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Encouraging Heroes. You can be one too.

Editor’s note: I know this article isn’t directly relevant to parenting, but I couldn’t resist running it, especially based on reason number one. With 4 boys, I’ve had more than my fair share of items being used for other than their intended purposes.

Everyone has a vacuum in the house, but there are plenty of families out there that always have a broken vacuum cleaner. There are many reasons why vacuums break down and virtually all of them are preventable. Rather than crying over a broken vacuum, the family can change their fortunes by making sure that they have taken care of these five vacuum issues in the home.

The Vacuum Is Used for the Wrong Things

Many times, the family is vacuuming things that simply will not be sucked up by any vacuum. Very large or long debris such as ribbons, string and plastic wrappers are going to get bound up in the brush and cause the vacuum to overheat or break down. Vacuums lose suction when they are trying to suck up things that are simply too big for them.

The Vacuum Is Used in the Wrong Place

There are families that use a vacuum on hardwood floors, concrete or on especially thick carpet. While the vacuum may pick up some debris, these surfaces are not suited for traditional vacuum cleaners. When the vacuum is running very hot and not picking up any debris, it can overheat easily. Likewise, thick carpet can be sucked up by the vacuum and become caught in the brush or spindle. Again, the vacuum will overheat and break down.

The Vacuum Is Used Too Much

As with every piece of mechanical equipment in the home, the vacuum will only last so long. Using the vacuum constantly is going to cause the suction to be lost more quickly as well as causing certain parts to break faster. While users can find genuine replacement parts for their vacuum, it is difficult to repair vacuums on your own. You may have to take it to a repair company to get the vacuum running again.

No Water

Many families think that running the vacuum over a little patch of water on the ground cannot hurt. However, the water is going to break down and even short out a vacuum. With the vacuum being shorted out, it could even short out the circuit breaker of the outlet it is plugged in to. Vacuuming water should be left to specialty items such as shop vacs.

The Filter Is Never Cleaned

The filter in a vacuum must be cleaned regularly to ensure that is can keep suction at all times. The filter keeps small bits from breaking the inside of the vacuum while also allowing for quality suction. However, if it is not cleaned, suction will be quickly lost.

When using the vacuum to clean the house, the family must make sure to follow these five principles to ensure the vacuum is always in good working order.

About the author: A recent college graduate from University of San Francisco, Anica loves dogs, the ocean, and anything outdoor-related. She was raised in a big family, so she’s used to putting things to a vote. Also, cartwheels are her specialty. You can connect with Anica here. If you need to find genuine replacement parts for your household appliances, Anica suggests you check out the services of Mending Shed.

Image courtesy of ebrunar via Creative Commons license, some rights reserved.