Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1942-02-05
'ShakeHands'
With Your
Vacuum
You'll Give Cleaner
More Care If You
Understand 1t


Omitted States Department Of Agriculture.
Right now, there's no question
about whether strategic materials
can do more good in vacuum clean
ers and other household equipment
or in guns, tanks, planes and ships.
Which means that many such ar
ticles on hand now are going to
have to endure "for the duration"
Fortunately, swhen it comes to
conserving. most household equip
ment, patriotism and good house
keeping march hand in hand" says
Lenore Safer, chief of the housing
and household equipment section
of the United States Department of
Agriculture's Bureau Of Home Eco
nomicS.
For instance" points out Miss
Safer, Intelligent care of cleaning
equipment means not only increased
length of service but more efficient
cleaning as well. And when you
clean efficiently you save your time,
your energy and your household
furnishings as well as your tools"
In the following paragraphs Miss
Safer illustrates her foregoing re-
mark with some tips on conserv-
ing vacuum cleaners and carpet
sweepers.
Find out first of all what makes
your vacuum cleaner tick" Read
the directions that came with it If
you can find them. Turn the clean
er upside down and look at the
nozzle and the nozzle parts. BY ex-
aiming them closely you can tell
whether your cleaner is the type
that cleans by suction alone-or if
1t has sweeping and beating &C
ton as well. The type of the vacuum
cleaner makes a difference in the
way you care for it.
If your vacuum cleaner is what is
known as the suction" type it will |
have no movable parts inside the |
nozzle. The nozzle, of course, is
the part Of the cleaner that contacts
the rug. Since all the cleaning is |
done by suction it is most important |
that the nozzle at all times makes q
close seal with the rug.
If your vacuum cleaner does not
depend on suction alone for cleaning
1t will have inside of the nozzle some
kind of rotating part that sweeps
and beats the rug. This part may
be brush that goes round and
round-or 1t may be cylinder that
rotates and has attached to it both
brushes and rubber vibrators-or it
may be cylinder that combines a
smooth metal beaten bar and
brushes. In these cleaners, while |
having the right adjustment of the |
nozzle Is important, it is even more |
important that the rotating parts
are kept in good order. In this type
OF cleaner, the suction as a rule is
not as high as in the straight sue
ton cleaner-and if the beating and
sweeping action decreases, the clean
ing ability of the cleaner is i'm
paired.
If your cleaner has an adjustable
nozzle and if your rugs are of diff
ferent thlckneSSes you may have to |
adjust the nozzle from room to room
to get effective cleaning. You can
adjust the nozzle in the following
way with the aid of a quarter or a
half dollar.
If your cleaner Is of the upright |
suction type hold the handle as you
do when you clean. Then raise the |
nozzle until a quarter slides under
easily. For other types of cleaning,
raise it a little higher-untl a half |
dollar slides under easily. Start the |
motor to test the nozzle height. |
The carpet should pull up against |
the bottom of the cleaner.
Some nozzles adjust automatically, |
some you adjust by stepping on a
pedal, some you can adjust by hand |
by small screw at the side OF. the |
nozzle.
Keep all brushes free from hair |
and threads. Be sure brushes on
rotating parts inside the nozzle ex-
tend slightly below the lips of the
nozzle. They wear down in time |
and need to be lowered. You can
lower some of them by a screw,
lever or a pin located at the end of |
each brush roll, while others require
the attention of a service man. |
When you can't lower it the proper
amount any longer, you need to get
q new brush.
Here's how to judge how far the
brush should extend over the lips of
the nozzle: Turn the machine up
side down and place stiff piece OF |
cardboard across the opening in the
bottom. The bristle tufts should |
come Just above the edge of the card.
No matter how hard the motor
and the fan of the cleaner work, a
good cleaning job can't be done I'M
less the dirt container is emptied at |
least once a week-and oftener if |
you do an extra lot of cleaning. In |
most vacuum cleaners the bag itself |
acts as a filter and catches the dirt. |
In other types a separate filter and
dirt container are provided. Both
should be kept clean. |
If the dirt container is the bag,
take it out and empty it-and occa-
sionally brush it gently but thor
oughly. Some manufacturers ad-
wise that bags be dry cleaned twice