleaning with vacuum

drizzellla — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 23:38:35 GMT

We have a large mat at our front door. Leaves seem to accumulate at the corner where the mat is placed. My husband cleans it with a broom once in awhile but it doesn't get all the pieces. The more people walk on the dry leaves, the tinier the leaf pieces become.

I vacuum the inside door mat at least once a day but there are always more leaf pieces brought in all the time, by dog, people and bikes.

So I vacuumed the outside mat with my Dyson canister vacuum. It took forever and really did not do a good job. I then tried my Hoover upright. It did a tremendous job. It cleaned the mat and all leaf bits and stems were gone. THEN the next day was windy. And more leaves filled the corner.

I am tempted to vacuum the outside mat again. Do you think I am harming the Hoover vacuum? I do not care if I ruin the Dyson but it will still take forever and do a so so job. And I don't think using the Dyson is worth the effort. But I like my Hoover and don't want to wreck it.

Do you think it will ruin the vacuum?

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

MickD — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 23:48:35 GMT

I don't know, but I place a bath towel on the inside rugs at our front and back doors. I have 2 dogs. I take the towels off when we have company.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

piperbay — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 23:52:24 GMT

I would save the vacuum for indoors only and not take chances ruining it. I have Don Aslett's astro turf mat outside of my front door and then I just shake it out to clean. You could also try his rubber broom to sweep the outdoor mat., it's very good and you'll pull up any leaves,etc.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

x Hedge — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 23:52:41 GMT

2 cautions:
*Don't treat it like a Shop-Vac and try to vacuum up nuts and bolts, twigs and sticks, etc. Flexible pieces of dried old leaves should not harm it.
*Don't vacuum the mat if it's damp from rain or snow. Any moisture in the mat will harm the vacuum and, if it's wet enough, possibly electrocute you.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

RedTop — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:02:15 GMT

In the summer, I vacuum my outside mat all the time. Sometimes my husband uses the leaf blower to clean the mat and porch.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

jannabelle1 — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:03:09 GMT

My DH has a very old Hoover (probably 30+ years old) that he uses in our garage occasionally. It drives me crazy, but I let him do his thing! That said, I definitely wouldn't use one of our new vacuums anywhere but in the house. Outdoor leaves, wet or dry, can have mold or spores on them, and I wouldn't want that to end up in my vacuum canisters. There are probably better choices for taking care of that outdoor mat!

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

drizzellla — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:13:43 GMT

Thank you!

I am going to go out and vacuum. The leaves are very dry. And that is why they are breaking into smaller pieces.

I don't think a towel would work well. The inside mat has a rubber backing and the only way I can move it, is to pick it up. The "guys" move the mat all over the place. If I didn't move it back, the mat would end up 2' feet from the front door.

Thanks for all you input.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

Tigriss — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:16:49 GMT

Get a 5hp or higher shop vac from your local home improvement center or discount store. You need more horsepower to really get the down deep dirt, plus you can always use a shop vac for vacuuming water and the car and nasty stuff.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

Mominohio — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:25:41 GMT

Just a thought but maybe try a different kind of mat that lets go of the debris easier.

We have the Don Aslett's Astro Turf mats, the more decorative ones that don't seem to be in stock right now, and for the most part they can be simply shaken to remove the debris. The only thing that sticks a bit is pine needles, and even at that, the few that don't release can be easily picked out when shaking the mat. They grab way more dirt than any other mat we have ever had.

I'd be worried about using the Hoover in the house on clean carpet again, after using it on outdoor mats. I would think the beater bar and it's bristles would get really dirty from that outdoor mat over time, then transfer that to the carpets indoors.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

drizzellla — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 01:01:44 GMT

Mominohio - I did take the beater bar off the vacuum last time and cleaned it. I was so surprised that it was relatively clean. It is a "paws" model. So dog fur does not stick to the beater bar. So I think that is what helped keep it clean. It was the first time I ever took the beater bar off.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

webbgarner1 — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 03:27:54 GMT

@drizzellla When my mother became elderly we had a ramp built to her home as she was so unsteady on stpes. It was covered in that typical green mat you see used on a lot of ramps. I vacumed it once a week. Never harmed her vacume cleaner.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

Nataliesgramma — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 11:39:56 GMT

I also recommend Don's outdoor mat...

I have an old Eureka sweeper that I use on the outdoor carpet in the summer on the patio. I only use it for that and store it in the barn.....

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

nyc1 — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 12:26:07 GMT

I personally would not use the same vacuum inside and out. We have a cut out area next to my front door that gets scraps of leaves, etc. I sweep it but when we want to get every last bit of leaf out of there, we use a leaf blower. I don't like the idea of the possibility of a bug on one side of the leaf... eggs, and bug babies in my vacuum!!! That may be a little extreme, but I would prefer not to mix the two.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

SilleeMee — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 13:16:11 GMT

I use my older Shark Lift-Away in the garage to vacuum the floor, doormat and car interior. This includes leaves, dirt, small pebbles and pine needles. I don't use it to vacuum up metal things like nails or screws. I wash the filters frequently and more than I do for my other Shark which I use on the inside of my house where there isn't that much dirt and dust.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

drizzellla — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 13:31:38 GMT

I forgot! I can't believe I forgot! I have an Eureka in the attic. I was not impressed with it. I have plush carpet in the living room. And it just did not seem to do a good job on the plush carpet. It was almost brand new - so I stuck it in the attic.

It will be my "outside" vacuum!

Thank you Thank you

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

jlkz — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 13:57:12 GMT

@drizzellla

Understand the problem very well. Start at the source: the wind is driving the leaves into a corner.

Try to devise a set up that keeps the wind away from the corner: create a barrier using large planters or some other device that will catch the leaves before they reach your door. Position planters or bench that fully sits on the floor to angle away from your door.

The terra-cotta planters keep a mountain of oak leaves from swamping our front porch area:

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

SilleeMee — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 14:17:47 GMT

Things that will damage a regular vacuum cleaner:

- very fine dust like fireplace ash or dust from construction

- large pieces of broken glass

- coins

- hardware like screws and bolts

- liquids

Anything soft and flexible like leaves and small twigs are okay to vacuum. Turn off the brush roll or better yet, use a hard-floor attachment if your vacuum has one. @drizzellla

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

drizzellla — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 14:13:36 GMT

Jlkz

Great idea - but it won't work the way the front of the house is set up. There is an overhang that goes across the garage and living room and then to the front door. Then the overhang ends after the front door. That makes the corner.

I can't have anything in the corner - it would interfer with the storm door because it opens out.

I do have planters in the front of the house. Just not under the overhang.

Thank you for the attractive picture and suggestion.

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

Sweetbay magnolia — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 14:21:06 GMT

Howdy. I do that sort of thing all the time. I open the front door and keep moving to the porch, oak leaves and all. (I sweep and blow, too - just depends.)

I used to keep a vac in the garage for use only out there - then I changed my mind and decided to use it as a first floor indoor vac. No problem.

Naturally I avoid things that are wet.⚡️

Re: Cleaning with vacuum

Fressa — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 16:41:05 GMT

I would hesitate to use your indoor vacuum outside. Those leaf bits can not be good for either vacuum. I have Dysons for the inside of the house. For my outdoor mats/rugs I use my coconut broom or the Wet/dry vac. Most of the time I use the coconut broom and it does a really nice job. Once in a while I will use my battery operated Sun Joe blower and it does a nice job of getting all those bits and pieces from the rugs. We have woods on three sides of our homes so I am always cleaning up pine needles and leaves, etc.