HEPA Vacuum Cleaner

Eliminating the fine particles in your home can improve the indoor condition for you, your family and friends that live or visit that have allergies, asthma, respiratory problems and better the living condition for everyone.

What does the acronym HEPA stand for? High Efficiency Particulate Air it the term used for the filtration vacuum cleaners it is one of the key components to a HEPA vacuum cleaner. From want I have researched the history of the HEPA filter began in the 1940’s it was developed during the Manhattan Project to capture the radioactive airborne particles floating in the air that the researcher were breathing. It became commercialized sometime in the 1950’. With the higher air quality demands increasing year after year especially during our schools asbestos abates. With air quality set at a all-time high in aerospace, pharmaceutical processing, hospitals, health care, nuclear power and in the computer that you are using to read this article. HEPA Filtered Vacuum Cleaners are making this type of air quality possible.

The HEPA filtering system is so sought after that the term, HEPA is marketed widely when looking for the best vacuum cleaner that you can buy. Non-educated consumer are offend mislead be the way that we select a vacuum cleaner much less a HEPA vacuum cleaner. If you have asthma or are an allergy sufferer and are in need of the benefit of vacuum with the filtering capabilities of trapping the fine particles of dust mite  feces which can trigger an allergy or asthma attack. Dust mite feces are about 10 - 24 micrometers and much smaller when disturbed, while you run your vacuum cleaner. The diameter of the human hair is approximately 10 times larger than that. You are looking for the terms Sealed HEPA or True HEPA on the vacuum cleaner that you want to purchase or something is designed to trap particles 1/3 the size of a human hair.

A true HEPA vacuum cleaner must capture 99.97% of the particles 0.3 micrometers in size. Another requirement for HEPA vacuum cleaner is designed to draw all of the air in making sure that this air is passed through the HEPA filter before being discharged back out to the atmosphere for us to breath.

The second key component is the motor on your HVC (HEPA Vacuum Cleaner). The HEPA filter ability to trap such small particle is to the extra high density of the filter itself. This extra density will require a powerful motor that it will need that to create a powerful vacuum and power needed to push all that dirty air through the HEPA filter.

Just because the vacuum cleaner has a label that reads HEPA or has a HEPA filter does not mean that it is a HVC not all of the air leaving the cleaner necessarily passes through the filter.

The best would be the entire HEPA Vacuum Cleaner system be EN 1822 certified.

Next would be a quality well sealed vacuum cleaner that uses EN 1822 certified filters.

Next would be a quality system that has a high filtering system but not EN 1822 certified checking for the best efficiently rating and particle size.  

 Are you tiring to find the best HEPA Vacuum, there or two basic styles to consider a canister and an Upright? It seems that the canister style receives a little better rating follow closely by the Uprights.

Two of the highest rated canister style vacuums are the Miele Capricorn and the Sebo C3.1.

The Miele Capricorn one of their top of the line vacuum cleaner has a large high efficiency fiber bag to allow for more power and less changing of bags. The canister style has exceptional swivel action with ease. The Miele Capricorn features a bag changing indicator, long cord reach and built in noise reduction making this German made vacuum not only durable and the quality of being the best. Look over Miele line of vacuum cleaners.

The Sebo C3.1 is another German made vacuum cleaner with the durability and quality that you would expect for years of dependable service. The Sebo C3.1 is a full size canister style vacuum has a 12” power head that does an outstanding job on all styles and types of carpet. The parquet floor brush attachment for additional cleaning on your high polished or hardwood floors and other on-board attachments to complete your entire in home cleaning needs. Look over Sebo full line of vacuum cleaners.

The top two Upright style vacuums are the Sebo X series leads followed very closely by Miele S7280 series Upright vacuum cleaner.

The Sebo X-series is rated one of the highest in Europe for best picked over upright vacuums. Their durability and reputation for not being sent back to the shop for repairs is keeping in the lead as the best overall picks for Upright vacuums. Being lighter than most Uprights, more powerful 1300 watts motor with outstanding suction, designed to vacuum under beds and furniture with only 5.5 inches of clearance.  The long 40 foot cord makes it easy to clean a very large area before needing to change cord outlets. The only negative that I see is that the Uprights are a little heavier than canister styles and that they take a little more room to store when you are done. Look over Sebo full line of vacuum cleaners.

The Miele S7580 series again made with German construction. Features swivel neck, flat to the floor cleaning and easy maneuverability. Other features are the finger tip controls on the power and brush controls, electronic suction controls and an automatic suction setting that will automatically adjust the suction to meet the type of flooring be cleaned and automatically adjust the brush as you change from hardwood floors to carpeted floors. The full bag indicator lets you know when you need to change the 6.3 qt dust bag. Look over Miele line of vacuum cleaners.

When looking for a HEPA filter there is a different between as small as and down too.

If the filter states that if all of the particles in the air were 0.3 micrometers in size that this filter would trap or capture 99.97 % of them or as small as 0.3.

If the filter efficiency state that can capture particles down to 0.3 micrometers in size is not the same they are refer to mixture of particle sizes and sum 0.3 particles was captured. The efficiency is not rated in the same way

Be able to capture this small particles is important because this small particles have been proven that they can reach the deepest parts of your lungs. Researchers have stated unhealthy effects this can have to all of us; asthma, other respiratory symptoms coughing, difficulty breathing, infections, chronic bronchitis, and Lung cancer etc.

Start with certified HEPA filters that same certificate or standards used for Pharmaceutical, computer manufacturing and medical facilities. It important that the filter is put to test at the same volume of air flow as you vacuum cleaner, if your HVC has more are flow than what the filter was tested at, the as small as particles could be pushed through filter out into the atmosphere. If that filter is then ran to the same operation that you are going to put it through and it captures 99.97% of the particles and maintains that capability then you will have a HEPA clean system.

The EN 1822 standard is used in certifying HEPA filters, if the manufacture is using this standard you are on the right track in finding your HVC.

If you are looking for a HVC the manufacturer they should: states some kind of claim about HEPA filters, what the filter efficiency rate is and as small as not down to 0.3 micrometers in size.

AS a consumer it is buyer beware when it comes to purchasing a HEPA Vacuum Cleaners be on the lookout for misleading tricks. On one of articles the I read found a manufacture that made the ad statement “Traps 100% of dust mites, ragweed, and common grass pollen” we have already discussed that these are relatively large particles compared to what we are wanting to capture it is the dust mites feces that we are concerned about. They are hoping that you the consumer do not know any better.

Meeting the requirement for being certified as a HEPA vacuum cleaner is the main reason why theses style of vacuum cleaners cost more than the local department store sells to the average consumer.